Disclaimer: Please note this article is not financial advice. The purpose of our blog is purely educational, so please consult a professional accountant or financial advisor before making any financial decision.
You stretch your arms as soon as your alarm clock wakes you up. You get off your bed, ready to start your usual morning routine. Downstairs, you brew your coffee and start cooking up your breakfast. As you finish your meal, you remember something: today's the last day for filing taxes.
While you can still file for an extension, you may incur penalties for late payments. You may have thought of reaching out to your Amazon accountant or bookkeeper friend to help you settle your books and file your taxes. But unfortunately, your statements and other documents are a huge mess to clean up. Oh, if there was only a time machine.
It's better late than never, as they say. So if you want to improve your Amazon accounting and bookkeeping, you might want to consider employing professional help to do everything for you. But is it the opportune time for you to do so? Read more and find out the questions that you should ask before hiring Amazon accounting services.
Can I Do It Myself?
As an Amazon seller, you are used to doing everything by yourself. Since day one, it's always been only you, from coming up with your business idea, to handling its day-to-day operations, its customer service, payroll services, and finances. Instead of hiring outside help, you packed the parcels and moved inventory yourself to save your business money.
However, as your business grows, you will have to start hiring other people to do different parts of your business for you. For example, you will have to employ people to handle your inventory, sale transactions, marketing, bookkeeping, and human resources. You can't split yourself into multiple parts and handle all these sides of your business. Eventually, you will need bookkeepers to maintain clean and updated books.
Am I Keeping Myself Up-to-Date?
Business laws and tax regulations change all the time. Due to how often they change, you may find it hard to keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments. In addition, as an Amazon seller, you invest your time and attention in your business's daily operations. As a result, you won't have time to read through thousands of pages of local and national regulations regularly.
An Amazon accountant or bookkeeper not only keeps your books up-to-date. They also keep themselves updated with the latest developments in tax laws and related regulations that may affect your business. Their job includes ensuring that your business's finances comply with the latest government regulations.
Do I Cram During Tax Season?
While you keep your hands on your business, time will pass by very quickly. Managing the different aspects of your business will keep you occupied every day. As a result, important tax dates may slip off your mind, making you miss deadlines. Delay in the filing and payment of sales tax may incur penalties, which will make a dent in your profits.
That's why even top Amazon FBA sellers cram when tax season comes around. They search every nook and cranny of their office for any relevant statement and document to account for everything in their books. If this has become a habit every year, you may want to hire an Amazon accountant or bookkeeper to keep your books updated throughout the year. They can also help you prepare the necessary paperwork to file your sales tax without any hassle.
Do I Want to Pay Less Tax?
While everyone must pay their taxes, especially businesses like yours, you can benefit from knowing the ins and outs of tax policies and business regulations. You can avoid paying excessive taxes every year by streamlining your finances. However, unless you have a business degree, learning these "tricks" will take a while and may do more harm than good.
Since accountants and bookkeepers know the current tax laws and business regulations, they can use their expertise to help your business save money. So instead of letting taxes cut your already thin profits, you can save more without neglecting your obligation to pay taxes. Eventually, your accountant or bookkeeper will be worth more than what you pay them.
Do I Have Little Time for Myself?
What makes ecommerce businesses different from traditional ones is that they never close. 24 hours a day, your Amazon business still receives orders which you have to fulfill the following day. They never stop coming! Besides managing the daily operations of your business, you also have to settle your finances by the day's end.
As you might have imagined, this setup will take your precious time away from your hobbies, friends, and family. For instance, some business owners are too busy running their business that they miss life's important moments, like the birth of their child. So don't be like them and consider hiring an accountant or bookkeeper to lift the burden off your shoulders.
Let Unloop Take Care of Things for You
If you answered yes to all the questions above, you should seriously consider hiring a team of professional accountants and bookkeepers for your Amazon FBA business. Keeping your books up-to-date and free from anomalies should be your priority as an Amazon FBA business owner.
Offering affordable and hassle-free solutions for small business owners like you, Unloop consists of highly trained professionals who take advantage of the best Amazon accounting software in the ecommerce industry. You can trust Unloop for your Amazon seller accounting needs.
Real-time Accrual Accounting
Do you want a real-time view of your Amazon FBA business? Unloop understands how small business owners like you need a minute-by-minute update of your business's performance. Using the accrual accounting method (as opposed to cash basis accounting), Unloop lets you see how your business is performing in real-time. For instance, the moment Amazon transactions are made, they're instantly reflected in your financial statements.
Relevant Tax Support
If you, as an Amazon FBA seller, and your business are based in the United States or Canada, Unloop can help you with your taxes! In the United States, Unloop accountants can help you figure out the applicable tax regulations for your business. They can even file your sales tax returns for you! If you're in Canada, Unloop will identify which provinces you need to be registered in while assisting you and your certified accountant in sales tax compliance.
Proven Accounting Software Stack
With Unloop, you can say goodbye to spreadsheets! You no longer have to keep troublesome spreadsheets to keep your books in check. Instead, Unloop uses an accounting software stack composed of industry-leading software, namely Quickbooks Online, Xero, A2X accounting, and TaxJar. These pieces of software are considered the best in the industry and work with multiple eCommerce platforms, including the Amazon marketplace.
Final Thoughts
Managing an Amazon business on your own is no small task. As your Amazon business reaches its potential, you can expect more customers to line up for your products and services. Soon enough, you will be moving huge stocks and inventory and become overwhelmed with hundreds to thousands of orders to fulfill each day.
So it's a good idea to seek help from professionals to handle your books and taxes. Well-maintained and updated books will come in handy when you have to undergo an external audit and when the tax season comes. You wouldn't want to get on the bad side of the law, would you?
Let Unloop take the wheel and have your Amazon business run on autopilot! Contact us today, we’d love to hear from you.