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Business Best Practices

Stay on Top of Key Financial Indicators

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By regularly reviewing certain financial indicators, owners of small businesses can better identify potential issues and determine if their companies are on a growth path. Here are four financial indicators that can reveal much about the financial health of a small business.

Cash Flow

Cash is critical to the functioning of every business, regardless of size. You should be concerned if your cash flow is insufficient to cover expenses because payments are coming in slowly.

Understanding the cash conversion cycle can help you effectively manage cash flow. A typical cash conversion cycle runs from the initial purchases of inventory, to selling the inventory, and, finally, to receiving payment for the sold inventory. Your goal should be to keep the cash conversion cycle, which is measured in days, as short as possible.

Revenue Growth

The revenue growth rate measures how well a company is able to grow its sales revenue by comparing current sales figures (total revenue) with a previous period, usually quarter to quarter or year to year. Be sure to review monthly or more frequent reports summarizing sales and year-to-date results by sales category. While short-term fluctuations are to be expected, a consistent decline in revenue is a signal that your business could be in trouble.

Profitability Ratios

Various profitability ratios measure a company’s ability to generate earnings from sales, operations, assets, and shareholders’ equity. For example, gross profit margin is the amount of total revenue remaining after subtracting the cost of goods sold, expressed as a percentage of the total revenue. Return on assets is net income divided by total assets. You should monitor profitability ratios over time so that you are aware of trends and can take appropriate steps to enhance your business’s profit levels.

Break-Even Point

The break-even point is the sales level needed to cover costs. Determining a break-even point lets you evaluate the potential effect of various price and cost assumptions on your profits. You can analyze the potential effect on your business’s profitability if you increase or decrease fixed costs, variable costs, or selling price. In general, it is better to keep your fixed costs as low as possible to minimize potential problems if your sales levels fail to meet your targets.

An experienced financial professional can assist you with your business strategy and planning and can help you analyze key financial indicators to inform your decision-making.

Bookkeeping & Accounting Tips for Small Business Owners

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Young asian female work with financial papers at home count on calculator before paying taxes receipts online, planning budget glad to find chance for economy saving money, audit conceptsRunning a small business is a demanding task, requiring you to wear many hats, from managing operations to marketing and customer service. Among these responsibilities, bookkeeping and accounting are crucial for the financial health and sustainability of your business. While it may seem daunting, effective financial management doesn’t have to be overly complicated. Here are some essential bookkeeping and accounting tips to help small business owners stay organized, compliant, and financially sound.

1. Separate Personal and Business Finances

One of the first steps for any small business owner is to separate personal and business finances. Open a dedicated business bank account and use it exclusively for business transactions. This separation simplifies bookkeeping, aids in tax preparation, and ensures legal protection of personal assets.

2. Use Accounting Software

Investing in accounting software can save you time and reduce the risk of errors. Tools like QuickBooks, Xero, or FreshBooks offer user-friendly interfaces and automate many bookkeeping tasks, such as invoicing, expense tracking, and financial reporting. Many of these platforms also integrate with your bank account, further streamlining the process.

3. Track All Expenses

Maintain meticulous records of all business expenses. Use your accounting software or apps to capture and categorize receipts immediately. Keeping a detailed record of expenses not only helps in managing cash flow but also ensures you can claim all possible tax deductions.

4. Regularly Reconcile Bank Statements

Reconcile your bank statements at least once a month. This process involves comparing your accounting records with your bank statements to ensure they match. Reconciling accounts helps identify discrepancies, catch errors, and detect potential fraud early.

5. Implement a Consistent Invoicing System

A consistent invoicing system ensures you get paid on time. Send out invoices promptly, set clear payment terms, and follow up on overdue payments. Using accounting software for invoicing can automate reminders and track outstanding invoices.

6. Monitor Cash Flow

Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business. Regularly monitor your cash flow to ensure you have enough funds to cover operating expenses and invest in growth opportunities. Create cash flow projections to anticipate future needs and adjust your operations accordingly.

