; Clean Up Your Expense Reporting - DK/RK Accounting and Bookkeeping

Clean Up Your Expense Reporting

DKRK Accounting and Bookkeeping Services - Clean Up Your Expense Reporting

Bean There, Done That is here again! Your seemingly-endless wait is finally over.

What the guy on TV says between beer commercials is true here at DK/RK Services, too: We’ve learned a lot, because we’ve seen a lot. And heard a lot. And this month’s precious edition is all about what we’ve learned, and seen, and heard about keeping track of your expenses.

Read on! Because the money (and potential tax audit problems) you save may be your own.

In fact, that’s pretty much for sure. You can take it to the bank (literally).

Once again, thanks for making DK/RK Services your first choice in bookkeeping… and for passing this edition on to your many friends who’ll want to subscribe for a “monthly smile.”

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Wishing You Heaps Of Fun, And A Healthy Serving Of Beans.

DKRK Accounting and Bookkeeping Services - Closing the Books on Last Year

A Healthy Serving of Beans

Sloppy Expense Reporting Can Be… Well, Expensive

Bean There, Done That
Monthly Bookkeeping Wisdom From Your Friendly Bean-Counter

Here are ten really monkey-brained mistakes we’ve seen some people make:

  1. 1
    Getting married too young
  2. 2
    Licking a frozen metal sign post
  3. 3
    Sticking a fork in an electrical outlet
  4. 4
    Failing to carry the one
  5. 5
    Using your real name in the course of a liquor store robbery
  6. 6
    Forgetting the words to “Happy Birthday”
  7. 7
    Going out to get the mail and THEN remembering to put on pants
  8. 8
    Drinking coffee right before bed
  9. 9
    Trying to cheat on an eye exam by using the old, “Hey, what’s that?!” ploy
  10. 10
    Failing to properly track your business’s expenses

Of course, we can’t offer much advice on the first nine. And no amount of fingernail torture or red wine can make us disclose which of these mistakes we’ve actually made ourselves.

(That was a LONG time ago. Let’s move on.)

But we CAN offer you some tips on that last one – tracking your business’s expenses in the right way – based on some of the boo-boos we’ve seen business owners make over the many years we’ve been counting beans.

And here they are:

  • Make sure you’re recording all your expenses. Don’t forget things you paid with petty cash, or paid personally on behalf of the business. If you’re not sure whether something is a legitimate business expense, check with your Friendly Bean Counter (FBC).
  • Speaking of mixing personal expenses with business expenses… don’t do that! It’s best to have completely separate bank accounts (even if those accounts aren’t in completely separate banks). If anyone (say, The Tax Man) ever wants to take a look at (say, audit) your expenses, you don’t want to have any of this dastardly “co-mingling” going on.
  • You should get (and keep) backups for all your expenses, including bills and receipts. Backup can be paper or electronic as long as it is a detailed bill and not a summary receipt/statement. We often suggest clients include a copy with the transaction in QuickBooks, and then with the statements or in other records (for those that are not from company accounts)… that way, in case you can’t access the copy in QuickBooks, you’ll still have it.
  • Gotta pay folks who provide services to your business? Make sure you draw a clear line between contractors and employees. Payments to contractors are generally “expenses,” while payment to employees counts as “payroll” or wages. Confusing the two can lead to penalties, interest payments, and other costs… and you don’t want that. (Do you?) Account for the different expenditure categories appropriately, and report them on your taxes appropriately, too.
  • Speaking of vendors, make sure you tighten up your system for reviewing payables such as bills and vendor statements. Make sure the invoices match the agreed pricing and the product or service the vendor provided. Believe it or not (you’ll believe it), we’ve run into situations where an employee was embezzling company funds by making up fake vendors and/or paying fake invoices (to themselves)!
  • Fire embezzling employees, and report them to the authorities. You should also call your FBC and ask her to review your books, if you suspect foul play.

Your FBC is here to help you in all ways financial and bean-counting… and that includes helping you make sure your expenses are no more expensive than they have to be!


Discussion Questions

  1. 1
    What are the top ten monkey-brained mistakes you’ve made?
  2. 2
    Come on, we won’t tell. You can be honest.
  3. 3
    Do you need help making sure you’re getting all the advantages of a strong system for tracking and reporting expenses?

Don’t forget: at DK/RK Services, you’re always “more than a number.” We WANT to take care of your bookkeeping, professionally and personably, so you can focus on running and growing a great business enterprise! Please check out our many enthusiastic FIVE STAR online reviews (Yelp, Google, Facebook, you name it). We look forward to earning our next great review from YOU.

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Howl-dy! I’m Sadie.
Dottie’s My Person.

Sadie’s Paw Prints

Isn’t It Suppertime?

Snoopy always knew when it was suppertime. There’s a whole song about it, and everything.

There’s a reason for that (for the fact that he knew when it was suppertime, not for the fact that somebody wrote a song about it).

The reason is that we dogs actually have a pretty good sense of time.

We don’t tell time the way you people do… we don’t care when the big paw is on the whatever, and the little paw is on the whozits… but if you do things in a routine way every day, such as feed us, walk us, or come home… we know when those things are coming up on the schedule.

Just so you know! Now… isn’t it about time for supper?

Non-Profit Spotlight

Buy A Muffin, Save A Monkey!

The Katie Adamson Conservation Fund (KACF) is one of the non-profit organizations we’re very proud to support.

The organization was founded by Denver zookeeper Dave Johnson in 2014, when a dear friend and conservation ally (Katie Adamson) lost her battle with cancer. KACF is Denver-based, but is dedicated to a global mission of wildlife protection and cultural compassion.

Right now, you can help us support KACF by buying delicious baked goods online!

KACF is sending two former zookeepers to Costa Rica for some conservation work with howler monkeys. The organization has partnered with the Big Raven bakery to offer a “virtual bake sale” to raise money for necessary equipment to be used on the trip.

Place your order today, right here:

https://www.bigravenbread.com/

Thanks for your support! The howler monkeys would certainly howl their appreciation, too.


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