1. What is general bookkeeping?

General bookkeeping is the process of recording, organizing, and maintaining a business’s financial transactions to keep financial records accurate and up to date.

2. What does general bookkeeping include?

General bookkeeping typically includes recording income and expenses, managing accounts payable and receivable, reconciling bank and credit card accounts, maintaining financial ledgers, and preparing basic financial reports.

3. How is bookkeeping different from accounting?

Bookkeeping focuses on recording and organizing financial data, while accounting analyzes and interprets that data for tax preparation, financial planning, and compliance.

4. Why is general bookkeeping important for small businesses?

Accurate bookkeeping helps businesses track cash flow, stay compliant with tax requirements, make informed decisions, and prepare clean financials for tax filing or growth.

1. Why does my business need a budget?

A budget helps you plan ahead, control spending, manage cash flow, and make informed financial decisions instead of reacting to surprises.

2. How often should a budget be updated?

Budgets are typically reviewed monthly and adjusted as your business changes, especially when income, expenses, or goals shift.

3. Is budgeting only for large or growing businesses?

No. Budgeting is valuable for businesses of all sizes, including new and small businesses, because it provides clarity and direction from the start.

4. Can budgeting work alongside QuickBooks Online?

Yes. Budgets can be created and tracked in QuickBooks Online, allowing you to compare actual results to your budget and monitor performance easily.

1. What are payroll services?

Payroll services manage the calculation, processing, and compliance of employee pay, including wage calculations, tax withholdings, payroll filings, and employee payments.

2. What do payroll services include?

Payroll services typically include calculating wages and overtime, withholding and remitting payroll taxes, processing direct deposits or paychecks, filing payroll tax forms, and issuing year-end forms such as W-2s.

3. How are payroll services different from bookkeeping?

Payroll services run payroll and handle tax compliance, while bookkeeping records payroll activity in the company’s financial records to ensure accurate reporting.

4. Why should small businesses use payroll services?

Payroll services reduce the risk of tax errors and penalties, save time, automate compliance, and ensure employees are paid accurately and on time.

1. What are W-2 and 1099 forms?

W-2s report wages and taxes paid to employees, while 1099 forms report payments made to independent contractors or vendors. Both are required for year-end tax reporting.

2. Who needs to issue W-2s and 1099s?

Businesses must issue W-2s to all employees and 1099s to eligible contractors or vendors who were paid during the year, based on IRS requirements.

3. When are W-2s and 1099s due?

W-2s and 1099s must generally be filed with the appropriate agencies and delivered to employees and contractors by January 31 each year.

4. Why is accurate W-2 and 1099 preparation important?

Accurate preparation helps ensure compliance with IRS rules, prevents penalties for late or incorrect filings, and provides employees and contractors with correct tax documents.

1. What is invoicing?

Invoicing is the process of creating and sending bills to customers for products or services provided and tracking payments until they are received.

2. Why is invoicing important for a business?

Effective invoicing helps businesses get paid on time, improves cash flow, reduces missed payments, and keeps accounts receivable accurate.

3. What information should be included on an invoice?

Invoices typically include the business name, customer details, invoice date, description of services or products, amount due, payment terms, and due date.

4. How does invoicing relate to bookkeeping?

Invoicing requests payment from customers, while bookkeeping records invoices and payments in the financial records to ensure accurate reporting.

1. What is accounts receivable?

Accounts receivable is the money owed to your business by customers for products or services that have been invoiced but not yet paid.

2. Why is accounts receivable important?

Managing accounts receivable helps improve cash flow, reduces overdue payments, and ensures your financial records accurately reflect what your business is owed.

3. How does accounts receivable work with invoicing?

Invoicing creates the customer balance, while accounts receivable tracks unpaid invoices and records payments as they are received.

4. How can businesses keep accounts receivable under control?

Businesses can manage accounts receivable by sending invoices promptly, monitoring aging reports, applying payments accurately, and following up on overdue balances.

1. What is sales tax?

Sales tax is a tax collected from customers on taxable goods or services and remitted to state or local tax authorities. Businesses act as the collector of the tax.