7. Set Aside Money for Taxes

Avoid the year-end scramble by setting aside money for taxes throughout the year. Estimate your tax liability and regularly deposit a portion of your revenue into a separate tax account. Consider consulting with a tax professional to understand your tax obligations and maximize deductions.

8. Maintain Accurate Financial Records

Accurate financial records are essential for making informed business decisions. Regularly update your books and keep records of all financial transactions, including sales, purchases, payroll, and other expenses. Accurate records are also crucial for compliance with tax laws and regulations.

9. Prepare for Financial Reporting

Prepare financial statements, such as the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement, on a regular basis. These reports provide insights into your business’s financial health and performance. Use these reports to identify trends, assess profitability, and make strategic decisions.

10. Seek Professional Advice

Consider hiring a professional accountant or bookkeeper, especially if your business finances become complex. A professional can provide valuable insights, ensure compliance with tax laws, and help you optimize your financial strategy. Many small business owners find that the cost of professional advice is outweighed by the benefits of improved financial management and peace of mind.

Effective bookkeeping and accounting are fundamental to the success of any small business. By implementing these tips, small business owners can maintain financial order, make informed decisions, and ensure their business thrives. While it may require an initial investment of time and resources, the long-term benefits of sound financial practices are well worth the effort.

Weighing Your Options: Promoting vs Hiring Externally

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Business people, hand shake and success in meeting, support and applause, hiring or onboarding with team. Collaboration, shaking hands and congratulations, promotion and achievement with diversityIt’s a quite common dilemma to figure out if you need to hire externally or promote from within to see improvement with your business. There are benefits to both. We will now go over the pros and cons to each side.

Hiring Externally 

Pros 

  • Can help a company gain new perspectives – Oftentimes, hiring a new candidate will allow businesses to gain new ideas that they would not have gotten internally. These hires could be from a different industry and their ideas could make a difference. They also might see flaws in your business model that you were too close to see. The external hires could help improve your business due to their original distance.
  • Gives you more people to consider –  When looking at a pool of candidates for a job, you are able to have a wider pool of people when hiring externally. If you hire internally, it’s going to be a smaller pool. You also could be exposed to people of higher skill sets than the employees you currently have on your team.
  • No conflict within the existing team – Employees in your business will not feel like they are competing for a position if it is already announced to be an external hire joining the team. This makes the environment calmer and you don’t need to worry about any potential conflict.

Cons 

  • More time and money searching – It can take a while to set up the hiring platforms and advertisements saying that you are looking to hire. If the need for a person is immediate, it will be hard to fill it right away due to the time setting up the logistics.
  • You don’t get all the information from their resume – At the end of the day, you only have a few interviews to be able to determine whether or not this person is good for the job. You can look at references but there still can be uncertainty with the offer.
  • You don’t know for certain that they will fit into the office dynamic – When people interview, they are on their best behavior and talk up their abilities and strengths. You can never be certain that they will fit in with your employees and your pace of work. You don’t know their true personality and how well that will mesh with the office environment.

Promoting from Within

Pros 

  • Positive morale for staff – Hiring from within shows that an employee’s work is valued and they will be rewarded for their time going above and beyond expectations. This will also show other employees that if they work hard, they could be promoted in the future. If the promotion is for a managerial role, people can feel more comfortable that they know who they will be working with than an outside recruit.
  • Keep your costs down – Internal recruits will save you money because you don’t need to spend money on external recruiting. You will not need to spend money on sites promoting your position.
  • You know the candidate – Interviews can be much more relaxed when you know the applicants from personally working with them. This allows you to skip the awkwardness of a first interview and ask them what they hope to contribute in the new position.

