Billing
You need a billing system if you want to get paid. There are many invoicing programs (Harvest, ZenCash, PayPal), that will allow you to bill your customers and track payments. There are also full accounting programs (Outright, FreshBooks, Quickbooks) that will allow you to do your own bookkeeping.* Back up all information each time you make changes as recovering data after a hardware crash can be costly and isn’t guaranteed.
Always know who owes
It’s important to keep up with who’s paid and who still owes. Some of the invoicing programs above will allow due date tracking, but you can always use calendar apps like Google Calendar or iCal to keep track of this information.
Track all your business expenses
This one piece of advice can potentially save you thousands of dollars at tax time. We’ve said this plenty of times before, but keep every single receipt for gas, parking, phone and internet services, mileage, travel, and food. Create a spreadsheet to keep track of them or use our handy Tax Tracker app, which allows you to photograph receipts and keep everything organized and readily available.
Keep your business and personal accounts separate
Create a business account and use that instead of your personal bank account. This will make it much easier to keep track of all your expenses, and will make life easier for you if you are audited. And if you get into trouble financially, this can potentially save you from losing your house, car, money, etc.
Use an accountant
Find a reliable accountant with a full understanding of the workings of creative professions and their taxes. This may cost you a few extra shillings, but your accountant will know of deductions and information that you’re not familiar with. Their fee could be worth a lot of extra money to you come tax time. Hiring an accountant will also free up more time for you to concentrate on making the money instead of counting it.
*For more information on full accounting software like Quickbooks, Outright, and FreshBooks, read our previous post.