2. Do all businesses need to collect sales tax?

Not all businesses are required to collect sales tax. Requirements depend on the type of product or service, business location, and whether the business has sales tax nexus in a state.

3. How often do sales tax returns need to be filed?

Sales tax filing frequency varies by state and business activity and may be required monthly, quarterly, or annually.

4. Why is accurate sales tax tracking important?

Accurate sales tax tracking helps businesses stay compliant, avoid penalties and interest, and ensure sales tax liabilities are reported and paid correctly.

Item descriptio1. What is accounts payable?

Accounts payable is the money your business owes to vendors or suppliers for bills that have been received but not yet paid.

2. Why is accounts payable important?

Managing accounts payable helps businesses pay bills on time, avoid late fees, maintain strong vendor relationships, and manage cash flow effectively.

3. How does accounts payable affect cash flow?

Accounts payable represents outgoing obligations. Tracking due dates and balances helps businesses plan payments and manage cash flow without surprises.

4. How can businesses manage accounts payable effectively?

Businesses can manage accounts payable by recording bills promptly, monitoring due dates, scheduling payments, and reconciling vendor balances regularly.

Item description1. What is new business setup?

New business setup is the process of establishing the financial systems and tools a business needs to operate correctly from the start, including bookkeeping software, accounts, and workflows.

2. Why is new business setup important?

Proper setup helps prevent bookkeeping errors, supports tax compliance, saves time, and creates a strong financial foundation as the business grows.

3. What does new business setup typically include?

New business setup often includes accounting software setup, chart of accounts configuration, bank and credit card connections, sales tax setup (if applicable), and invoicing or payroll coordination.

4. When should a business complete its setup?

Ideally, new business setup should be completed before or shortly after the business begins operating to ensure clean, accurate financial records from day one.

1. What is book cleanup?

Book cleanup is the process of reviewing, correcting, and organizing a business’s financial records when books are behind, inaccurate, or not set up properly.

2. When does a business need book cleanup?

Book cleanup is often needed before tax filing, after periods of missing or incorrect bookkeeping, when changing bookkeepers, or when preparing for audits or financing.

3. What does book cleanup typically include?

Book cleanup usually includes reconciling bank and credit card accounts, correcting misclassified or duplicate transactions, clearing incorrect balances, and ensuring financial reports are accurate.

4. Why is book cleanup important?

Accurate books help businesses avoid tax issues, reduce penalties, understand true financial performance, and create a clean foundation for ongoing bookkeeping.

1. What is inventory management in QuickBooks Online?

Inventory management in QuickBooks Online tracks products, quantities, and costs so inventory levels and financial records stay accurate as items are bought and sold.

2. Who should use inventory management in QuickBooks Online?

Inventory management is best for product-based businesses, such as retail, e-commerce, or wholesale companies, that need to track inventory quantities and cost of goods sold.

3. What does QuickBooks Online inventory tracking include?

It includes product setup, quantity tracking, automatic cost of goods sold calculations, purchase and sales tracking, and inventory valuation reports.

4. Why is inventory management important in QuickBooks Online?

Proper inventory management helps prevent stock shortages or over-ordering, keeps cost of goods sold accurate, and ensures financial statements reflect true inventory value.

1. What is CPA tax preparation?

CPA tax preparation is the process of preparing and filing business or individual tax returns by a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to ensure accuracy, compliance, and proper use of deductions and credits.

2. How does bookkeeping support CPA tax preparation?

Accurate bookkeeping provides the clean financial records CPAs need to prepare tax returns efficiently, reduce errors, and minimize questions or delays.

3. What documents are needed for CPA tax preparation?

Common documents include Profit & Loss statements, Balance Sheets, payroll reports, 1099 and W-2 forms, bank statements, and records of deductible expenses.

4. Why should a business use a CPA for tax preparation?

Using a CPA helps ensure tax returns are prepared correctly, reduces the risk of penalties, supports compliance with tax laws, and provides professional guidance for tax planning.