Ignite Spot vs. GrowthForce vs. AccountingDepartment.com: Which Accounting Services Provider Is Right for You?

When you're in the market for an accounting services provider, it’s probably for a good reason. You want to save money, get ready access to an expert team, or a little bit of both. But what goes into choosing your right-fit partner? Research—and lots of it—to find a company that aligns with your goals, service needs, and industry.

Building trust is important to us, so we’re taking a little of the guesswork out of the equation with a comparison between Ignite Spot and our top two competitors.

GrowthForce

GrowthForce was founded in 2004 in Houston as an outsourced accounting expert. It strives to provide business leaders with actionable financial insights that guide data-driven decision-making.

Value Proposition

GrowthForce is a leader in zero-entry accounting, providing expertise to automate the back office with cloud-based software. By integrating technology solutions, GrowthForce pulls more data into accounting systems, streamlining the back office with efficient workflows and internal controls to eliminate errors and fraud.

Service Overview

GrowthForce is a trusted accounting and growth partner. The firm provides outsourced accounting services following a hybrid model, providing both flexibility and opportunities for in-person client collaboration. 

Its offerings fall into four groups:

• Controller services
• Advisory services
• Management accounting services
• Advanced bookkeeping services
  
  

Who Is Growthforce a Good Fit For?

If you’re a nonprofit looking to streamline your accounting, GrowthForce could be the right fit for you. While the firm also partners with companies, it has carved out a niche in the nonprofit sector. 

GrowthForce highlights six reasons nonprofits feel at home with the company:

• To adhere to board and IRS reporting requirements
• To manage funds, grants, locations, and outcomes and show real-time financial reporting to stakeholders
• To automate manual processes
• To gain internal controls, separate duties, reduce the risk of fraud, and ensure compliance
• To reduce costs and improve security and accessibility to financial information
• To enjoy fixed fees instead of being surprised by new costs 

Visit GrowthForce online to explore its services further and get more information.

AccountingDepartment.com

AccountingDepartment.com (AD) was founded in 2004 as a remote-first, U.S.-based accounting services firm. The firm is passionate about helping clients analyze their financial information to make better decisions for their financial health.

Value Proposition

AccountingDepartment.com is a technology-driven accounting services firm built by entrepreneurs. The firm serves growing and established companies nationwide, acting as its partners’ entire accounting department—with a team made up of CPAs, accounting experts, and business advisors.

Service Overview

AccountingDepartment.com leans into technology as a key piece of the future of accounting. Its mission is to empower partners with innovative solutions, including a combination of cutting-edge technology, automation, and AI.

The firm provides outsourced services specifically focused on three core areas:

• Accounting services 
• Bookkeeping services
• Controller services
  
  

Who Is AccountingDepartment.com a Good Fit For?

AccountingDepartment.com serves small- to large-sized companies. If your company has $2 million to $100+ million in annual revenue, AD could help. Additionally, the firm supports specialized groups:

• Government contractors
• U.S. subsidiaries of foreign entities
• In-house CPAs/CFOs

Check out AccountingDepartment.com for more information about the firm’s approach and your organization’s fit.

Ignite Spot

Ignite Spot was founded in 2008 in Kaysville, Utah, and is a fully-remote, U.S.-based accounting services firm with a human-centered approach. We were born out of a desire to nix accounting processes that don’t work and focus on the ones that do. 

Value Proposition

Ignite Spot is devoted to closing the gap between the CEO and accountant. We serve small and medium-sized businesses with 360-degree accounting services, helping each become debt-free and profitable by untangling financial traps, providing expert coaching, managing expectations, and making every entrepreneur a priority.

Service Overview

Ignite Spot is a fixed-fee service that provides expert accounting services to hundreds of companies across the United States. Our team is driven by industry experts in accounting, bookkeeping, tax services, and controller services, and we handle up to 80 percent of your bookkeeping and accounting work.

Our service offerings include:

• Expense management
• Revenue recognition
• Asset and liability management
• Financial statement and KPI presentation
• Payroll preparation, compliance, and advising
• Sales tax compliance and advising
• Multidimensional reporting
• Coaching calls, KPI evaluation, and review
• Fractional CFO
• Daily KPI monitoring
  
  

Who Is Ignite Spot a Good Fit For?

Are you tech-savvy? Do you enjoy operating on a calendared cadence of activities? Our sweet spot is in partnering with professional services organizations with $500,000 to $20 million in annual revenue. 

A few examples include:

• Marketing agencies
• Senior living facilities
• Call centers
• Lawyers
• Counselors

Ignite Spot serves various industries, and we have customizable packages that scale with you as you grow.

Our Pricing

Every single business is unique. What suits one company may not fit another. We break our pricing into four tiers, each of which is customizable based on your budget and goals. 

• Ultimate Service: $11,500 average/month
• Premium Service: $6,950 average/month
• Standard Service: $3,750 average/month
• Maintenance Service: $1,750 average/month

Need basic support? Let’s talk about maintenance. Ready to go all-in? Our team will deliver the ultimate experience. You’re in control.

Our Results

“Ignite Spot’s strategic advice really kind of replaced the tools that we might have needed.” —Ken Crowell, founder, GlobalEd

GlobalEd came to us in 2018 needing the full Ignite Spot treatment. Our team came through by delivering comprehensive accounting services, including:

• A new payroll process 
• Strategic decision-making and cash flow forecasting
• Ongoing accounting advice 
• Opportunities to find anomalies and financial trends

Learn more about Ignite Spot now. Read additional case studies and testimonials to discover why Ignite Spot is a true difference maker.

Things to Consider When Choosing a Services Provider

When you're on the hunt for an accounting services provider, your mind is pretty full. After all, you want to choose a partner that will work with and for you and will elevate your company. 

So, you probably have a few questions to ask, such as:

• What services do you provide?
• What is a realistic onboarding timeline?
• Can you tell me about my accountant(s)?
• How long does it take to see results from your services?

Another burning concern? How much accounting services charge. During your search, you’ll find providers that operate under four different types of fee structures: fixed, hourly, startup, and project-based. Consider the options to find the best solution. 

1. Fixed-Fee Services

Ignite Spot is a fixed-fee service. In this model, you work out a set monthly payment with your accounting services firm, and your fees vary based on your company’s specific needs. What’s helpful in a fixed-fee model is that there are no surprises. You have set fees you can plan for each month, and you don’t get billed every time you contact your accountant.

2.  Hourly Fee

The “pay for what you use” hourly system is pretty common too. What’s helpful is that accounting services cost less in low-volume months, regularly saving you money. But you also don’t really know how much time your accountant spends working on a project. They could bill you for hours when a task only took 20 minutes to complete. 

3. Startup Pricing

Just getting started? Startup pricing is for you, and you’ll want a partner that specializes in basic support. The drawback is that some providers are rock stars at helping you get off the ground, but they don’t scale with you as you grow. As a result, you may need to transfer your accounting services to a more advanced company as you grow.

4. Project Fee

Maybe you don’t need ongoing support, and that’s OK. It’s easy to hire an accountant under a project-based fee structure just to straighten out QuickBooks or get your books caught up. In this case, you would follow either a set fee or an hourly accounting services rate.

Gather as much information—from service offerings to price—as you can to answer your questions. Get the details you need to ensure that your partner is a personal and financial fit.

Get Started with Outsourced Accounting

From GrowthForce to AccountingDepartment.com to Ignite Spot, you have access to industry-leading outsourced accounting services. Which provider is your best-fit partner? Get the all-in-one approach. Check out our outsourced CFO services to see if an external financial executive is right for your business.