It can be tough to know that you’ve got the right bookkeeper. How do you know that she has your best interests at heart? Here are 6 questions that a good bookkeeper will ask you (and bonus, 3 of them happen before you hire her, so make sure she asks you these questions).

Questions at the beginning

Question 1. How do you make money?

This seems like such a simple question, and perhaps a pointless one. But in reality, when a bookkeeper asks you this question she’s trying to understand your business and your livelihood. Where does the money come from? This helps a bookkeeper make sure that they’ve got the correct revenue categories for you, and that when money comes in she’ll know how to categorize it.

Question 2. How do you spend money?

Again, seems like a simple question, but this is your bookkeeper trying to understand the nature of your business. Do your expenses come from software subscriptions, or inventory, or virtual assistants? Knowing where your money goes will help your bookkeeper with categorization and receipt management, as well as help her know what to keep an eye on. When to point out expenses that might be redundant or unnecessary. Your bookkeeper is your financial partner, she wants to help you grow your business.

Question 3. What info do you want to see?

Aside from the standard financial reports, your bookkeeper wants to get you information that will help you grow your business. Maybe you want to keep an eye on the number of clients you have each month, or the average value of a customer. Perhaps you want to know how much you’re paying for software or advertisements. Or maybe just the top 5 expenses you have a month. A good bookkeeper can customize the information you get every month to help you grow your business.

Quarterly Questions

Question 1. What are your revenue goals this quarter?

A good bookkeeper can help you set financial goals and track your progress towards them. Sometimes all you need to really focus on a goal is a bit of outside accountability. Just telling your bookkeeper your goal can increase your chance of hitting it. Make sure your bookkeeper is interested in working with you on setting up quarterly goals and tracking your progress.

Question 2. What is your take-home goal this quarter?

Revenue is a very important number, but the most important number is what you take home at the end of the day. It’s all well and good if you make $500k, but if it costs you $499k to do it then you’re really not very profitable. A good bookkeeper can help you set a take-home goal each quarter and track your progress towards it. 

On-going Questions

Question 1. Can we deep dive into some of these expenses?

Your bookkeeper should be constantly evaluating your expenses and looking for patterns. She should be pointing out what categories are growing over time. Helping you review your expenses also means she can help you be on the lookout for monthly subscriptions that you’re no longer utilizing. Expenses are definitely necessary for business but we should always be reviewing them to make sure we’re staying as profitable as possible.

Your bookkeeper can be one of your best financial allies, make sure you’ve got a good one!

Want me to ask you these questions personally? Check out my Monthly Bookkeeping Services!