As All Stars continues to support the individual growth of our members, we are excited and proud to welcome our guests for this month's virtual luncheon, Rakeem Washington and Kasia Rutledge from Engage to Change! Rakeem and Kasia will be discussing anti-racism, with an emphasis on vocabulary, the entry-points to anti-racism work, and anti-racist frameworks and ideology.
Read MoreAs the fourth quarter of 2021 approaches, please join our October virtual luncheon for an open forum discussion on all things Year End!
We’ll be exchanging ideas and tips on how best to prep your clients for 1099s, items needed to close the year in January, and inform them of rate increases.
This is a potluck brain dump, so bring your ideas and let's make it a feast!
Read MoreLeveling Up! - 10 things bookkeepers do that CPAs love (and how to be a CPA’s top referral!)
Speaker: Nina Martin, CPA, Shareholder, Pittman & Brooks, P.C. https://pittmanbrooks.com/about/team/nina-martin
Nina’s Bio:
Nina joined Pittman & Brooks in 1994. She earned her degree from Western Oregon State University, in Monmouth, Oregon.
When not taking care of clients, she stays busy watching, and coaching her three children’s sports teams.
Join us this month for a feature presentation of Melio provided by one of their dedicated Partnerships Specialists. They will give a comprehensive rundown of Melio, a B2B payments experience, and show us how it can save time and improve cash flow. Additionally they'll cover features such as Batch Payments, their Approval Workflow, and how to best utilize Credit Cards to pay nontraditional expenses. They will also highlight their embedded QuickBooks Online integration!
https://www.meliopayments.com.
Read MoreJoin us this month as QBO Rock Star Alicia Katz Pollock with Royalwise presents
"QBO Hacks"
This will be a class chock-full of efficiency recommendations and cool features you can use to streamline and automate your data entry in QuickBooks Online! She’ll cover everything from built-in calculators, to interface tricks, to leveraging Chrome’s tools to enhance your QBO experience. You won’t want to miss it!
Please join us for our June virtual luncheon as we discuss creating a new set of books from a tax return!
Many talented bookkeepers get little exposure to tax forms, but those forms can provide valuable information when setting up new books for an existing business. We hope you’ll join us as our very own Melissa Barton of Simplebooks and Jaydra Perfetti of Paper Investigator Inc. lead a review of some of those forms, as well as a roundtable discussion of our own experiences and lessons learned!
Read MoreFinancial Statements and Reports!
Are some of your clients “not numbers people”? Do they lean on you to tell them what they should be paying attention to, and how to track performance?
Join us as we welcome Sharon Braseth from the CPA firm Pittman & Brooks, P.C. for a discussion on how to use reports to translate bookkeeping work into meaningful and actionable information for your clients.
Sharon is a Shareholder at Pittman & Brooks, P.C., where she has worked for the past 12 years helping to advise small and medium businesses on tax and accounting strategies.
Read MoreWant to start, change, or close a business?
Either your own or a client? Nandi Pathefinder Financial Liberation Institute will be touching on the most important topics designed to empower anyone to start their own business in the most responsible, successful, and fun way possible.
In this class we will touch on...
Creating your unique vision and lifestyle
Filings, Formation, and Red Tape
Insurance, Collaborating & Exit Plans
Best resources to get going at any scale
Communicating your niche
Q&A (time pending)
Nandi is a lifelong entrepreneur who has grown their businesses over the last 2 decades by helping others achieve their goals in a way that honors the planet we live on and the being we share it with. Now that Nandi can work for fun they want to help everyone have the sovereignty and prosperity that comes from consciously co-creating the role you play in your "Econo-System" and hopefully do it faster and better then they have;)
Feel free to reach out to Nandi at https://NandiPathEfinder.as.me/ or Follow at...
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nandipathefinder/
https://www.facebook.com/NandiPathefinderPublic
https://www.facebook.com/Financial-Liberation-Institute-439742299438865/
Email Lists... http://eepurl.com/dkm92D
Read MoreBookkeeping Best Practices!