Cons

  • Stuck in an endless loop of filling positions – You probably will now need to fill in your promoted employee’s position unless they are just getting a promotion of responsibilities rather than a completely different title. This can be frustrating because you probably would have to hire an external candidate to end the repetition of hiring to fill.
  • Lack of change – You are keeping the same ideas that have been in your office already. This may promote a sense of conformity with ideas. The culture will continue to be the same because there is nothing causing a change. You just may lack some originality due to promoting and not hiring externally.
  • Competition between workers – People may become competitive with a position opening up. If employees don’t like the person who gets the promotion, they may leave because they don’t feel properly supported. They also may leave because they don’t feel valued if someone with less experience in the company gets the promotion instead of them.

Overall, consider your employees and the need within your organization to determine whether or not it would be more beneficial to promote or hire externally.

Tips for Managing your Business’s Online Reputation

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In the current social media landscape, it’s important to manage your business online and maintain a positive online reputation with the general public.

What is Online Reputation Management

Online reputation management is all about how you are perceived by the internet. People use the internet to check out your reviews and social media to see if your business is right for them. Having an online presence can help your business be susceptible to reviews and positive feedback. Online reputation management is monitoring the reviews that previous clients have stated. These reviews are trusted by the public, and your responses to these reviews also can help or hurt your online reputation.

Online reputation management is becoming increasingly more important in daily life for business owners. This refers to the widespread opinion the general public has about your business. Shared experiences about your business create a general pattern that will influence people whether or not you are the right company for them.

Why Should You Care About Your Online Reputation?

You only get one chance at a first impression and that becomes your reputation. In today’s digital world, people can make their first impression about your business without even entering your establishment. Your online reputation is based on people trusting online reviews. If you have negative reviews, a prospective client can mentally cross off your business because online reviews are seen as credible with your client giving their honest opinion. If there is a pattern with reviews and no sense of management, your online reputation is in trouble. Having good reviews, however, can help your business gain traction. If most clients love you, why won’t new customers? Online trust is very important and a huge key to your success.

A reputation is very difficult to fix if it becomes tarnished. In today’s world, social media runs rampant. Many individuals are able to create platforms that gather traction. If your business becomes a topic of discussion, many people can share both good and bad interactions they have had with you. This can influence people listening to either engage with or avoid your business. Having a positive reputation can benefit your business because most businesses utilize referrals to gain more customers.

User-generated content is becoming increasingly popular on the internet. People trust other people and their opinions. A quick google search is not cutting it anymore. The gray area of what is genuine and what is paid advertising makes it hard for people to trust companies. User-generated content is seen as a third-party endorsement where normal people talk honestly about companies which can help business if it’s positive content. This essentially is the new wave of “word of mouth” but digitized.

5 Tips for Online Reputation Management

  • Look at Current Reviews – Take a look at the existing online reviews for your business and see what your average rating is and what is the most popular review website. Look to see if there are any reviews that you can respond to. After understanding what people are saying about your business, you can develop an online reputation plan.
  • Reply Honestly to Reviews – Respond to every review like it is a conversation. Thank the people with the positive reviews. For negative reviews, apologize about the negative experience and ask for them to elaborate with you by scheduling a phone call.
  • Ask For Feedback – Ask trusted customers to give you feedback on how your business could improve, as well as internal employees. Showing that you care about their opinion will generate a positive reaction. Ask for people to give you reviews online so more people will come to you.
  • Use Your Social Media Accounts – Have an active social media and respond to your audience. Having a presence on social media shows that you are with the current time. Engage with your audience and create personalized content for your field.
  • Don’t Get Discouraged – There can always be a random bad review. As long as you look attentive and try to address it with the individual, there is nothing to worry about. Just try to have the best attitude while talking to customers, both face-to-face and online.

Leadership vs. Management: Navigating the Distinct Paths to Organizational Success

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Cropped shot of a group of colleagues having a discussion in a modern officeIn the realm of business, the terms “leadership” and “management” are often used interchangeably, but they represent distinct approaches that play crucial roles in the success of an organization. While both are essential, understanding the differences between leadership and management can unlock new perspectives on how to effectively guide teams, drive innovation, and achieve organizational goals. In this article, we explore the nuanced differences between leadership and management and delve into the unique contributions each makes to the dynamic business landscape.

