The great thing about today’s world is the sheer amount of choice when it comes to choosing an accountant. It only takes a quick online search to find multiple accountancy firms of various sizes, offering all sorts of specialties. But how do you actually choose an accountant?

What do you need from your accountant?

You might need an accountant who has relevant industry experience in a specific area, such as dealing with CIS returns or accountancy for property investors. Find the accountancy who can offer the specialisation that you need.

Who looks after the accounts for people in your network?

Word of mouth recommendations are gold when you’re shopping for anything, not just an accountant. Ask the other businesses that you know who their accountant is. Good accountancy recommendations are a great start even if only to learn who to avoid, which also has its uses!

Online accountancy reviews are also useful. Sites like Trustpilot, Facebook and Google provide a platform for existing customers to give unbiased reviews. They’ll give you a better idea of what they’re really like.

Do you need to see your accountant in person?

Before the internet, business owners would typically to use a local accountant who they could meet to discuss finances and records.

Oh, how times have changed. Most of those traditional accountants will rely on emails and phone calls these days anyway. Dedicated online accountancies have a robust infrastructure to cope with the practicalities of this.

The good news is that online accountants still offer a personal service, you just don’t need to go out of your way to attend a meeting in-person. It can also open up the field of choice, because using an online accountants means that you won’t be limited to accountants in your area.

Pricing structure

Accountants traditionally charged by the hour, but the option of a fixed monthly fee is much more appealing. Everything is taken care of, with all the support that you need built into that fee, rather being reluctant to ask any expensive questions.

Learn more about the friendly and professional services that our online accountants and bookkeepers offer. Our clients also receive free access to the Pro edition of our cloud accounting software, Pandle Pro. 

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About The Author

Christopher Jones

Forensics graduate-turned copywriter and blogger. I love turning complex topics into easy to understand, yet engaging pieces of content.

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