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- [00:00]
Kate All
Hey there and welcome back to another episode of the Simple Pin podcast. Today we're going to be doing something that we actually did a year ago where we're going to be talking about something that is Pinterest adjacent. So something that's really important to your business, but it doesn't feel like it gets a lot of good attention, and that is accounting. I know everybody just got so excited because we're going to be talking about taxes and numbers. But here's the thing. I have brought on Nate from Cookie Finance. He has been on our podcast before last year, but this year we're going to talk about accounting myths and things that creators specifically believe about how they do their taxes or don't do their taxes. So if you are in the business of creating content, whether that is travel, whether that is food or lifestyle or fashion, whatever it is, if you are creating content and you have not set up a really great accounting system, this is for you. I have met Nate and his team in person. We met last year at a conference and we just saw each other at a conference a couple of weeks ago. And what I can tell you about their team is that they are so attentive to people's questions. They literally just want to listen to you and answer your question. They are not a people who hard sell you. In fact, you'll hear about that at the end of this episode. But they are people who want to make accounting more accessible for creators. And what we get to midway in this episode is kind of a side, a sidestep, a little bit of a soapbox rabbit trail, if you will, where we talk about creators taking seriously their business, that it is not a hobby, it is not this thing that you just do on the side, but that for some of you making significant, significant income. You have not set up a really good accounting system which says that you're not seeing your business as legit. You are kind of still treating it as this side thing that you think is going to go away tomorrow. So I really hope you're not only encouraged by that side conversation that we have, but you're encouraged by, by Nate really myth busting these accounting beliefs that we have so that you can set up a good accounting system within your business. This episode is sponsored by Cookie Finance, but I want you to know that we careful really curate our sponsors. I am not just choosing anybody that comes to us and says, hey, I want to sponsor the podcast or the video here. We choose people that we have met specifically with or we use their tools. We believe that they are good business owners that they are helpful to the community at large. And Nate and his team at Cookie Finance are some of those people. So we thank them for sponsoring this podcast and I hope that you will go meet with them. They offer a free 30 minute consultation. You can talk to them about anything. If you walk away from this episode and you're like, I've got five other things I need to myth bust, you can get them on the phone. So I hope you'll enjoy this episode, be inspired, and even though it's not about Pinterest, but it is Pinterest adjacent, it will make you a better business owner.
- [03:16]
Nate
Foreign. You're listening to the Simple Pen podcast, Pinterest for business advice that goes down smooth and easy. Here's your host, Kate All.
- [03:36]
Kate All
Nate, welcome back to the Simple Pen podcast.
- [03:39]
Nate
Thank you so much for having me. I love being here at Soldiers.
- [03:42]
Kate All
I know. I have been thinking about your story that you told me and I should also say we're recording this mid like tax season and I think one of the things that's really important about somebody who does accounting is that the books need to be squared away and they need to be right. And there's so much of this adjustment and all these kinds of things. And you told the story in our last podcast, which I'll link down below in the show notes, about somebody who came to you in December last year with just crazy books and you guys ended up completely balancing their books at the end of the year. So I'm still curious, have you had anything similar to that? Any crazy stories in 2024 in the accounting world that you think are funny to share?
- [04:24]
Nate
I mean, there's so many fun stories to share. One thing I would say is, and just like just for everyone listening, that you're not alone if your financials are not in order. In fact, that story is the norm, not the exception. Right? And probably 80, 85% of people who come to us have their, their books are. Their finances are a complete mess from a standpoint. They don't have separate bank accounts, they're not tracking their income and expenses and everything's all jumbled together. They have no idea where they are. And you know a good story. This happened just a, like three months ago. A Clint signed up. She is making. Well, when she signed up, she said, yeah, I'm making about $750,000 a year. Not tracking her financials, not doing anything. We spent the next three, four weeks really diving in, cleaning up everything and we looked at it and I'll call Her, Sarah. I was like, sarah, you didn't make 750,000 last year. You made 1.25 million. She's like, oh, oh, that's.
- [05:41]
Kate All
Oh my gosh.
- [05:42]
Nate
Cool. I didn't know that. Like, yeah, that's. It was like she just had no idea because she wasn't keeping track. She wasn't understanding. So that was like the, the best surprise that like a client's received recently is like, they actually made, you know, 500,000 more than they thought they did just because they weren't keeping track of things. But I, I see all that. Like, you are in the norm if you aren't doing that because you're a creator, like your right brain. That's not how your brain works. And nor should you like, force yourself.