Leadership: Guiding with Vision and Inspiration

At its core, leadership centers around inspiring and influencing individuals to align with a shared vision. Leaders are visionary trailblazers who empower their teams by setting a compelling direction, fostering a sense of purpose, and motivating employees to transcend their limits. A true leader operates on the principles of authenticity and integrity, nurturing an environment where trust and collaboration flourish. Effective leaders are change agents who embrace ambiguity, take calculated risks, and adapt to dynamic challenges. They stimulate innovation, encourage creativity, and encourage the growth of their team members.

Management: Organizing and Executing Efficiently

Management, on the other hand, is the art of planning, organizing, and executing tasks to achieve established goals and objectives. Managers are responsible for optimizing processes, allocating resources, and ensuring tasks are completed efficiently and effectively. A skilled manager excels in decision-making, delegation, and problem-solving, ensuring the day-to-day operations of the organization run smoothly. They prioritize tasks, maintain schedules, and enforce accountability to maintain the overall structure and functionality of the business.

Leadership and Management: A Harmonious Symbiosis

While leadership and management are distinct concepts, they are not mutually exclusive. The most successful organizations strike a balance between the two, recognizing that effective leadership complements efficient management. Leaders provide the visionary direction, while managers execute that vision methodically. The symbiotic relationship between leadership and management creates a harmonious environment that fosters growth, innovation, and operational excellence.

Cultivating Leadership and Management Skills

  1. Leadership Skills: To become an effective leader, hone skills in emotional intelligence, communication, empathy, and the ability to inspire and motivate others. Embrace a growth mindset, continuously learn, and model the behavior you expect from your team.
  2. Management Skills: Developing management skills involves mastering organizational abilities, decision-making, time management, and efficient resource allocation. Effective managers communicate clearly, set realistic expectations, and empower team members to perform at their best.

In the dynamic world of business, leadership and management are two sides of the same coin. Both are essential for achieving organizational success, yet they offer distinct approaches to guiding teams and achieving goals. Effective leaders inspire with vision and purpose, while skilled managers ensure efficiency and execution. Striking a harmonious balance between leadership and management fosters an environment of innovation, collaboration, and growth, propelling businesses toward sustained excellence in today’s competitive landscape.

Keeping it SIMPLE

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Shot of a group of businesspeople working together on a laptop outdoorsA SIMPLE IRA is an option for small business owners who do not currently have a retirement plan in place but would like to have one. This particular type of retirement plan has several attractive features that deliver significant benefits to both employers and their employees.

What It Is

The Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees (SIMPLE) is a retirement savings plan targeted at employers with 100 or fewer employees who earn $5,000 or more in compensation. With fewer reporting and administrative requirements than other retirement plans, the SIMPLE plan is designed to appeal to employers with limited resources and personnel to handle benefit administration and compliance issues.

With a SIMPLE IRA, employees may make tax-deferred contributions through payroll deduction to traditional individual retirement accounts set up under the plan. In 2023, the contribution limit is $15,500 ($19,000 if age 50 or over). All account earnings are tax deferred until the plan participant begins withdrawals. Withdrawals from a SIMPLE IRA are taxed at regular income tax rates.

Employers appreciate the fact that a SIMPLE IRA is relatively easy to set up and operate. An annual report is not required, although certain documents must be distributed to inform employees about the plan.

Employers are required to contribute to the plan, either by matching employee contributions up to 3% of pay or by contributing 2% of each eligible employee’s compensation. The matching percentage may be lowered in some years.

Plan Benefits

  • Employee contributions are tax deferred
  • Employer contributions to employees’ SIMPLE IRAs are tax deductible
  • Account earnings are tax deferred
  • No annual filing requirement or discrimination testing

Potential Drawbacks

  • Employer contributions are required
  • No Roth contributions are permitted
  • Full immediate vesting (employee has ownership of all SIMPLE IRA money)
  • No loans permitted

Your financial and tax professionals can help you assess your retirement plan options