Bookkeeping Tasks Checklist: Daily & Weekly
/Staying on top of your bookkeeping can be overwhelming and oftentimes gets pushed to the bottom of your to-do list, or just completely ignored. It's understandable since you have a million things to get done when running your practice. However, you know how critical it is to the success of your practice (if you don't, read HERE) so you know it needs to get done on time and correctly. Want to know my secrets to simplifying the bookkeeping process? Organization and automation! Dividing up my many bookkeeping tasks into daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly checklists AND being consistent about completing each task, make bookkeeping simple and rewarding. Today I'll be going over the daily and weekly bookkeeping tasks and next week I will cover the monthly, quarterly and annual. Make sure to download my checklist HERE to use when tackling your practice's bookkeeping. Believe me, this will make bookkeeping A LOT easier for you!
1) Review Available Cash
The first thing you should do every day is check how much cash your practice has available. Unexpected expenses can pop up on a daily basis and you don’t want to have to guess when it comes to available cash. Instead, take a few minutes at the beginning of the day to make sure you know exactly what you have on hand.
2) Monitor Incoming and Outgoing Payments
Ask your employees and partners every morning if they are aware of any expenses coming up that day. Besides preparing you for the incoming and outgoing payments for that day, it will also give you a good picture of your cash position for the next day.
1) Record and Reconcile Transactions
Each financial transaction your practice has must be recorded and reconciled. If you are using a bookkeeping software that uploads your bank feed, like Xero or Quickbooks Online, then most if not all your transactions will upload automatically onto your software. Once they have uploaded, make sure to categorize them correctly and reconcile them. If for some reason you need to record the transaction separately, do so and then categorize and reconcile it. Recording and reconciling your transactions is fundamental to proper bookkeeping so make sure you do this on a weekly basis.
2) File and Upload Receipts
Keep copies of all your invoices, receipts and payments. Keeps files of all your vendors, payroll and bank statements. You can keep all of these files and receipts in paper form but I highly recommend moving your files online. Programs like Google Drive or Hubdoc are safer and will allow you to access your files from any location. You will also want to scan and upload the corresponding document to your transactions on your accounting software. For example, when reconciling your payment transactions, upload the receipts and attach them to the correct transaction.
3) Enter Unpaid Bills From Vendors
Keep track of each of your vendors information, like billing dates, amounts due and payment due dates. If vendors offer discounts for early payment, check to see if you have the cash available and try to take advantage of that. Accounting software, like Xero or Quickbooks Online, can automate this process for you and help you keep better track of all your bills. Save yourself time and money by taking advantage of these programs.
4) Pay Vendors
Once you’ve gotten into the habit of entering your bills into your accounting software, tracking payment due dates will be very simple for you. Make sure to have funds set aside for the bills and process payments well before the due date. Whether you make payments online, by mail or in person, upload copies of the invoices sent and received unto your accounting software and your document storage account, like Hubdoc or Google Drive.
5) Prepare and Send Invoices
Remember, the sooner you send invoices, the sooner you get paid. You want your clients to still remember the wonderful care you provided their pets when they receive your invoice. So stay on top of sending invoices and try to send them the same exact day your client brought their pet in for care. Simplify your life and save time by using your accounting software to complete this task. Create your invoices and choose when you want them sent. Save the template if it is a recurring invoice.
6) Review Projected Cash Flow
Staying on top of your cash flow, in and out of the practice, is incredibly important. Forecast how much cash you will need in the coming weeks/months to pay your bills, employees and suppliers. Knowing your projected cash flow is also critical to making informed business decisions.
That sums up my daily and weekly bookkeeping checklists. Remember to download my checklist form HERE for your own use! Next week I'll go over my monthly, quarterly and annual checklists, so keep an eye out for that.
If you're quickly coming to the conclusion that bookkeeping involves a lot more than what you were expecting, or are currently doing, and would like to hire someone to dedicate themselves to this critical work, shoot me an email at rbailey@veterinarybookkeepingsolutions.com. I work exclusively with veterinarians and would love to care for your books with the same care and passion that you care for your animals!