- [06:15]
Kate All
To think that way a hundred percent. I think this brings relief to a lot of people listening because there are so many people that feel like they are behind the eight ball. They are not keeping up. They are definitely going to screw up their taxes. The government's going to come after them because they didn't track every single thing. So having you say that, that it's more the norm than it is the exception is probably someone like me who is so type A about my books and my finances that like, pretty much I'm like chomping at the bit at the end of January to like, okay, let's get this done. Let's get it. Like, I want to. But I'm also so eager to see, like, do I owe anything or do I have to do I get a return? Which I did get an eight dollar return this year. So, you know, I in the big money right now with $8. But that's good. I. But yeah, yeah.
- [07:06]
Nate
I mean, if you only got an $8 return, that means you did it perfectly last year. Like, you don't want a big return because if you get a tax return, that means you overpaid the government all throughout the years. Like the fact that it was $8 return, that is absolutely, really impressive. So good job. That's amazing.
- [07:25]
Kate All
Thank you. Thank you. I aimed, I aim, I am competitive in nature at all things, including my taxes. So there you go. Okay, so we're going to talk about some myths today. And I think similar to, even when you're doing Pinterest marketing or you're doing anything in your business, there's always these beliefs that tend to creep in because they've just been heard in the industry for so long. Or so and so shares this. Or so and so shares that. So I Want to break it into two categories, general tax myths, and then write offs gifts and deductible myths, which I'm so excited for this one. But the first one of like general tax myths. Let's start with myth number one, which is I only pay taxes if I make a certain amount of money. Talk to me a little bit about that because I've heard that before from people too, that, oh, there's this threshold. I don't have to report it. It's just like a hobby. It's not a big deal. So I'm just not going to report it.
- [08:29]
Nate
Yeah, and it's something that we hear a lot too. In fact, I just did a couple of TikTok react videos where there were multiple creators out there. We're like, oh, if you're earning less than $5,000, like per the IRS rules, you don't do them. Like, whoa, whoa, whoa, hang on, wait. What rules are you quoting here? So, like, to dispel the myth, every dollar you earn you have to report. And a good example that probably a lot of people will see is if you have a savings account at the end of the year, the bank will send you a 1099 and it'll say exactly how much you earned in interest. Even if it's $4, you still have to report that $4 of interest on your tax return. Even though it was $4 and you might only owe a dollar in taxes, you still have to report that $4 on your tax return. And it goes with, as a creator or business owner that no matter how much you make, there is no minimum threshold for reporting and paying taxes. Now where I think people get confused is if a brand or company, they will not send you a 1099 if you earned less than $600. So if a brand only pays you $500, then they're not going to send you 1099. So some people think, okay, well they didn't send me 1099, so I don't need to report that income. The answer is no, you do have to report that income. Still just said 1099 wasn't required. So yeah, short story is every single dollar of income you earn, you have to report.
- [10:14]
Kate All
Very interesting. I have believed that before too. Especially that 600 mark. I was like, well, if you make 600 or less, you don't have to report it. But it does. It stands to reason, given your example of the interest statement on your savings account, you still have to let them know. So thank you for clearing that one up for me too. Okay, so this is number two. And I believe that when I started my business, I 100% believed this. And that is you only need to pay taxes one time per year. April 15th. That's when they are due. You don't have to pay taxes outside of that. Talk to me more about that.
