An established business rarely switches accountants. A new one hasn't picked one yet, and in its first year it faces decisions it can't easily undo: how it's taxed, how its books are set up, whether it's collecting sales tax. Reach the owner then, with something useful, and you're the accountant from day one.
What a new business has to sort out in year one
- How it's taxed: an LLC is taxed as a sole proprietorship or partnership by default; electing S corporation treatment has deadlines, and missing them can cost a year.
- An EIN and a business bank account: the basics that keep personal and business money apart.
- Bookkeeping: a chart of accounts, receipts and a system before the shoebox fills up.
- Sales tax: businesses selling taxable goods or services usually need a state sales tax permit before their first sale.
- Estimated taxes: owners who don't have tax withheld generally pay quarterly estimates (mid-April, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January for individuals).
- Payroll: the first hire brings withholding, unemployment registration and new-hire reporting.
Where new businesses show up
- State business filings: every new corporation and LLC is registered with the state, with a filing date.
- Licences: new contractor, food, liquor and salon licences point at businesses that are about to trade.
- New clinics: health practices get a dated National Provider Identifier.
- New carriers: trucking companies get a dated USDOT number.
In our database, the trades most likely to need help fast are the ones with the most moving parts: 1,232,659 clinics and health practices, 1,079,420 salons and personal-care businesses, 874,737 contractors and 857,008 restaurants and food businesses, many of them cash- and staff-heavy.
A first email that gets a reply
- Offer the checklist, not the engagement: "Here are the five things most new LLCs miss in their first year" is worth reading even if they don't hire you.
- Mention the deadline that matters to them: an S corporation election or the next estimated-tax date is concrete.
- Specialise: "I work with new restaurants in Milwaukee" beats "full-service accounting".
- Partner up: payroll providers, business bankers and insurance agents meet new owners too; trade referrals.
When to reach out
The weeks after a filing or licence, and again in the run-up to tax season (January to April), when new owners realise their first return is coming.
How we help
BeatTheDoor finds new businesses from filings and licences, names the owner where public records show it, checks the email before anything is sent, and writes to them from your own domain. See leads for accountants and bookkeepers, or book a 15-minute demo.
Counts from our database on October 9, 2026. General information about US tax deadlines, not tax advice.