An organized bookkeeping system is arguably the most critical component of monetizing a blog business. It doesn’t matter if you’re making boocoo bucks on your blog if you aren’t tracking money coming in and money going out. Here’s how we suggest you manage your time when you’re taking care of your own small business bookkeeping and accounting tasks.
Mazuma’s Secret Bookkeeping Formula
If you’re a blogger, you’re likely a list person. You like schedules, checklists, and organization. If you’re feeling overwhelmed with the bookkeeping part of your blog, here’s a simple formula that when followed closely, will limit time spent and increase profits for your business.
30 minutes / week
Schedule 30 minutes each week to do the following:
- Gather all receipts spent on blog-related items that week and make note of what they were for.
- Jot down miles driven for your blog business if you’re planning to use those an expense for taxes.
- Review your ad revenue and make notes
- Enter everything into a bookkeeping program–whether it’s an excel spreadsheet or something fancier, you must keep track.
1 hour / month
- File all receipts from the month. To learn more about filing receipts digitally, visit this post.
- Review all your entries for the month in your bookkeeping program.
- Add up your income and expenses for the month to determine profit.
- Compare to your anticipated budget and adjust where necessary.
- Pay bills and send invoices.
- Adjust for the next month.
1 hour / quarter
- Review income and expenses for the quarter and enter into bookkeeping program.
- Determine how much you owe and pay your estimated quarterly taxes.
- Make changes to your budget and plan spending for the next 3 months.
2 hours / year
- Review your yearly income and expenses.
- Create a budget for the next year based on last year’s budget and anticipated growth.
- Schedule time for weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly bookkeeping tasks.
Follow this bookkeeping schedule and you’re sure to stay on top of your blogging finances. When you’re blog business becomes too large to manage, you might consider outsourcing those services to save yourself time and money.
Love this post in our Business of Blogging Series? You might also enjoy:
Separating the Blogging Myths from the Blogging Truths
Deciding on a Business Entity for your Blog
Obtaining a Tax ID Number and Proper Licenses to Run Your Blog Business
Start Making Money on Your Blog
Tracking Blog Expenses the Right Way
How to Create a Budget for Your Blog
Making Smart Investments in Your Blog Business
Paying Estimated Quarterly Taxes for Your Blog Business
Hiring an Expert to Manage Your Blog Finances
