Covid-19 poses new challenges to small businesses everywhere, and we’re only beginning to understand how hard they’ve been hit and how long it will take to bounce back. To honor the resilience of small business owners and share the lessons they’ve learned, we’re highlighting B12 customers who’ve discovered how to keep their businesses going during an unprecedented time.

This spotlight features BlueFire Accounting, a Charlotte-based firm that provides accounting services for small businesses. The company’s founder, Neha Patel, spoke to us about holding remote meetings with existing customers, experiencing less demand from new customers, and why she decided to work with B12.

How has Covid-19 impacted your business?

Generally, the number of new customers looking for bookkeeping services has decreased due to the Covid situation. It’s a lot slower given that fewer people are looking to create new businesses and hence, do not need accounting services. For the most part, my business has been steady with my existing clients. BlueFire Accounting has always been an online business so Covid-19 has not impacted my firm to the degree it has some brick-and-mortar businesses out there.

What are some changes that you’ve made during Covid-19?

I used to arrange one-to-one meetings with my clients in person, but I now use Zoom to hold meetings with them. It’s all about respecting and maintaining safety measures at work, and social distancing is the best form of protection for my clients and myself.

Tell us about your business. What inspired you to start it, when did you start it, and what’s been your biggest achievement to date?

I have a background in auditing and computer science, which I wanted to combine and create value for people. This led me to start my first boutique accounting business in 2015.

BlueFire Accounting provides accounting services for small businesses, and clients work with me personally. I help to organize their books, strategize, and provide recommendations to improve their cashflow.

It’s been a really fruitful journey for me personally because I get to be directly involved in the financial planning process with my clients. The proudest moments have been when I helped clients turn their business around after examining their financial statements.

Why did you choose B12 for your website and what has your experience been like?

I spent two weeks researching options online, hoping to find a company that fits my personal and business needs. During my search, I narrowed it down to a couple of local web design companies and freelance designers on Upwork. However, after making a few calls to the companies, I decided to try B12 because they paid close attention to my needs and seemed very friendly too.

B12 has helped me to understand the entire website design process and condense it into bite-sized pieces to digest while I work with expert designers. Ever since then, I’ve never looked back.