With the rapid changes in the payment ecosystem over the last few years, business owners need to adapt quickly to the new payment systems to provide a seamless service to customers.

Among the various payment methods today, credit card payment has emerged as the most preferred payment option that customers use to shop offline and online.

Once the business owner decides if he wants to use a merchant account, a payment service provider, or an app, he can open a credit card processing account and set up a payment system. Here is how a merchant can accept credit card payments in-store and online.

Steps to Accept In-Store Credit Card Payment

Customers may make in-store credit card payments at a restaurant, in shopping stores, or at other points of sale. To accept credit card payments at physical sale points, a business owner requires the following equipment and services:

• Payment processor: A payment processor is a vendor who processes credit card payment transactions done by a customer. Small business owners can use the services of a payment processor, and large business owners can opt for a merchant account. A merchant account is more suitable for business owners doing a high-risk business or having many transactions daily.
• Point-of-sale system: A point-of-sale system is a combination of hardware and software computing and physical tools that facilitate a payment transaction. A merchant must purchase hardware like mobile card readers, fixed card readers, barcode scanners, etc., and pay a monthly fee for software like sales, inventory, and tax monitors.
• Payment terminals: Payment terminals are devices that process credit card transactions.

Now that you know the services and equipment required to accept credit card payments let us see the steps in the in-store payment process.

Step 1: Determining the payment processing needs: The first step for merchants is to determine payment processing needs. They need to decide if they will accept online, in-store, mobile, etc.; the payment can be one-time, recurring, or subscription-based. It will help the merchants understand the features they need in th
eir payment system.

Step 2: Choosing a payment processor: The merchant’s payment processor must be compatible with other software like the point-of-sale system. It reduces the scope of errors by eliminating the need for manual entries in the payment processor. The merchant’s point-of-sale system may have an in-built payment processor for convenience.

Step 3: Opening a credit card processing account: A small business can choose a credit card processing service which is a payment service provider. However, if the merchant has large-scale operations, he will require a merchant account.

Step 4: Setting up the payment software: After the merchant selects the payment processor and has an active account, he needs to learn to use the software. The software depends on whether the credit card payment processor is integrated into the point-of-sale system or the merchant uses tools provided by the card-providing service.

Step 5: Setting up the hardware: The merchant would require card readers to accept in-store credit card payments. The card readers come in various forms, like a small dongle that the merchant can sync with his smartphone or a complete POS system.

Step 6: Testing the system: Once the set-up is complete, the business owner should test the system before opening it to customers. It ensures smooth processing when the merchant is dealing with customers. To test the system, the merchant can process a small transaction and get his amount refunded.

Steps to Accept Online Credit Card Payment

Financial transactions made over the internet are called online credit card payments. The online credit card payment system functions in a pattern similar to in-store payments. In the online credit card payment system, the payment processor transfers the payment information, and the customer’s credit card company and the bank accept or reject the transaction.

The merchant receives the money in his account within one or two working days in the online payment system. The steps to accept online credit card payments are as follows:

Step 1: Setting up an online store: The merchant must first set up an online store where customers can shop for various products.

Step 2: Setting up a check-out process: Once the merchant has created an online store, he needs to set up a check-out process to make the payment process simple for the customers. For this, the check-out process should be mobile-friendly.

Step 3: Setting up the online payment services: After this, the merchant needs to integrate an online payment processing solution to give more options to the customers to make a payment and speed up the payment process.

The merchants should ensure that the customer data is secure while accepting online and offline payments. By setting up an effective credit card payment system, the merchant can offer better services and a better shopping experience for the customers.

Every internet retailer has a unique business plan. Many people make money by getting website visits. It might be challenging to choose an e-commerce business plan, especially for newcomers with negligible field experience.

For your e-commerce business to succeed and generate consistent revenues, choosing the right model is crucial. You must ask yourself these questions, how to know what payment to choose to accept online, and what business model should I select? When preparing for an online business, many people skip directly to the specifics and forget that everything depends on the products you intend to sell and the model you choose for disposing of your inventory. 

Here in this article, we will discuss which e-commerce model is best for your business.

How to identify an e-commerce business model?

