Should book keeping courses offer follow ups?

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fewgroats
fewgroats Posts: 774 Forumite
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edited 5 April 2019 at 6:48AM in Small biz MoneySaving
Just wondered what you think, just practical business advice that kind of thing.
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Should book keeping courses offer follow ups? 8 votes

Yes - all help is welcome.
12% 1 vote
No - intrusive.
0% 0 votes
No - other reason
87% 7 votes
«1

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  • Mistral001
    Mistral001 Posts: 5,349 Forumite
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    edited 5 April 2019 at 11:47AM
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    Offering business or bookkeeping advice is a whole world away from offering business or bookkeeping courses. The former is education and the latter is operating in the way accountants operate where you will be advising on real projects and real clients
  • fewgroats
    fewgroats Posts: 774 Forumite
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    That running a business is more than book keeping is without doubt. It would however show an intention to start a business or charity to take this kind of course.
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  • Mistral001
    Mistral001 Posts: 5,349 Forumite
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    fewgroats wrote: »
    That running a business is more than book keeping is without doubt. It would however show an intention to start a business or charity to take this kind of course.


    When you are actually advising people on how to set up their business, you will be contractually responsible to that person/company for every piece of advice that you give. That is completely different from teaching people.
  • pelirocco
    pelirocco Posts: 8,274 Forumite
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    Not quite sure if I understand your question , But all qualified bookeepers have to do so many seminars etc each year to keep up with curent legislation
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  • 00ec25
    00ec25 Posts: 9,123 Forumite
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    edited 5 April 2019 at 7:23PM
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    fewgroats wrote: »
    That running a business is more than book keeping is without doubt. It would however show an intention to start a business or charity to take this kind of course.
    that is still too vague

    advising someone on how to set up a business has nothing whatsoever to do with doing a "follow up bookkeeping course" and no bookkeeper should be looking for such education as a follow up to their bookkeeping qualification.

    If they have the desire to undertake such work, they should be looking for that level of education as a professional qualified accountant who knows a lot more than a bookkeeper about "business", because an accountancy qualification includes sufficient basic info to do what you suggest.
    Even then, no sensible accountant would offer comprehensive "advice" without referring to legal specialists, and (depending on their personal risk appetite) someone experienced in due diligence.

    If I was intending to do that, I'd be speaking to an accountant and a lawyer... I would not be talking to a "glorified" bookkeeper/start up adviser able to claim they had passed a "follow up course"
  • Pennywise
    Pennywise Posts: 13,468 Forumite
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    Most people taking a book-keeping course won't be going on to start a business - they'll spend their life as a book-keeper (or other employee) in someone else's business.

    Most people starting a business won't need to do a formal book-keeping course - all they need to do is know enough to do their own book-keeping (until they grow enough to employ a book-keeper).

    Two completely different things.
  • fewgroats
    fewgroats Posts: 774 Forumite
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    edited 5 April 2019 at 8:54PM
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    pelirocco wrote: »
    Not quite sure if I understand your question , But all qualified bookeepers have to do so many seminars etc each year to keep up with curent legislation

    I mean a short taster course in book keeping. I think you mean some sort of industry standard book keeping course here. Someone doing some freelancing for instance wouldn't go for this.

    Aren't people more likely to take short courses than the proper official course?
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  • 00ec25
    00ec25 Posts: 9,123 Forumite
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    edited 6 April 2019 at 12:44AM
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    fewgroats wrote: »
    Aren't people more likely to take short courses than the proper official course?
    you don't seem to have a clear idea of your target market or your product.

    why take any course at all if they are merely "learning" superficial info that is effectively provided to them by the software manual?

    let me assure you, "freelancers" use accounting software that does the basic bookkeeping for them. Anything extra is what they pay their accountant for. if they want to cut accountancy costs they may learn how to do VAT returns and cut down their error rate, but speaking from the experience of 900 freelance clients, we do not get any call for "short" courses from our clients, as they do most of it themselves (supported by the software). They do not need to know more than what button to press in what order.

    Don't forget the purpose of the business is to make money, not cut tuppence ha'penny off costs by doing bookkeeping at the expense of £ of income they should be earning delivering their business themselves.
  • fewgroats
    fewgroats Posts: 774 Forumite
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    People who take an adult ed course for ten weeks, that would be my target market.

    By the way I'm not writing a business proposal here. Just asking what might have helped you in similar circumstances. Seems I've got the bots in
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  • 00ec25
    00ec25 Posts: 9,123 Forumite
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    fewgroats wrote: »
    . Seems I've got the bots in
    so if you don't like the answers you disparage the responders?

    we are not "bots", the comments so far are all from people with day to day experience of what you are asking about. By all means take a business risk and offer your courses to adult ed. Depending on where you live you may get serial course takers (the "actively retired") or those who genuinely think this will equip them with knowledge they can use.

    Obviously I have no idea what your background is and therefore what academic/practical quality you can offer, but our replies you dislike so much are because we are accountants/business people who source our advice from people who have done more than a night school taster course.
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