- [10:55]
Nate
So technically it's true. So I'll use the example of, of working a normal W2 job where you get a paycheck out of every paycheck. You'll see that your employer automatically withholds federal taxes, state taxes, Social Security, Medicare. They take that. They, you know, submit it to the IRS and Social Security Administration and say on your behalf, and then you get the net amount. And then at the end of the year, you do a tax return. And you see you kind of trued up. You know, here's how much I submitted in taxes and here's how much I actually owed. Here's do I get money back or do I owe some money? So that's a normal W2 job, is every single paycheck you're required to withhold money, submit it to the irs. Well, as a business owner, as an entrepreneur, a creator, no one is withholding those taxes on your behalf. And so what the IRS says is, we really want that money now. Yeah, if you worked a W2 job, you'd be giving us that money every two weeks. We would really like that money quarterly. Now. It's not required. You are not required to do those quarterly payments. You can just do pay all those taxes at the end of the year. And the IRS says, great, Kate, that is fully fine. Feel free to pay those taxes at the end of the year. But because we really wanted that money quarterly, we are going to charge you 8, 8% interest on everything you owed us, plus penalties and fines on top of that. So that can then add up to thousands of dollars of interest and penalties you're paying. And what's really interesting is the, the very first comment I get from people is, I've never had to pay those penalties and interest before. Like, I've never been charged, even though I haven't made quarterly payments. And my response is, you actually have without actually knowing it. And so interesting for anyone listening, like, when you get home, take a look at your last tax return. If you fall within that bucket, and on the second page of your 1040 at the very, very bottom, automatically on the tax return, it calculates the interest and penalties that you owe for underpaying for not making those quarterly payments. And then it's just wrapped into that total Tax number, you owe the irs. So.
- [13:38]
Kate All
Got it.
- [13:39]
Nate
You most likely. One client that we were just chatting with, she said the same thing to. She's like, I've never had to pay those. I opened up her tax return, like, last year, you paid 3, $500 in interest and penalties. Here it is right here. She's like, oh, dude, I. I did not know that. So once again, it's very sneaky. You probably didn't notice it, but we highly recommend you just make those quarterly payments. It's not required, but, you know, unless you think you can make more than 8% somewhere else, plus fines and pound, like, just make those quarterly payments.
- [14:14]
Kate All
Right. And you know that I always say, like, the government's gonna get their money whether you want them to get it or not. So I mean, it's just, it's in there and it's built in, and that is a huge thing to pay attention to. And I love that you pointed that out to your client because it's so easy to not see. It's so easy to just look at that final number and be like, oh, I paid on April 15. And I think especially for people who go from a W2 job to entrepreneurship to being an independent creator, there is a lot to lear about the differences in that. Because your point, right, like, they're just taking it out of your check. And so there isn't that need or actually they don't have access to take it out when you're getting paid. Whereas the W2 is run through a payroll program. It's automatically coming out. My daughter is working her first job and she got her first paycheck, and she was like, wait a minute, like, What? They did $200? I was like, yes, they did. Like, now you're seeing the discrepancy. Whereas when you work on your own, it's very easy to overlook those things. Because you see a thousand dollar payment, you don't see it dropping by 20% and going, okay, I'm gonna take that out and go pay the government. That. So I love that we're tackling this because it's easy to believe once a year, one and done, and we're not getting charged. Which I think this actually leads to. Myth, the number three kind of in this space is that you can avoid taxes by calling your content creator business a hobby. Like, it's not actually a business. We're just going to call it something different. It's just something I'm doing for fun. And so why do I have to pay taxes?
- [15:58]
Nate
Yeah, I've Definitely heard that argument before as well. And what the IRS says is, that's great. If you want to consider yourself a hobby, then you can do that. But the problem with considering yourself a hobby is you then get zero deductions. So even on a hobby, you are technically supposed to pay taxes on that and report it. And I was like, clear the air. Like, if you're making more than thousand bucks a month, like more than 12, $15,000 a year, it's more than just like a fun little hobby. Like, that's a real like, side business that you're running. But if you do consider yourself a hobby, then you get zero deductions. Hobbies are allowed to have no deductions, so you have to end up paying more in taxes by calling yourself a hobby. It's when you actually call yourself a business that you can, can then write off a portion of your home, some of your subscriptions, your phone, your Internet, all these different deductions that you can take is when you consider yourself a business. So don't think of yourself as a hobby, because one like you, you start to report those that income as taxes. But who then you're not going to get those deductions. And it kind of goes to like a larger. This is a little bit off topic. We can get back to the myths. But this, this really came home to me. You and I were at a conference a few weeks ago, and I was talking with one creator, and as we were chatting, she said, oh, you know, it does like this, my content business, it's, it's more of a hobby. It's like just like a, a side thing. I was like, okay, well, you know, how much are you making per month? I was expecting, you know, a few hundred bucks, maybe a thousand bucks. She's like, yeah, I'm doing like 12 to $15,000 a month. I was like, okay, hold on a second. That is not just a, like a little hobby. Like, that is a real legit business. And I'm sure you see this as well. Like, I really want creators to not think of this as just a side business as a hobby, like, think of it as a business, because you do have a business. And the more you have that mindset of like, this is a business, the more you're going to treat it like a business. And you have all the things that kind of go along with it. So anyway, a little bit off topic, but it's kind of triggered that thought, right?