An e-commerce business model describes how your online store is conceptually organized to reach customers and increase sales. Business-to-Government (B2G), Business-to-Business (B2B), Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C), Consumer-to-Business (C2B), and Business-to-Business-to-Consumer (B2B2C) are the six primary categories of e-commerce business models.

You need to identify two things before choosing the best e-commerce model for your company:

• Decide your target audience.
• Create your e-commerce business strategy. 

This will specify how you will draw clients and how they might interact with your offerings. Decide on your distribution structure by considering what would be most effective for your e-commerce enterprise.

Identify your selling product or service

This is the core business operation of your online strategy. The appeal of online business is that virtually anything can be sold. But it’s usually a smart idea, to begin with, a limited selection of goods. Clothing and shoes are examples of tangible goods that you may sell in your business. You can also offer digital goods, such as ebooks or services.

Let’s look at the categories of items currently available online and how to reach their market.

Physical Goods

This is the product that e-commerce stores sell the most. The most popular physical goods are often those that need to be packaged, shipped, and delivered.

But how do you choose which goods to market?

Determine your areas of passion. If you enjoy driving or love cars, try selling car parts or accessories.  Do you adore reading? Why not open a bookshop online? Thanks to online commerce, you have the ideal opportunity to turn your passion into a successful business.

Find the opportunity gaps by analyzing the niche you have picked. This addresses all the underserved facets of the sector. Analyze the target clients’ issues in a similar manner.

Digital goods

Next, investigate keywords related to the item you want to sell. You can then plan your stock management and orders by determining the level of demand for your product.

A buyer may order a wide variety of things online. Are you a graphic artist, content writer, or web designer? You may build an online store for digital goods. For such stores, copyright violations and piracy pose a severe problem. The FAQ and Legal sections, which address the method of product distribution and the status of your items’ copyrights, are also crucial requirements.

Service

Why not build a website to sell these services online if you have a team of competent carpenters, house cleaners, or expert hair stylists who offer to visit the customer’s home? By adding thorough FAQ and Legal sections that explain what you are doing and what the clients might anticipate, you can significantly boost the demand for your services.

Six different E-commerce Business Models

E-commerce supports several models since it is a global phenomenon. The benefit of online shopping is that you may select one or more business models.

Business to Business model

Setting up a B2B strategy is your best option if the nature of your goods or services is focused on satisfying the demands of enterprises. Reaching out and networking are more critical components of this technique. Large advertising budgets are of little use.

Convincing established firms that your products/services are an excellent fit for their processes will be your biggest obstacle.

If you ensure the integrity of your goods and services, this business model has the benefit that orders are often substantial in size, and repeat business is highly common. Media Lounge serves as a superb illustration of this model.

Business to Consumer

This is the approach you should take if your goods or services are primarily geared at people. The prospective consumer sees your website and evaluates if your offering may help them with their problems.

After looking around the shop, the consumer can opt to order anything. Portugal Footwear is an illustration of a prosperous Business to Consumer model.

Consumer to Consumer model

This model is unique to E-commerce. This is mostly a result of the overwhelming demand on websites like Craigslist, OLX, and eBay.

Users of these sites can rent, buy, sell, and exchange goods and services. The platforms earn a small fee from each transaction. This company concept is intricate and has to be operated with great care. A lot of platforms have collapsed, usually because of legal problems.

Consumer to Business model

Another excellent idea that has gained popularity is the customer-to-business (C2B) business model, which is mostly owing to websites that cater to independent contractors. Freelancers in the C2B industry do tasks given to them by customers. These clients tend to be businesses, whereas the freelancers are frequently individuals. Consider C2B as a sole proprietorship that caters to larger enterprises, to put it simply.

This business strategy includes reverse auction websites, freelancing markets, and affiliate marketing. Again, the legal complications in this paradigm necessitate planning.

Business to Government model

A company advertises its products to government organizations as part of a business strategy known as business to government. You will need to submit bids for government contracts if you decide to use this e-commerce business model. Governments frequently post requests for proposals, and e-commerce companies must subsequently submit bids for those projects. 

Most of the time, a government organization wouldn’t visit your e-commerce website to make a purchase. Nevertheless, depending on their requirements, some local government entities may be an exception to the norm.

