Discovering a new, low-cost 401(k) for their firm & clients

As a CPA and the owner of A&J Accounting, Ana has always known her role is bigger than managing the books.

“Part of my job is to encourage my clients and my team to please, please use a 401(k) to save for retirement. No one can work forever. And if I had listened to my own advice at 21? Well, I’d be sitting at the beach right now.”

Ana is relentless in her mission to promote tax-deferred savings. But on the road to helping her team and her clients reach a secure retirement, she’s hit a speed bump or two.

When Ana set out to offer her own three-employee business a 401(k), she quickly learned just how many 401(k) providers close their doors to small businesses.

“I really don’t like the way traditional 401(k) providers treat growing businesses. My experience is that they drown smaller companies in fees—if they even accept them as customers at all.”

But Ana was determined to find a provider who could help her prove that offering a 401(k) doesn’t have to be a headache.

As her search pressed on, Ana was surprised to discover that Congress had introduced a new type of low-cost retirement plan in 2022. The only problem? She couldn’t find a benefits provider that supported it.

Thankfully, Quickbooks introduced Ana to Guideline, their payroll-integrated partner offering the small-business-friendly Starter 401(k). Guideline was the answer Ana was looking for:

A&J Accounting enrolled in a Starter 401(k) for their own firm—and after a few short weeks, Ana quickly realized Guideline could be the ideal retirement savings platform for her clients, too.

“You have to change hearts and minds sometimes. Businesses have preconceived notions that offering a 401(k) has to be expensive and overly complicated. Guideline helps me prove that’s just not true.”

Now, when Ana hears “we can’t afford retirement benefits,” she shows her clients Guideline’s Starter plan, and shares her own experiences as a Guideline 401(k) plan sponsor.

“I offer my small team awesome retirement benefits. And now it’s easier to encourage clients to offer a 401(k) too. For less than the cost of a monthly company lunch, a company can help their team save for the long term, while encouraging them to stay for the long term too.”

Ana doesn’t recommend vendors to clients lightly. But she does recommend Guideline. Why?

“I proudly work with Guideline because they respect the important role small businesses play in their communities and the economy. Guideline cares for every client, big or small, in a way giant corporations don’t—or won’t. And at the same time, they make it simple for accountants like me to help more companies save for retirement without adding a pile of work to our plates.”