- [18:41]
Kate All
And it gets to kind of those last two myths that we covered that you're Setting it aside into something different. And I think when you set it aside to a hobby or I'm just doing this for fun, I. I only have to maybe pay some taxes, not all taxes. Then I think you alter your perspective as a business owner in general to have it be a little laissez faire. Like, you know, it is, it is what it is, right? But when you put the layer of it, when you put these systems in place to say, no, this is a legitimate business and we are going to treat it as such and we are going to hold that in high regard, then you do start making better decisions for your business because you see it different. You don't see it as like, well, you know, if the wind blows this way, then I'll go with it, right? Like, if you're making 12 to $15,000 a month, consider yourself incredibly lucky, incredibly fortunate. And when you. I imagine that when people really put it in that bucket of legitimate business, it's going to make even more money because they are seeing it that way. And I think that's the important part of addressing these things as myths in specifically areas of accounting. Because that is showing that you have a legitimate business. That is showing that you're taking it seriously. And I find that all of that infuses for you to be such a good business owner and do amazing things. So, yes, it's a little bit of a bummer because the government's going to take more of your money, but this also gives you an opportunity to make more money. So it's like, I've heard people say that before. When you're bummed about paying a lot of taxes, just remember you're also making a lot of money.
- [20:21]
Nate
I'm like, right? Yep, yep.
- [20:23]
Kate All
They're not. You're not going to pay a lot of taxes if you're making $100 a month. Like, it's just, it looks completely different. Okay, so let's jump into write offs and miss about write offs. There's one in here that is my absolute favorite. Okay, so let's tee it up. As you're the business owner that's like, okay, I'm going to be legit about this. I'm going to do proper accounting. Now. What can I write off? And I think a myth that people have, and I've seen this in multiple places, is that you can write off everything because your content is about your life. You are a lifestyle content creator. Maybe even if you're, even if you're just doing fashion, well, I'm wearing these clothes all the time. So I should just be able to write literally every single thing off. True or false?
- [21:14]
Nate
False. Definitely false. Unless you really want to get audited. Then like, don't, don't do that. Let me go back to the tax rules. And I talked about this. Last time is the last time that the tax code was fully overhauled was in 1986. So it's been 39 years, almost 40 years. Year I was born. So next year I hit my big four zero. Thank you. So it's been almost 40 years since the IRS did a complete overhaul of the tax code. Now they've made updates and tax breaks and things like that. But when they overhauled the tax code, they have to set up in a way that can last for decades because it's a lot of work and you don't want to overhaul it every time a new industry comes out, a new technology, whatever. So the tax code is necessarily very broad and it's very gray. They have some things that are very, very specific. But I think probably the biggest, you know, realization or shock to people is like, everything's great and it's like, all about us, like navigating the general guidelines they give. So that's kind of the first thing. And with that, some people abuse it. As a creator of, well, it's gray. So everything's a write off. Because my whole life is my content. Kind of how the IRS is, what they say is the expense needs to be ordinary part of your business and a necessary part of your business. And so that's kind of the framework that we use when. And that's like the direct language from the irs. That's really the framework that we use when we're thinking about deductions. And as we talk to our clients and teach our clients about deductions is okay, what is ordinary and necessary for you to build your content, build your community and so on. So kind of with that ones, you know, what the IRS doesn't want you to do is just write off every single personal thing that you have. So when it comes to clothing, they have like fairly strict guidelines around clothing. If you're a fashion creator and all of your money is made from affiliate links with Amazon or ltk, something similar like that. That's easy. Every single piece of clothing that you're buying that has an affiliate link, you can write that off. Like, that's easy.
- [23:44]
Kate All
Right.