Business to Business to Consumer model

B2B2C e-commerce is described as when a firm sells goods to another business, which then sells those goods to consumers online.

This kind of e-commerce business strategy involves three partners. If you decide to follow it, for instance, you will need to join another company before you can sell that company’s items and pay the partner a commission on every sale.

Owners of e-commerce businesses select this business strategy mostly for gaining new clients. This occurs because, despite the fact that customers are already aware of the partner’s items, they are unable to buy from them online owing to restrictions like geography and expensive delivery charges, among other things.

Therefore, this e-commerce business strategy is most suited for new e-store proprietors who wish to increase their clientele.

Keeping records of your income when self-employed can be difficult. It’s not just about the money you make either, but your business expenses and all of this needs to be monitored to help you keep the info you need for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) when it’s time to file your self-assessment tax return as a self-employed person by January 31st.

So, how do you keep track of your income whilst working in self-employment? Let’s find out below.

Deciding on your accounting method

Your accounting period is the same each year in the UK – from April 6th through to April 5th. The 2021-2022 tax year runs from April 6th 2021 to April 5th 2022, for example.

But that’s all that remains the same in accounting. How you choose to keep your business records for accounting is really up to you. So let’s look at the options.

Traditional accounting

Traditional accounting is simply where you record all income and expenses based on when you were given the invoices or bills. Regardless of whether you are yet to receive payments or pay the outstanding bill yourself.

For example, you might have an outstanding bill from a supplier that was given to you on March 18th 2022, but they don’t want payment until April 18th 2022. Of course, you won’t be paying them until the next tax year, but you would still include the payments in this tax year in traditional accounting because you’re concerned with when the bill was given, not when it’s due.

Cash basis accounting

Cash basis accounting is where you record all income and expenses only when the bill has been paid or the money has been received. This is typically used by self-employed individuals and most small businesses earning less than £150,000 per year, as it means you pay less tax in the accounting period as you won’t need to pay income tax on business income that hasn’t been received yet.

What records do I need to keep?

Regardless of your accounting method, you’ll still need to keep similar records. Some will be needed for your self-assessment tax return, and others simply if HMRC launches an investigation into your business income.

Keeping inadequate business records can lead to hefty fines of up to £3000, so it’s in your best interest to brush up on your record-keeping and know what exactly you need to keep. A spokesperson from the Darlington Office of Auditox Accountancy said that 80% of self-employed people who came to them after they had started their business rather than before required almost double the workload to get back on track and so ended up costing them more in the long run.

Here’s everything you’ll need to keep records of:

• all sales and income
• all business expenses
• VAT records (if you’re VAT registered, not everybody is because not everybody needs to be)
• personal income (recording where you’ve put your own personal funds into your business, too)
• PAYE records (if you have employees)

If you’re using the traditional accounting method, you’ll also need:

• Info about money owed but not received
• Invoices received but not yet paid
• Value of stock at the end of the accounting period
• Year-end bank account balance
• Personal investment
• Business money used for personal use

Why is keeping records important?

Keeping accurate records is vital. It will help you fill in your self-assessment tax return but also helps HMRC work out how much income tax you will have to pay and the national insurance contributions you’ll have to make.

Without accurate records, you won’t be able to show every business expense and appropriate accounting records for HMRC to work out the taxable income you’ll pay tax on. You can read more here about bookkeeping.

Because you’re running your own business as a sole trader, you can claim business expenses, tax relief on pension contributions, and other benefits available to you that qualify you for some reduction in the amount of income tax you’ll pay that tax year. That’s because you haven’t taken home every penny of your income like you would do if you were employed by someone else, because some of your money has gone back into the business. HMRC needs to know about all of this.

By keeping accurate records and receipts of your business income and expenses, HMRC will be able to tell you how much tax you actually owe.

Business expenses

Below is a list of business expenses you’ll need to keep:

• Travel and accommodation
• Legal and financial costs
• Marketing costs
• Clothing expenses
• Utilities
• Subscriptions

Basically, if you have to spend money as part of your business, you should record that.

How long should I keep records?

As a small business or self-employed individual, you’ll need to keep all of your basic records for five years after the January 31st deadline.

