Four points to consider when hiring a reliable payroll service

Payroll outsourcing is sure to help many of the small business professionals. With the increase in companies being fined by the IRS for payroll inaccuracies, it certainly helps to trust the trained service providers available. Here are four things you can expect with the best payroll services:

Assess needs

An initial step in finding the right payroll service comes from assessing your specific needs. A general payroll company can offer a range of services to meet the needs of both small and large businesses. By being more aware of the specific needs of your own company, it will be easier to select the right service to handle your ongoing payroll requirements. A basic service should include base salary and tax calculations for each staff member, regular updates and reports, and direct deposit or printing of checks. If a payroll service can’t offer these critical services, it makes sense to start looking elsewhere.

Additional characteristics

A well-established payroll service will most likely offer several different features that go far beyond the basics. A more complete service will undoubtedly benefit a company enormously. Integration into existing HR software or 401k plan management is often a very attractive feature. Be sure to contact three or four different companies to ensure that you can get a full appreciation of the available services on offer.

Price

Although price should not be viewed as the most important factor in choosing payroll service, you still want to ensure that the rate quoted by various companies is competitive in the industry. By getting multiple quotes, you can easily compare them to see what services are available to you. It also helps to consider the cost implications in case employees need to make adjustments in the future. For example, it will be helpful to know the cost of adding new employees to payroll or switching from check payments to direct deposit. Before signing the agreement, you want to be fully aware of your commitment.

Accessibility

An added benefit of choosing the right payroll service comes from being able to easily access the company’s payroll services when needed. It might be helpful to use those companies that can provide account access online, which will surely provide the most flexible option to keep abreast of this crucial responsibility.