Most creative professionals think about accounting as the most unattractive part of running their business, even though it’s essential for achieving monetary success. The age old question remains— can you be an artist and make money at the same time?
The answer is yes, but only with the proper support. Without the right systems in place, opportunities slip away, growth stagnates, and financial stress takes over. With the necessary support and smart financial strategies however, even those creatives and entrepreneurs who hate thinking about numbers, can gain the financial clarity they need to thrive.
We spoke with the founder of Equilibrium Consultants to explore how creatives can find the sweet spot between artistry and financial success by utilizing the right financial tools.
Katherine Scardeville is the Founder and CEO of Equilibrium Consultants and a CFA at Modern Drummer Publications, Inc. Based in Englishtown, New Jersey, she specializes in helping creative small business owners in the construction and manufacturing industries increase profitability, gain financial clarity, and streamline operations.
Bridging creativity and financial success: Equilibrium Consultants
Equilibrium Consultants is an accounting firm dedicated to supporting creative professionals, including graphic designers, photographers, event planners, and production specialists in navigating the often complex financial side of their work.
Katherine’s passion for this work stems from her own experience:
“My background is deeply rooted in the event space. I was a musician, and in every group I was part of, I somehow ended up handling the administrative side—simply because I was good at it. Over time, I honed those skills and realized that this side of the business was where I truly excelled and what I wanted to focus on.”
As QuickBooks-certified professionals, Equilibrium Consultants tailor reporting systems to meet each client’s needs—helping them track income and expenses, make data-driven decisions, and plan for growth. Whether it’s investing in new equipment, hiring additional staff during peak seasons, or outsourcing work to meet demand, their clients gain the financial clarity needed to make informed choices.
The firm’s ultimate goal is to lift the burden of financial management so creatives can focus on what they do best.
However, as founder Katherine Scardeville explains, their expertise extends beyond the creative space:
“We also work with retail and ecommerce businesses. For example, when someone outgrows their Etsy store or a graphic designer begins selling their work or intellectual property on a larger scale, we help them navigate that transition.”
The challenge: When creativity and finances collide
For many creatives managing finances is one of the most daunting aspects of running a business. While they thrive in their craft, bookkeeping often feels overwhelming and is frequently avoided altogether.
As Katherine Scardeville explains:
“Creatives hate dealing with accounting stuff—they just don’t want to think about it. I have one client I absolutely adore. It’s an older lady, she’s brilliant, but when it comes to finances, she just can’t handle it. She actually understands math really well, but I have to catch her in the right mindset to go through it with her. A lot of creatives are like that—they avoid financial management altogether because they just don’t want to deal with it.”
The challenge becomes even greater when dealing with clients with multiple revenue streams or offering subscriptions. Manually sorting and reconciling various types of transactions is not only tedious but also highly inefficient. Without a streamlined system, accounting firms risk disorganization, missed opportunities, and costly mistakes that could hold their clients back.
The solution: Transforming client workflows with Synder
By integrating with 30+ sales and payment platforms, Synder Sync ensures that every transaction from an ecommerce platform and payment channel is accurately recorded in QuickBooks Online in real time. This automation enables accounting firms to take on more clients without increasing costs, time, or effort—while still ensuring accurate, real-time financial data.
In addition to Synder Sync, Equilibrium Consultants also implemented Synder RevRec—a GAAP-compliant revenue recognition solution that seamlessly syncs with QuickBooks Online, ensuring accurate financial reporting without the need for manual calculations. This system automatically tracks Stripe subscription changes, such as upgrades, downgrades, and cancellations, so all records in the books stay up to date in real time. No more spreadsheets and third-party tools—Synder RevRec automates the entire process, giving your accounting team precise, hassle-free revenue recognition.
With Synder’s automated financial processes and simplified month-end closing, Equilibrium Consultants can proactively address their clients’ financial bottlenecks, reduce errors, and eliminate the need for manual corrections—freeing up valuable time for higher-value tasks.
Case study 1: The photographer
Katherine Scardeville first discovered Synder while working with a wedding photographer who managed transactions across multiple channels. He didn’t just shoot weddings—his business included consulting, boudoir sessions, portraits, and more. Tracking the costs for each type of service was a constant struggle.
“Job costing for him was a nightmare. I constantly had to call him to figure out where to allocate funds, and waiting for responses was inefficient.”
| FYI: Job costing is a financial tracking method that helps businesses understand the true cost of each project or service they provide. Instead of looking at overall expenses, job costing breaks down costs—such as materials, labor, and overhead—by individual projects. This allows businesses to accurately price their services, identify which jobs are the most profitable, and make informed financial decisions. |
To streamline this process, Katherine attempted to sort through the photographer’s Stripe account manually, but it quickly became overwhelming. As Katherine puts it, “I know how to handle SaaS accounting, but I wanted a solution I could ‘set and forget’.