That means all receipts, records, invoices, expenses, etc, for the 2021-2022 tax year (which is due by January 31st, 2023) will need to be kept until January 31st, 2028. This is a legal requirement and is non-negotiable.

What evidence do I need to keep?

For those five years, you simply need to keep all evidence of your business income and expenses. Evidence would include:

• receipts for goods and stocks
• bank statements from your business bank account (showing all account payments and income)
• cheque book stubs
• sales invoices (including own invoices you’ve sent out)
• physical receipts of cash payments
• paying in slips etc.

All of this information should show the date and information about the services that your business has paid for or your business has been paid for.

How to store this evidence

Ideally, self-employed people will store all of their record-keeping electronically, as this makes it much easier to send over to HMRC should they require it. Keeping physical copies isn’t always practical, and can result in loss or damage, which could see you receiving a hefty fine.

As Making Tax Digital is due to take full effect in April 2023, sole traders must get used to using tax software to store all their info for filing their tax returns.

Certain tax software will allow you to take pictures of physical receipts instead too, which just streamlines your record-keeping and makes everything easier.

Final thoughts

So long as you record everything (electronically if possible), choose the accounting method that works for you, and keep accurate records of all expenses and income relating to your business for 5 years after the January 31st deadline of the tax year the records relate to, then recording your income whilst self-employed is easy enough.

Then simply use the information you’ve kept to tell HMRC via the self-assessment tax return, and you can be sure that you’re meeting all legal requirements! It really is as easy as that.

Hiring is the most demanding part of any business. Yet, it is also the crucial one. Therefore, the hiring process should be designed to uncover the perfect fit for your company.

It’s important to understand that hiring the right person will enhance your workflow and create better results for you and your team.

In this article, we’ll share some tips on hiring accountants in 2022. From understanding what skills are needed to interviewing candidates, we have answered all of your questions here:

Conduct a thorough job analysis

Before you even start your search, you must know what you’re looking for. The job analysis is a vital part of the hiring process. It can help you find the perfect person more quickly by clearly outlining what skills, qualifications, and experience are needed for each position.

Job analysis is a process by which the recruiters first collect the information about a job and then analyze it. The goal is to know what you have to look for. At the end of the job analysis process, you get a job description and specification.

Some methods to effectively conduct job analysis are as under:

• Observation: you observe individuals performing a similar/same job somewhere and note their duties and tasks.
• Interview: you interview individuals performing a similar/same job somewhere and ask about their responsibilities.
• Questionnaires: you roll out questionnaire forms including the questions about their responsibilities to individuals performing a similar/same job somewhere.

Once you have chosen the job analysis methods, you can follow the following steps to conduct it thoroughly.

Step 1: Plan the job analysis

At this stage, you set the objectives of your job analysis process. As an HR person, you also involve the top management to ensure everyone’s on the same page.

Step 2: Introduce the job analysis

At this stage, you set the methodology for the job analysis. First, you have to choose either to observe or interview. You can also have a blend of multiple methods. Then, you need to communicate the preferred method(s) with the people involved.

Step 3: conduct the job analysis

At this stage, you perform the methods mentioned earlier. First, you compile the gathered data and then review it.

Step 4: create job descriptions and specifications

By utilizing the collected data in the previous step, you draft the job specifications and descriptions. The involved persons and top management then review this initial draft. At last, you finalize a job description and specification to be rolled out for the hiring process.

Step 5: maintain and update job descriptions and specifications

Creating a job description and specification is not the end. In this age of disruptive technologies, you need to keep them up-to-date as per the new changes. Hence, you must revise the job description and specifications continuously.

Once done with the job analysis process, you will have its product at hand—job description and specification.

This job description would highlight the need for accounting skills as well as expertise in managing a team or providing financial assistance.

Knowing precisely what you want before you start interviewing candidates will save both time and money—and help you find the best candidate.

Start your recruiting process

After a thorough job analysis, you know exactly what you are looking for. Hence, now is the time to start your hunt for the right candidate. How do you find them? There are three common ways:

Internet Recruiting

The age of the internet has made it easier for employers to reach potential candidates. With the help of the internet, you can use the following ways to attract potential hires for application.