Are you starting out and wondering how to get organized? Have you been at it a few years and ready to go to the next level? ASAP is here to help with best practices!
We'll talk about client engagement letters, client relations, pricing, processes, document storage, etc.
Help others by sharing your best practices and bring along all your questions for the areas that are slowing you down.
Read MorePlease join us All Stars!
During this virtual event, there will be an open discussion:
Year end isn't over yet!
Sharing tactics for closing out a challenging year.
Read MoreDuring this virtual event, Diana Chung with Schwindt & Company will talk to us about what CPA's like to see at tax time.
Diana Chung is a CPA going on 30 plus years and currently a Tax Manager at Schwindt & Company. Her specialty is homeowners associations (HOA's). Check her out on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-chung-69619915/.
Oct 1 2020
Kim Boaz presiding over the meeting
Woodard group is meeting on 10/12
Happy hour is Thur Oct 15
Next luncheon is Nov 5th
Introductions
What do you do to help prepare for year end?
Prepare year end letter for clients
Send out new engagement letter with price increase
Send out Next steps for clients
Get clients to book first appointment for Jan
Send out reminders about 1099s
Bring out whiteboard for 1099 prep
Look now through clients for 1099s
1099 prep
Look at investment options for my financial advisory options
Working on personal property tax returns
I am available to help others with year end as a subcontractor
Send out client gifts and ask for reviews!
Remind clients that my office is closed the last 2 weeks of the year
I get busy with training clients who handle their own books
Look through each account for my non profit client
Get prep done and process smoothed out NOW
Open Discussion
Gifts - purchase things from clients to send out to other clients, notebook, pens,
Inventory - count now! Any outstanding credits, damaged goods etc, things in transit etc,
Mailchimp - nice way to send out one letter to all clients, tracks who and when it was opened, etc
Calendly is a nice app for people to schedule themselves
Since we are not english professionals, it is a good idea to have someone proof read our end of year letter
What challenges are you finding with biz that closed this year?
How to accrue correct expenses
What other kinds of covid related things will we have to deal with?
Whether clients will have their PPP loans forgiven
Whether expenses/income for PPP will be tax deductible - or will it be a wash out
Some have applied for forgiveness - but the applications are sitting, nothing has been approved
Our mentality is to deal with things proactively, but with things changing so much, it’s usually better to wait and see. Everything about this year is counter to our DNA
OR Saves deadline is coming up shortly!! There will be a pin number you will need from the company
IRS made me fill out a reconciliation for health insurance (Affordable Care Act)
Anyone have specific concerns about year end?
Deferment of payroll taxes?? Some companies are not offering to employees
Reminder to use the FB group at this time of year for questions
Process St is a nice app
Qbo Workcenter has a nice year end checklist
Trello & Asana are also nice project management apps. It does take time to set up and use.
Sept 3, 2020
By Jackie Haldorson
Vice President Melissa Barton is running the meeting.
Video is now live, please share!
Also please update your profile - Melissa will create loom video to show how to do this
Side note: Membership works is on back end.
Upcoming events - next Monday virtual Lunch and learn with Woodard group
Aug 20 virtual happy hour
Introductions
Speaker - Justin Pulgrano CPA - Co owner of Cash Flow Tool/Finagraph
Used by Accounting Professionals to provide cash flow management and forecasting as a recurring service offering to clients
View cash flow by week, day, or month using interactive chart and cash flow calendar
Perform what if scenarios (hiring, purchasing equipment, etc) to visually see the impact on future cash flow
Create your own KPI dashboards to show your top biz metrics
Reporting in excel and pdf
Scope of cash flow meeting
30 min meetings on a recurring basis
Before meeting need to reconcile cash/AP/AR
Agenda
Review prior period
Current standings
Forecasted outflows over next few weeks/months
Review AR and collections for expected inflows
Look at long term for next 3 months
Client Benefits
Clients have action items to manage their short term cash flow effectively
Clients can make decisions with more certainty and play out “what if “ scenarios
Clients better understand the inns and outs of cash flow both historical and future
Many clients are unable to get this level of insights on their own
Connects to QBO and QB Desktop
The app uses the history of the clients payments to estimate when it will get paid (smart defaults)
The tool will give you an initial forecast of income (historical) but you can make adjustments (payroll going up, rent going up, etc?)