- [23:45]
Nate
Now to your example, if you're just a lifestyle creator, you don't necessarily have, like affiliates. Links are tied to every single outfit. Then what we advise our Clients, like, just write off the outfits that you're buying for a specific shoot or maybe you're doing some type of brand partnership and you need to have like a certain type of style or whatever. Those are clothing that you can write off, not just like your everyday, you know, hat and shirt in your PJs and like these cool new shoes. The IRS would definitely look at that and be like, like, that is definitely not like a necessary part of your business. So that's kind of like the lens. Same when it comes like the home deduction. You know, some creators like, well, my whole house is used for recordings. I want to write off my entire home. You're like, no, I don't know if that's a myth we're going to get to, but I'll. I'll say that one if it is. So, yeah, you know, ordinary necessary part of your business. Definitely there are personal things you can write off that most businesses can't. But don't go so crazy that you know that you're writing off, you know, every single piece of your life, because that's just like asking for an audit.
- [24:59]
Kate All
Right?
- [25:00]
Nate
Right.
- [25:00]
Kate All
And nobody wants to be audited. We've had friends that that has happened to and it's a miserable experience. Well, and actually this does jump to our next myth, which is I can write off. This is specifically for travel creators. I can write off my entire trip because I posted a photo about it. So if I go to Portugal, if I go wherever, I can post on Instagram once and I can write the whole thing off.
- [25:28]
Nate
Yes. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. We've definitely had people try to argue that with us. We're like, look, if you really want to do that, like, that is up to you. But so here is our guidance on travel. Travel creators. It's a lot easier to just buy it, but I'll kind of talk about a broader. Is what you really want to show is that significant content was produced as a result of the trip. And you can always think about if, if we are going to Las Vegas for conference. Obviously, like the main point of the trip is the conference, but there's gonna be fun, right? Like at night, might go do karaoke, we might go do a fun dinner, whatever, and go see a show. Like, there's gonna be some fun things in there. But like, the purpose of the trip was, was business related. So you can write off a lot of them business this trip. Right. So it kind of goes same thing for a content creator that as part of the trip, you want to produce Some really good content as part of it. And the. The example I like to use. I have four kids. I'm one of those weirdos with like, a thousand kids. So we have. We have four kids. So, you know, if I'm a travel creator, I'm going to Disney, and I want to write off that trip. How that might look for me is not just one picture. That's not significant content. Once again, if you're audited and the IRS is like, well, show me, like, how did that drive your business? It's gonna be hard. But if before the trip, you know, Amazon affiliate, I'm, like, buying all these, like, cool travel gadgets and things like that, and I'm reviewing them, posting them, and here's how we pack, and here's how these. Here's how we keep our kids entertained during the long road trip. And you're documenting the whole road trip down to Disney and your experience during Disney. And you have a blog and all these different things. You're posting reviews, and after the trip, you're kind of like doing a postmortem after the trip. So as part of the trip, you're gaining. You're gaining followers or subscribers, you're gaining views, you're gaining engagement. It's truly building the company, the brand. That's when I say, yes, like, that is deductible. Now, just posting a picture, it's gonna be hard to justify that with, like, building your brand, building your community, building your engagement, like, one post. But there's lots of content built around it that feels like it's part of your business. So that's kind of like the distinction we make of writing a trip off, like, is it business or not? What do I need to do? Like, make it a legitimate business expense?
- [28:12]
Kate All
Right. That's a. Those are good parameters. Instead of something really small, if you really want to write it off, go really overboard with it. Like, make it part of your content strategy, that it's going to be something that really fuels your business for as long as it possibly can. Whereas a post really won't fuel your business. That's something you're doing for fun. That's something that you're like, well, this sounds good. Let's see if I can write it off. Right. But, yeah, you can.
- [28:40]
Nate
Yeah.
- [28:41]
Kate All
So.
- [28:41]
Nate
And. And it's hard as a creator. Like, sometimes you do just, like, want to relax and not post for a whole trip. In that case, that's great. And take a personal family vacation. But it kind of goes back to, like, you're putting your business hat on. You're like, okay, if. If I really want to make this a deductible expense, then I need to treat this as a personal trip. Like, it is fun for me, the family, but I also need, like, have my business hat on of how can I also make this a business trip. And you're thinking about it in that way, how is this growing my audience and gaining followers and views and everything else? Like, that's how you should be thinking that way. But if you truly just need a trip and go take that, but just don't try to write it off right here.