• E-recruiting: You use internet recruiting tools, such as blogs, websites, or Twitter, to post your job description and specification.
• Online job boards: There are special online job boards that facilitate the interaction of employers and their potential employees. The websites such as Indeed, Monster, LinkedIn, etc., allow you to post your job description and specification.
• Employer website: You can also have a ‘hiring’ page on your website dedicated to this purpose. A good website will lure not only active job seekers but also passive job seekers.

Internal Recruiting

Employers can also find potential hires from sources within their organization. Some of them are as under:

• Employee-focused recruiting: you get suggestions from your current employees about the right accountant to hire.
• Current-employee referrals: if the employees know the right accountant among their acquaintances, family, and friends, they refer it to the employer.
• Re-recruiting former employees: if you had previously excluded a good accountant from their position, possibly because you were downsizing, you could now recall them for the vacant position.

External Recruiting

Another source to find potential hires is external recruiting. Some of its ways are as under:

• Media: Media sources include newspapers, television, magazine, billboards, digital ads, videos, webinars, and more.
• Employment Agencies: you can take the help of an employment agency within your region. They function to connect employers and employees.
• Job Fairs: you can either organize a job fair yourself or participate in one. Oftentimes, organizations put their stalls at job fairs and conduct walk-in interviews of the potential candidates there.

Conduct an accounting test

After the potential hires have applied for the position, you must take them to the next significant step—testing their technical knowledge. The first condition of the right person is that they must have a thorough understanding of accounting.

To assess it, you must conduct a test. It can be online or on-site. If you go with the online testing option, we recommend TestGorilla’s accounting test. It is a predesigned test by accounting experts, so you don’t need to worry about creating a new one from scratch.

It assesses a candidate’s knowledge of the accounting process, terminologies, debit/credit calculations, the creation of financial statements, and more. Simply put, it would assess all of the necessary accounting skills of a candidate. 

Or, you can also go with the on-site testing option. However, it would be costly. You will have to set up an examination hall, purchase examination stationery, hire invigilators and checkers. 

Before all of it, you will have to design the test first. In a nutshell, the onsite testing option will cost you both money and time.

Design a perfect interview

The interview should be designed to get to know the candidate’s technical accounting knowledge, work ethic, communication skills, and other essential qualities.

It’s essential to ask specific questions about what they’ve done in the past that are relevant to your position. The questions you ask should relate to the job you’re hiring for. Make sure you pay attention to their body language as well as how they answer your questions.

Here are some examples of good questions:

• What is your accounting background?
• Which inventory valuation method should the businesses use: LIFO, FIFO, or weighted average?
• What is the Operating Profit Ratio?
• Describe one time when you could improve efficiency at a previous job.

The right interview environment

If you want to find a great accountant, the interview environment is the key. In order to have a successful interview, it’s essential to understand some of the qualities of a good accountant. One way to start would be by looking for an accountant with a positive attitude.

In addition, you should also look for someone who is dependable and reliable, as these skills will make them a better fit for your business.

The best way to assess these qualities is through an interview setting where both parties feel comfortable talking with each other.

If you’re hiring remotely over the phone or via video chat, make sure you speak up and articulate what you need from them.

When you’re looking for an accountant, it’s important to understand what skills and abilities are needed. For example, if you’re looking for someone who specializes in auditing your company’s records and tracking numbers, you’re going to need a candidate who is detail-oriented and detail-driven.

To find such a candidate, you’ll want to make sure they have the following skills:

• They can work on their own with minimal supervision
• They ask questions when they don’t know something
• They can follow directions well
• They stay calm under pressure
• They have good multitasking skills

Wrapping up

As your company grows and your accounting needs change, you’ll have to be prepared to hire a new accountant. But new skills and technologies will create a whole new set of challenges as you look for new talent.

Fortunately, there are some steps you can take today that will help ensure that your search for the perfect accountant is successful.

In this article, we’ve covered the key steps to hiring an accountant in 2022, including conducting a thorough job analysis, conducting an accounting test, designing a perfect interview, and preparing questions before the interview. 

Now it’s time to put these steps into action and find the best accountant for your business.