It’s a Good idea to test out on your own company - there is a 14 day free trial
If an estimate is made, once the date happens that was estimated, the actuals take over the estimates
Important to control the client experience - ie even if they have view only access tell them when things are updated. You don’t necessarily want them to look halfway through the month
Subscription is most commonly billed to the accountant
Anyone who has greater than 350 K in revenue can afford this app. Pick the right clients to start
How much can we make with this charge with this service offering? Depends on the frequency & complexity, but average is $250-$500
In QBO the cash flow widget is not as flexible, mostly historical
Cash flow reports in QBO are based on indirect method
During this virtual event, Jaydra Perfetti will present on the topic,
ALL ABOUT ENTITIES
What am I now? Where did I start? How did I get here? Am I even filing the right forms?! There are many business entity types to choose from, and many things to consider when selecting the right entity structure for your business. There are also many important considerations when reviewing your entity structure over time as your business grows and shifts. So let's talk about entities! Sole proprietorships, LLCs, partnerships, corporations: the when, why, and how of making sure your business is well situated for risk mitigation, tax advantage, and your other business concerns.
Read MoreOpen Discussion - reflections on lessons learned, changes for the future, paper vs digital, and a few tool recommendations!
Read More
Dale Kennedy, CPA
June 4, 2020 Meeting Notes (Virtually held over Zoom)
By Jackie Haldorson
Vice President Melissa Barton opened up the meeting with the announcement that Member Spotlights will soon be featured on ASAP’s social media. We can then copy & share to our own social media platforms. Remember to like and follow fellow members!
Our guest is CPA AND Attorney Dale Kennedy with Kennedy Tax Solutions.
https://kennedytaxsolutions.com/
Q: What are some red flags you have seen?
A: Not depositing payroll taxes, the IRS doesn’t take too kindly to a business using it’s employee’s taxes to fund their business. Payroll taxes can be the most expensive and difficult to deal with. We are the Gatekeepers, disclose what you know to the tax preparer.
Q: At what point can OR or IRS decide to stop charging interest?
A: Never, the only item that is potentially abatable is penalties but the reasons need to be clear and specific
Q: Would you recommend contacting the IRS on your own or hire someone?
A: Depends on the amount involved and the sophistication. If the client has been burying their head in the sand and notices have been piling up, it’s more of a guarantee that it will get dealt with when you hire someone. If someone owes 1K penalty, they could probably do it themselves. If its 10K or 100K penalty, that might warrant getting someone else involved.
Q: I had a client that had their bank account cleared out by the IRS, when do they do that?
A: There will always be a notice ahead of time. They were probably notified and its in a stack of unopened notices that have been piling up.
Q: What are the repercussions of an LLC that owed payroll taxes but has since closed the business?
A: Payroll tax liabilities pierce the corporate/LLC veil. When a business closes, most everything stops at the entity level, and doesn’t pass on to the owners/shareholders. Payroll tax liabilities always go to the shareholder. If we as bookkeepers are the ones deciding what gets paid, we could become liable if the business doesn’t pay their payroll taxes. Always have the decision to not pay payroll taxes come from the owner.
Q: What are your needs from Bookkeepers?
A: I often have need for emergency room bookkeepers that can show up at 2am on Saturday because the data is due on Monday and someone has to enter in 1000 checks, etc. And then run reconciliations and produce financial statements.
Q: What mistakes do you see Bookkeepers make?
