When you run a business, it is always a good idea to outsource your accounting. It is cost-effective and allows you to take advantage of specialist expertise. But when choosing an accountant for your business, you need to decide between a freelance accountant or an accounting firm. While each choice has its own reasons and advantages, you need to consider how each one would benefit your business. So, which do you choose, an accountancy company, or a freelance accountant?
The Advantages of a Freelance Accountant
A freelance accountant offers two distinct advantages. They are generally more flexible and have lower costs than an accountancy company or firm. As a virtual “one-man show” they have more room to be ultra-flexible and attend to urgent tasks for clients and deliver on those tasks. They also have fewer – if any – overheads, so their fees are often lower.
The Disadvantages of a Freelance Accountant
However, there are downsides to hiring freelance accountants. They need to commit themselves to multiple clients in order to sustain themselves in a highly competitive world. This means that you could be at the mercy of the freelancer’s priorities. They may also prioritise more lucrative tasks, compared to tasks that pay less. This means your ranking of priority will hinge on how lucrative the task is. Further, commitments to projects are bound to change with priorities. Unfortunately, this may mean you end up being left high and dry at the last moment and that’s the worst thing that can happen when it comes to finances and accounting.
There are also compliance aspects involved and deadlines to meet. Further, if the outsourced tasks are of a nature that requires updating records, daily, you need an uninterrupted process. Unfortunately, this is something that might not be possible with a freelancer, as they have to adjust and be flexible for multiple clients. You may also find that the lower costs of hiring a freelancer may mean you won’t benefit from the best resources in terms of applications, cloud services, and tools. This is why it is important to discuss your needs with a freelancer first, as well as what technology they use.
What are the Advantages of an Accountancy Company?
Accountancy companies, like Siragusa, are able to host a range of professionals who can handle both accountancy needs, and financial planning and business advice. As a result, these companies are more dependable and reliable. Even a small slip in reputation means a potential loss of clients. Accountancy companies will also invest heavily in ensuring they have the latest resources, training, and applications. This means their workflows and processes are smooth, providing you with peace of mind.
Accountancy companies will have many teams working at their optimal levels for different clients. By using their resources optimally, they are able to help you make the best investments possible. Their better range of resources also means the security of your data is far better, and the company is able to easily meet your deadlines. Security is, obviously, paramount when it comes to dealing with the data of clients, as a breach not only impacts their data but will result in a loss of clientele for the accountancy company.
The Difference Between an Accountancy Company and a Freelance Accountant?
Firstly, a freelancer’s reputation and an agency’s reputation are differently assessed. An accountancy company will have multiple teams working across multiple specialities, knowledge, and certifications. This means an accountancy company like Siragusa can offer a full suite of services. A freelancer may not be able to offer as wide a range of services and knowledge that a company is able to offer. They can offer a specialist service in one or a couple areas of accounting practices. However, it would be incredibly difficult to find one person who has specialist knowledge in all areas of accounting.
However, as we discussed earlier, a freelancer has more flexibility and often lower costs than an accountancy company. But this can also compromise things like resources, services, and security. You can also end up lower on the list of priorities when a freelancer needs to give priority to more lucrative options.
While saving costs is important, it shouldn’t be at the sacrifice of skill, knowledge, resources, and security. As a result, overall, a professional accountancy company, like Siragusa, offers better reliability and superior services compared to a freelancer.
Are you looking for an expert, local accountancy company? Siragusa are experts in personal accountancy, business accountancy, wealth advisory, and financial advice. Whether you’re looking for an accountant for your business or for your personal finances, we have you covered. Contact us today and let us start helping you to financial success!