Accounting is not easily defined. There are quite a few interlocking pieces, and all are imperative to making your business successful.
Businessdictionary.com provides this definition: The "Practice and body of knowledge concerned primarily with methods for recording transactions, keeping financial records, performing internal audits, reporting and analyzing financial information to the management, and advising on taxation matters.
It is a systematic process of identifying, recording, measuring, classifying, verifying, summarizing, interpreting and communicating financial information. It reveals profit or loss for a given period, and the value and nature of a firm's assets, liabilities and owners' equity.
Accounting provides information on the resources available to a firm, the means employed to finance those resources, and the results achieved through their use."
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http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/accounting.html.
Beyond that, accounting provides as much benefits for businesses as it does for shareholders and/or consumers. A good accounting business with clear goals in mind, such as Accuracy, can improve shared information and the overall experience for shareholders. In turn, your business could receive increased revenue.