A: When a GAAP based/CPA audit happens the P&L is secondary, there is little reconciliation save for some reclassification. The beat down is the balance sheet. Bare minimum is cash reconciliation.
Q: What is the threshold you recommend for a business to engage a CPA do their taxes?
A: Smaller business will be better served by H&R Block, Jackson Hewitt, LTC, EA. For instance 40K revenue or less
Misc Info
Kovel Agreement is available for an added layer of protection for more serious cases, the accountant address all correspondence to the lawyer, not the client
Correction answers for tax problems; installment plans, settlements, audit reconsiderations, bankruptcy (discharges all taxes except payroll taxes)
IRS has built a lot into the system for the taxpayer to be heard, to allow settlements, etc. OR is more difficult, agressive to deal with. This is because OR is more desperate for money, we are a 1 tax state.
Factors for corrections; amount of money involved, time left on statute of limitations (IRS generally has 10 years, OR is forever), the client’s willingness to play the game, and the clients intestinal fortitude
Don’t ever assume the IRS or the State will be fair and judicious
OR has a notice cycle - when you have a new client it’s a good idea to see where they are in that cycle, what is OR trying to tell them?
Sometimes not showing up to an audit is the best option for a client
Cannabis business should always be C Corp
If a client comes and says they haven’t filed for the last 10 years, generally the IRS/State is just looking for the last 6 years
If there is a huge mess, may be best to start a new QBO file. You don’t need to fix the problem but it leaves the historical data
May 7, 2020 Meeting Notes (Virtual via Zoom Meetings)
By Linda Lagraff
Liscio
May 7, 2020
President Kim Boaz opened the meeting with introductions. Due do the coronavirus and Stay and Home requirements, the meeting was held remotely on Zoom.
Liscio
Chris Farrell, CEO of Liscio gave a presentation on the software and how it was made for accountants.
Banks have moved to a comprehensive online software platform and Liscio offers the same abilities for accountants. Easy to use, invite only network and ideal for remote working.
It gives the ability to email clients to a dedicated space, so the emails aren’t lost in the multitudes of other emails. Emails can be sent individually to each client or by bulk messaging. You can also text the client, if information is needed quickly. Documents can be scanned and saved. The program has an app for the phone and shows everything sent to Liscio. This is good audit tool, as it has what was sent, when and how. Can see current and past documents.
Liscio offers training for the accountant and our clients. Giving end user support for everything, hand-holding for us and our clients. They train the accountant first and work with us to help getting clients onboard and using the program. They have email and social media templates.
They are offering us ½ price deal, just mention All-Stars Accounting.
Email either chris@liscio.me or sales@liscio.me
Another good meeting with active, informative discussion
Future meetings:
· June 4th meeting will be a presentation by a Tax Attorney. The meeting will be a Zoom meeting, 11:30-1:00 pm.
· Third Thursday of every month we are hosting a Zoom Happy Hour, 4-5 pm
April 2, 2020
Due to the COVID-19 virus the meeting was held via Zoom.
President Kim Boaz opened the meeting with introductions and notices.
Technology was the focus of the meeting:
Jaydra shared a project management program Hubspot. Basic program is free
The program was developed for Sales teams and has a sales project orientation. It is easy to use, just need to adjust to sales terminology.
Dashboard – runs reports and has an analytics component,
Sales tab – is for projects
Can add what you are doing into the pipeline and then have each stage of the project. You can add anticipated timeline and cross off when done.
The program tracks what you have done, what is left to do, can add notes, emails, calls
The system is to help yourself now, keep you on track to what needs to be done. System can set reminders, you can set them up for how you do work and what you need reminders. For example, if you don’t have documents from a client by a certain date you can set a reminder to call the client.
It can also help yourself in the future, easy to find past information.
It is an easy program to change and adjust to your needs.
Chrome brower has the Hubspot link.
Alicia – showed us the new tags coming soon to QBO
It will be under the gear, labeled tag.
Each group can have its own name and color
An example used:
Construction company can have groups New and Remodeling
Type: New
Repairs
Remodels
Employees
They can then track projects with more details.