- [29:25]
Kate All
I know. Here's an example, even from my line of work a couple years ago, I think it was 2018, I was asked to speak in an event, and it happened to be at Disney World. And I thought, well, I'll take my family with me. And I wrote off the part. Parts that had to do with the actual speaking event, whether it was me going to dinner or whether it was anything I needed to do for the hotel or anything like that. But then I didn't write off my family's Disney tickets, our dinner, any. I kept them really separate. And I feel like that helped kind of distinguish those lines between, here's when I'm working, here's when I'm not working, here's what I'm writing off, here's what I'm not writing off. So keeping them pretty clean.
- [30:04]
Nate
That's exactly right. And same with travel. You know, if you're. If your spouse is traveling with you or your significant other and they're filming, they're part of the content, it, like, really makes sense. They're very much integrated, then, yeah, absolutely. You could write off, you know, all or portion of your spouse, same with your kids. But if those people aren't part of it and it is truly just you, then to your point, like, you write off your portion, not your family members portion.
- [30:34]
Kate All
Yeah. Okay. This last myth is my favorite, and I think actually, like, it's a funny one, but I really think it's actually very true for people in the creator industry that do a lot of video work, that do a lot of these things where you're going to see your face or your body or whatever. And the myth is filler, Botox and plastic surgery are deductible. And before you kind of answer this, I want to say I think this goes along a little bit with the clothing piece, too. Is that I'll just speak from a woman's perspective, because I am. Is that when we are having to do so much that is visual all the time. There is that temptation, especially as we look at other women and we see how they look, to say like, oh, I need Botox or oh, and I need to make sure I'm keeping up this presence. And you can easily attach that to your business. So I actually don't know what your answer is going to be. I'm. I think I know, but I'm curious, like, can you deduct those things because of the forward facing nature? Does the government care?
- [31:40]
Nate
They do. So, you know, 15 minutes ago I talked about how the tax code was very gray and you know, all that. This is actually one part where it is not great at all. It is black and white. And what the government says is you cannot write off plastic surgery, cosmetic surgery, those type of procedures. And Botox is considered surgery since it, you know, even though it's not like true surgery, it's still considered because of that. Yeah. So, yeah, in the azure S. Botox, plastic surgery, cosmetic surgery that is not deductible at all.
- [32:27]
Kate All
Okay.
- [32:28]
Nate
And there you go. The, the, the case that sealed the deal with that. And this is one we have to share with. We, we do work with different clients. We have some clients who aren't only fans and so on, but the case that like really solidified this was there was an adult entertainer who wanted to write off plastic surgery. And the IRS said no because like within the tax code, the IRS said no. This person like took it all the way up through the court system. And ultimately like the final court ruling was like, you can't prove that like, you use this 100% for business or like, you know, majority for business. And so like, that was the kind of like the final nail in the coffin of like, you, you, you can't do that. You know, this was a person who more legitimately could have written off and they're like, no. So, yeah, any of that unfortunately, is, is just not deductible. There are other things in your personal life you can deduct, but that's one thing is black and white. It's been taken through the courts. Like, you can't write that off.
- [33:40]
Kate All
Yeah, well, I mean, I can appreciate that. Right. Like, like you said, when the tax code is so gray, we do rely on these cases that do make it black and white so that we can make better decisions. And we kind of, the guard rails are there, whereas in the initial thing there isn't guard rails. So we're kind of left to kind of use our own judgment. And whether or not you're a risk taker or you're risk averse, you then make the decision based on that. But something like this, you're like, oh, there's the line. Like you can't, you can't write it off. You can't write off Botox, like sorry, I have to pay for it out of pocket. And well, actually I think this gets into an interesting one that some people think about is let's take the example of someone takes business money and they pay for that Botox. Right. That just looks like a draw, is that correct? Like then it just looks like your personal income that you took.
- [34:35]
Nate
That's exactly right.
- [34:36]
Kate All
Yep.
- [34:36]
Nate
When. Yeah, exactly. When you talk with your tax person, your bookkeeper. That's exactly right. It's just kind of considered income to you. It's a draw. So you can pay for it for through the business. You shouldn't, but if you do, you can't deduct it. So it's considered just normal income to you.
