4 Bookkeeping Tips for Interior Designers

It’s no secret that running an Interior Design Business involves significant time on business tasks that can sometimes take away from the time spent creating beautiful spaces. While designers like yourself may be fueling your passion, your business is also your primary means of making a living. Successfully managing your bookkeeping can be a key part of your business process that lets you focus on the core of your business – design.

Here are 4 bookkeeping tips to help your interior design business thrive:

 Implement a system for starting each project

Prepare for each project by starting with a project proposal and client agreement that clearly presents the scope of work, design investment, and payment methods. While the bookkeeping activities occur on the back end for actions that have already occurred, organized day-to-day activities must be performed in the correct manner. Better yet, you can even enter all your preliminary project details into a project management system to help properly execute all bookkeeping procedures.

Stay on top of purchase orders and payments

Once your project is underway, you’re most likely more focused on creative goals than bookkeeping items. However, staying on top of purchase orders and payments can help alleviate a source of mistakes. In addition, be sure that necessary payments are collected before completing purchases. Whether your process involves collecting deposits or full payments, consider breaking up proposals by project phase so that all items that are ordered at one time can be completed on one proposal.

Tie up loose ends at the end of your project

Ensure that all bank statements, cash, and credit card statements are reconciled at the end of the project. Utilize reporting tools or other designer programs to run reports to ensure that all your numbers are adding up. Managing an interior design project involves many financial transactions and moving parts, but implementing a plan that you can carry through from start to finish is essential to successful bookkeeping.  

Hire a bookkeeper who knows the business

Hiring a bookkeeper can be incredibly instrumental to your success as a business because bookkeepers have a thorough understanding of business fundamentals. A bookkeeper who is experienced in the interior design industry offers specialized experience and education that allows them to navigate the gap between design and business.

Did you know that Elite Design Assistants offers bookkeeping services for interior designers? Our bookkeepers are experienced and here to help.

If you’d like to work with an experienced bookkeeper who can help with your interior design business, respond to this email and we’ll get you setup with your personal design assistant. We’d love to help you tackle your bookkeeping needs!

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