That’s where Synder came in. With its automation capabilities, Katherine no longer had to manually track every transaction—only making minor adjustments when needed. In Katherine’s words, “Synder worked beautifully. I barely had to lift a finger—just some minor reallocations here and there.”
The impact was immediate:
“Synder saved me so much time. That one client—just getting any data from him was a challenge. Before, it would have taken three hours that would drag on endlessly. But with Synder, the same task took just 15 minutes. The difference was huge—it was a game changer.”
Katherine Scardeville, CEO of Equilibrium Consultants
Case study 2: The magazine
Katherine Scardeville faced one of her biggest challenges with a magazine client whose financial system was in complete disarray. Their previous setup automatically batched all transactions into single deposits, which seemed standard—but those deposits never matched the actual bank records.
Realizing they needed a better solution, Katherine turned to Synder.
“I explained to the rep that this client had a massive website with courses, merchandise, subscriptions, and digital magazines—everything was for sale, all running through WooCommerce. I needed to properly monetize it and integrate everything into QuickBooks for accurate income tracking and tax preparation. The old system just couldn’t handle it—it completely fell apart under the weight of hundreds of thousands of small transactions.”
The answer was Synder’s WooCommerce integration, accompanied by the use of the rollback feature, which allowed Katherine to undo any sync she made. The automation cleaned up the chaos, making financial reconciliation seamless and accurate.
“Synder’s WooCommerce integration and rollback was a real revolution. It finally allowed me to clean up the chaos and make everything work seamlessly.”
Katherine Scardeville, CEO of Equilibrium Consultants
Case study 3: The travel agency
Equilibrium Consultants faced unique challenges when managing finances for a travel agency. This was mostly due to the constant hassle with monthly subscriptions and fluctuating service costs. Just like the magazine client, this travel agency relied on subscription-based revenue, making accurate categorization essential for GAAP compliance.
One of the biggest tasks was accurate tracking of expenses and revenue. Without automation, Equilibrium Consultants’ team had to manually categorize transactions to make sure they ended up in the correct accounts.
Synder’s rule-based system provided the perfect solution.
“Both my magazine client and my travel agent client handle monthly subscriptions, so setting up rules was essential to keep transactions accurate and properly categorized.”
By setting up custom categorization in the form of Smart Rules based on keywords in descriptions or memos, expenses and revenue were automatically categorized—eliminating manual work and reducing errors.
“Synder’s rule-based system ensured that as long as a specific keyword appeared in the description or memo line, the transaction would automatically be allocated to the correct account. That automation was exactly what I needed, and it worked perfectly.”
Katherine was also able to utilize Synder to generate granular, highly detailed financial reports, giving the travel agency clearer insights into their financial position. This allowed her to apply job costing methods to products and services, helping clients improve their profitability.
For example, tracking down vendors helped pinpoint areas where the agency was overpaying for supplies. By analyzing the data, they could switch to higher-quality suppliers at lower costs, improving both efficiency and profitability.
Without proper research and accurate financial reporting, these insights wouldn’t have been possible. Synder’s ability to pull data directly from WooCommerce and other platforms allowed Katherine to set up a streamlined, automated financial system that was both reliable and effective.
The bigger picture: A trusted, scalable financial solution
As Equilibrium Consultants continues to grow, Synder has become an integral part of their financial operations. Currently, the firm manages four clients using Synder and the smooth integration between multiple platforms allowed Katherine and her team to effortlessly scale their services without any hiccups.
“The integration process between Synder and WooCommerce, Shopify, Stripe, Square, and Etsy has been incredibly quick and seamless—no complaints at all.”
Katherine also values the initial setup support she received, which ensured a smooth onboarding process for her clients: “Personally, I like having someone walk me through things step by step, almost like I’m in kindergarten. Once I get that initial guidance, though, I’m good to go. So overall, the setup experience has been great.”
Now, whenever a client faces the challenge of managing high transaction volumes across multiple platforms, Synder is Katherine’s go-to solution. No matter what platforms the client is using, Synder consistently delivers the automation and efficiency needed to make financial management a breeze.
“Now, anytime a client comes to me with a high volume of transactions across multiple channels—whether it’s Shopify, Etsy, WooCommerce, or all of them combined—Synder is my go-to solution. It just works.”
Katherine Scardeville, CEO of Equilibrium Consultants
Ready to simplify the financial side of your creative business?
Equilibrium Consulting used Synder’s automation to help artists, designers, photographers, and other creatives streamline their accounting, eliminate manual work, and gain real-time financial clarity. Test it yourself with Synder’s 15-day free trial or join our Weekly Public demo to see how effortless financial management can be.