- [34:53]
Kate All
Right. Well, Nate, I have loved this and I think there, I know we had even more myths on our list that we could have gone through, but I think one of the things that I wanted people to take away from this and even though we're not talking about Pinterest, but we are talking about your business and your business is if it's healthy on a financial level, it's going to do really great things on other levels. And I think accounting and tax prep is such a big part of that that when people, and I have felt this before, feel overwhelmed with something, they tend to bury their head in the sand. And when they do that, they make a lot of mistakes that can be really costly to them to where down the line they paying penalties and fees or they do get audited. So tell me a little bit about where can people can go to connect with you or even just have a call with you to see if you're the right match for them.
- [35:48]
Nate
Yeah. So if it we make it really easy. If you just go to our website, Cookie Finance Co schedule call with us. We do 30 minute free consultations. We're not going to force you, Peter, you just signing up? We really are here to just chat with you. You can sign up for a call. We are more than happy to just take 30 minutes walking you through. You can go as deep as you want during those calls. We can walk you through your very specific, you know, situation, what's going on and get that clarity you need. A lot of people will do that and they will get that clarity and they're like, thank you so much. So yeah, feel free to go on our website, Cookie Finance co book a third minute call for us. It's free and we're more than happy. Once again, we're not going to try to like sell you to death on our services. Like we're more than happy to dive straight into your situation and give you any clarity that you need right now.
- [36:45]
Kate All
Yeah. And that's what you need when you are so nervous about anything to do with money and taxes and accounting is you don't want somebody to hard sell you into services because you don't even know what you need. Especially you've been one of those people that's like been spinning all over. You're like, well, how do I know I need your services? Because five minutes ago I didn't even think I needed accounting at all. So it's like telling me the why. So I appreciate that you guys do these 30 minute calls and you could talk about whatever because I think finding the person who's going to do your accounting is a big decision. And that doesn't mean you have to be scared of it, but it means you do have to match up well with that person because your business is unique and there's things that you're going to write off that are different than somebody else over here. So just because so and so has used that other person or so and so even uses Cookie Finance, you have to figure out, are you a good match? Do they understand your industry? And when they do and help you feel relaxed, then that's the person that you choose.
- [37:43]
Nate
Yeah. The big thing with that, like the biggest thing we hear is like, oh, I've just been using, you know, my dad's accountant and he's been using that same guy for the last like 30 years. And it's like, if it works, that's great. But to your point, like work with someone that you feel really comfortable with. I was just talking to someone the other day and she's like, it feels like my tax person hates me, but my whole family uses the same tax person. And so like I'm really nervous to like leave him. I'm like, you don't want to be in that situation. Like you should feel so comfortable with your, with your accounting team and like find the right person who, who works with your business. It's a huge, it's a great partnership that can really help you.
- [38:29]
Kate All
And you know, I think to your story, it's a little bit how women feel when they switch hairdressers is they feel really bad about it. But then they know their hair looks like crap and so they know they need to switch. I feel like that's kind of the same way with accountants that like, is your dad's or your mom's accountant, where you're like, well, everybody uses them and they're. I feel like they're going to be mad at me. But like, it's at the sacrifice of your business. It's at the sacrifice of getting really, really good information and not having to be audited or pay penalties. Like, pull off the band aid and just jump ship. Like, just do it. I know it's real tough. Well, Nate, thanks so much. And for those wanting to do the 30 minute consultation, we will leave the link below so you can go click on that and book it now, even if it's even a month out. Go ahead and do that because if this has inspired any type of just curiosity or you are wondering about other myths, that would be a great reason to book a call too, is if you're like, well, I've heard this from five people. I just want somebody to tell me if it's true or not. That's a great reason to book a call because you don't want to continue to believe something that's not true and then find out two to three years down the road that you have been making this huge mistake in your business the whole time. And that is not to scare you at all, but it is really to what we were talking about in the middle of this episode. Like, you're a legitimate business, treat it as such and make wise decisions in these areas. And honestly, like, once I have let my accounting go to somebody that I trust, I don't think about it because I don't have to think about it. So it's one less thing on my mind and within my mental load to where, oh, now I can focus on my customer service. Now I can focus on my marketing. I don't want to think about accounting, like 0.000. I'm obsessive about it, but I don't want to think about it at all. So that's my little like soapbox there moment. But again, Nate, thank you so much for joining me again today. I really appreciate it and look forward to all the people that you're gonna help them myth bust their accounting myths.
- [40:30]
Nate
Thank you so much. Appreciate it.