Jenny Groberg, CEO and Founder of BookSmarts, provides an exclusive look at BookSmarts’ history and the TBI experience that shaped her career. Later, she dives into BookSmarts’ innovative approach to P&L audits.
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Even businesses that are growing won’t withstand the test of time if they ignore their bottom line. “Growth without profitablitity is an unsustainable business practice,” says Jenny Groberg, CEO of BookSmarts Accounting and Bookkeeping.
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Unexpected expenses like parking tickets, minor home repairs, or a small financial hiccup can happen anytime and derail your budget if you haven’t planned for unforeseen issues. But a rainy day fund can help you deal with life’s mishaps without dipping into savings.
What’s a Rainy Day Fund?
A rainy day fund is “usually thought of as readily available cash savings to cover relatively minor unexpected expenses that come up in day-to-day living – without having to rush for the credit card,” consumer finance expert Kyle Enright, president of Achieve Lending, explained. “These expenses might include things like a repair on a needed appliance, a vehicle repair, or a trip to the doctor or urgent care not covered by insurance.”
Is a Rainy Day Fund the Same as an Emergency Fund?
A rainy day fund differs from an emergency fund, which is “meant for unfortunate life events that last longer than one day, usually more like months. Think of job loss, a chronic medical condition, the loss of your breadwinner, etc,” Jenny Groberg, CEO of BookSmarts Accounting and Bookkeeping, told us.
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‘It Felt Like a Secret Hidden In Plain Sight’
As part of their How to Unlock Your First Million Dollars issue, Entrepreneur Magazine sat down with CEO Jenny Groberg to talk about how she learned to delegate in the wake of a sudden traumatic brain injury. The injury forced her to step back and consider new ways to run her business.
Through opening up about the company’s finances and profit-sharing with her COO, Emily Van Brocklin, Groberg was able to focus on her health, and later, on the growth of BookSmarts.
“‘That should be the role of every CEO, to delegate as much as you possibly can [to] go out and keep building,’ Groberg says. Being able to divide the work paid off; with over 50% client growth, it was the first year that BookSmarts surpassed $1 million in revenue.”
When Groberg returned full-time to the business, delegating meant she could play to her strengths and really hone in on outreach and sales. That year, BookSmarts grew by 50% and hit the million-dollar revenue mark for the first time.
The article includes insights from nine other up-and-coming business owners, including things like revisiting your big idea, catering to your ideal customer instead of your own preferences, launching variations of the hero product, flexible packaging, being open to a new business model, embracing the scrappiness of a startup, and investing in the credibility of your company.
Groberg’s story highlights the broader theme of flexibility and adaptation that many successful founders have embraced. Ben Witte of Recess, adjusted his product line from CBD-infused drinks to those with magnesium L-threonate to navigate regulatory challenges. Sophia Edelstein and Nathan Kondamuri of Pair Eyewear reengineered their manufacturing process to meet customer demands for more styles, resulting in explosive growth. Loren Castle of Sweet Loren’s reformulated her cookie dough to cater to allergen-sensitive customers, carving out a unique market niche. These founders, like Groberg, show that reassessing and adapting business strategies can unlock substantial growth and success.
You can read the full article in the May/June print edition of Entrepreneur.
If you are ready to take your business to new heights, partner with BookSmarts today and let us handle your financial needs while you focus on what you do best: growing your business.
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Hiring A Bookkeeper Can Benefit You Throughout The Year, Not Just At Tax Time
Kelly Phillips Erb - Forbes Staff
Mar 29, 2024
If you’re working on your return, you’re not alone: most—about 52%—of e-filed returns have been self-prepared. That number is dropping as the season progresses, which isn’t unusual. Professionally prepared returns accounted for 29,644,000 of e-filed returns received so far in 2024. That’s according to recent tax filing season data, which also indicates that, as of March 8, 2024, the IRS had received 62,761,000 tax returns, about 49% of the expected total for the year.
If you are tackling your return, you may be ready to pull your hair out over the complexity of the rules—including those that seemingly change every other year, like the entertainment and meal tax deduction, the mileage tax deduction, and deductions targeted to small businesses.
And if you’re looking at your tax bill and wondering how you might be able to avoid a similar result next year, maybe it’s time to reconsider asset location. That doesn’t mean literally moving the physical location of your investments to say, Cleveland—it means thinking about how your funds are invested. You might be able to save yourself tens of thousands of dollars by reshuffling positions between taxable and tax-sheltered accounts, like IRAs.
I spent some time this week talking with tax professionals about how taxpayers can ease some of the associated stress. It likely won’t surprise you that they suggested you ask for help. One place to start? Hire a bookkeeper. There are obvious reasons to seek out help, like tax savings, but don’t discount longer-term benefits, like reducing your audit risk. Nicole Davis, the founder and CEO of Butler-Davis Tax & Accounting, explains that the IRS and other tax authorities rely on data metrics. That means the IRS is comparing you to other businesses in your category. You can raise red flags by mischaracterizing one expense—say, advertising—as another expense—like travel—because it might not make sense for your business category. And beyond taxes, Jenny Groberg, CEO of BookSmarts Accounting and Bookkeeping, says business owners should consider it an investment. There will be a cost, but it’s worth asking yourself, “How much more money can I make?”
It’s Tax time again! Can you believe it? This year we saw an increase of tax extensions into November. If you extended 2021 then it’s already time to start thinking about 2022 filing!
While you may have been in the deep end with 2021, it’s important that you address 2022 in November.
- Know your numbers: make sure your income and expenses are accurate and that you’re not over/under stating these categories. Run a P&L and Balance Sheet by quarter to get a sense of what’s going on.
- Talk to your CPA now: your tax accountant needs to see your books through Q3 so you have time to stratgize and make adjustments if needed.
- Find deductions: you may be able to find and take some helpful deductions.
- Upgrade your financial systems: if you’re using spreadsheets you are definitely missing important data. An outsourced accountant or bookkeeper can help.
- If you fail to plan, you plan to fail! Use 2021 & 2022 to make a plan and projections for 2023.
- Watch your cash flow: make sure you have enough cash to make the business moves that will help your business thrive.
- Spend strategically: stop excess spending and spend where it has the most benefit and impact on you and your business. Examples are professional services, captial expenditures, retirement plans, or charitable contributions.
HIRE A BOOKKEEPER!
Hiring a bookkeeper will give you peace of mind and help you be prepared for taxes. BookSmarts is a CPA-level bookkeeping sevice that can help you be better prepared for year end. Benefits we provide:
- know your numbers
- upgrade your financial systems
- provide reports for projections
- monitor your cash flow
- strategic spend
Teaming up with BookSmarts gives you more time and better information so you can grow your business! Call us today!