Tags can be added to all transactions: invoices, banking, sales receipts, etc
Tags will work like classes in reports. Currently they do not work with rules
The can be used only when needed.
Melissa shared three apps that can be found in Chrome Browser
Edge: The web ruler. It is a ruler for the screen. It is great when trying to read and enter bank and credit card statements. Those who have used it highly recommend it,
Loom for Chrome: Easy for crating little videos/trainings. Create videos for teaching clients something. It also has drawing tools
Streak: Project management: It will tell you when someone has looked at an email. There are lots of videos to learn how to use.
· May 7th meeting will be a presentation on Liscio. Meeting will be held via Zoom 11:30-1:00 pm.
March 5, 2020 Meeting Notes
By Linda Lagraff
Niche Marketing
President Kim Boaz opened the meeting with introductions.
The meeting was led by Summer Hiett on niche marketing. Meeting was a group discussion
Different types of niche (areas in which a business can specialize
· Restaurants/Bars
· Non-Profit
· Construction
· Retail
· Legal
· Consulting
· Agriculture
· Trust
· Ecommerce
· Spa/Wellness
· Medical
· Real Estate – Short/long term rental, Agents
· Cannabis
· others
A bookkeeper’s personality is am important part of which or any niche is the focus of their business including: Lifestyle (what is your pace for the day- are you a morning or evening person), Interest/Passion, Technical expertise and interest to use/learn, Paper or paperless.
Some of the members have defined niches that they focus on and others do not.
Next meeting
· April meeting will be a Zoom Video Conference Thursday April 2nd 11:30-1:00 pm from the comfort of your home.
· April Virtual Happy Hour – Zoom Video Conference Thursday April 16th 4-5 pm also from the comfort of you home. Join us for an hour of good company and conversation.
Topic: Value Pricing
Presenters: Dan Morris with Morris & D’Angelo; Dan@Verasage.com
Upcoming Events:
1. The Portland Woodard Group Lunch & Learn – Monday, August 12 from 11-1:30 at McMenamins Chapel Brewery in North Portland
2. ASAP September luncheon – Thursday, September 5- topic tbd.
3. ASAP/Woodard Group 3rd Quarter Social – Tuesday, September 17th from 5 to 7 pm at the Beaverton Food Cartel.
· President Kim Boaz opened the August meeting and attendees introduced themselves and stated whether they are accepting new clients.
· Discussed Value Pricing Not Value Billing. Billing is after the fact.
· First law of pricing – all value is subjective. Example- a coke purchased from a vending machine vs. 7-11 vs. Timbers game vs. Super Bowl are priced differently.
· Pricing is a core competency.
· Many price using cost plus pricing. Service -Cost-Price-Value – Customer.
· Value Based Pricing starts with the Customer; determine the Value; determine the Cost and define the Service.
· 8 steps to Implement Value Pricing:
o Conversation with customer. Find out what motivates them.
o Price the customer not the services.
o Developing and pricing options – give people choices.
o Effectively present options to customers.
o Option selected codified into an FPA (fixed price agreement).
o Proper Project Management
o Watch for Scope Creep; utilize change orders; need permission from client before incurring extra time and cost.
o Conduct pricing after action review. Have conversation- what went well, what didn’t go well.
· Questions to Ask your client
o What do you expect from us?
o How do you define a successful relationship?
o What is your current pain?
o What keeps you awake at night?
o Why are you changing firms?
o What is your budget for this service?
o How would you like to measure success?
· Book recommendations – Let’s Get Real & Breaking the Time Barrier by Michael E. Gerber.
· Are you telling your customers what you can do for them?
· Pricing the Customer – no two customers are the same.
· All Pricing is Contextual.
· Timing, terms, technology, talent, tailoring, transference
· The Value Guarantee
· Article “Pricing on Purpose – How to Implement; June 2009 www.journalofaccountancy.
