Quit Throwing Money Away! 14 Tips to Successfully Track Business Expenses
Why Business Expense Tracking Is Important And How To Do It
When you’re running a business, it’s important to track your business expenses. This should be an important on-going task for you. Read more
The 5 Best Business Tips I Can Give
For nearly 20 years I have assisted businesses all over the world in becoming more successful and profitable. If one of my friends, who owned a small business, came to me right now and said, “What is your very best advice to help my company be more successful,” here is what I would tell them. Read more
5 Tips You Wish Someone Told You Before Starting a Small Business
If you are thinking about starting a small business, clearly you have an idea that you think will sell. However, that idea will remain just a concept unless you take a few steps to ensure that you can make that idea a successful reality. Read more
High-Tech “Green” Way To Save Your Business Money
In these tough economic times, all businesses are looking for extra ways to save a little money. What if there was an easy way to save money and the environment at the same time?
Well now there is through advanced technology. Super Bright LEDs has just released their new high-tech T8 led tubes.
Designed to be a replacement for standard 4 foot fluorescent lighting found in many businesses around the world, their LED t8 tubes come in in both cool, and warm white (which mimics that reddish light put out by a regular incandescent bulb.
These UL listed LED T8 tubes consume about 54% less energy, and last 60% longer than a standard fluorescent. Not only are they easier on the environment because they are more efficient, they also do not contain any hazardous materials like their older fluorescent counterparts.
Over the lifetime of these LED replacement bulbs, you will be able to expect an 11.8% return on investment from the long life, and energy savings alone and could literally cut your monthly energy bill in half. Many tax incentives exist for companies converting to high-efficiency LED lighting so make sure to check into it.
Visit superbrightleds.com to find out more about this new energy saving product.
You Really Can Select The Right Shipping Method For Your Business And Here’s How…
If you’re a retailer, you’ll need to select a shipping method that works best for you, depending on your needs. There are several options to get your products into your buyer’s hands. Read more
4 Tips to Help Differentiate Your Small Business from the Competition
Let’s face it. Notwithstanding the fast pace of change in 21st century technology, products and services aren’t a whole lot different from each other. While competition does drive innovation, when you enter into a saturated market, the only thing that will make you stand out is how you differentiate yourself from Read more
Three Things Small Businesses Should Learn From Lady Gaga
Wait, let me guess. You’ve already read this somewhere else, right? It’s a common theme, really. The Internet is rife with articles telling businesses what they can learn from Charlie Sheen, from Jersey Shore, from Obama, from porn, and yes, from Lady Gaga. But I’m afraid I’m going to have to disagree, at least on the Lady Gaga point. Don’t even get me started on Charlie Sheen. Read more
The Importance of a Good Logo in Marketing Your Company
There are few things which are more important to a company than their reputation and their ability to reach new clients. There are certain elements which go into each of these which you might not realize. One of the elements which is highly important, yet does not get a lot of attention is the need to have a great looking logo. The logo for your company is the first thing that people will see when they are learning about your company and it is the one thing which will stick in their minds as they are trying to remember your company. A good logo can be included on your point of sale systems, business cards and advertisements. Read more
3 Tips for Startups to Survive
No matter how good the idea is or how much money startups have, they have to first think of survival before they entertain thoughts of success; it’s not that easy to float a company today, simply because the competition is fierce and most spheres of business are saturated and overcrowded. Read more
Easy Business Bookkeeping With Business Credit Cards
Switching to a business credit card for your business expenses and purchases can actually make your bookkeeping system much more organized. Most business credit cards will also provide a detailed statement on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis which helps you generate the necessary financial reports for tax preparation for your company. Read more
3 Challenges Faced By Work-From-Home Entrepreneurs and How To Overcome Them
For those who wake up early every morning and commute to work, fulfill their work duties, and return to their humble abode the thought of working from home can present an appealing picture. But the lure of working from home, although attractive from the outside looking in, can present a greater challenge than following the conventional work routine.
Why You Can Make A Lot More Money When Using A “PowerTeam”
A common trait many entrepreneurs possess is the desire to work and pursue their business goals alone. People who have a strong desire to be independently employed generally possess a great deal of individuality and are self-determined independent people. Another common trait among entrepreneurs is that they possess the belief that in order to truly succeed in life, they must make it on their own without assistance from others. Men especially have a natural instinct to resist asking for help. When men get lost, for example, they strongly resist the urge to stop and ask for directions. Read more
5 Qualities of a Good Entrepreneur
Do you have what it takes to be a good entrepreneur? Is it something that you could learn or rather something that is innate?
Personally I think it is both. Read more
5 Tips for Happy Home Working
Working from home can be the perfect option for many people. It can offer fewer travel expenses and a more flexible schedule. Working from home can also have its challenges and keeping focused and motivated can occasionally be tricky. Having worked from home myself for a number of years, I thought I’d put together a quick checklist for productive home working. Read more
4 Tips to Ease Cashflow for SMEs
For any SME having a healthy cash flow is vital for growth. But even if your business has a sales’ ledger to be proud of it doesn’t always follow that you’ve got cash to hand. And this can quickly cause your SME to grind to a halt. So here are four simple tips that can help you ease cash flow and allow your business to continue to grow to its full potential.
1: Invoice Financing
This is a great way to access credit against the value of your sales’ ledger. If you are short on cash because stock is going out but you’re waiting for payments to come in then it’s a viable solution for you.
Financing comes in two forms – invoice factoring and invoice discounting. Factoring allows you to sell your invoices onto a third party (for up to 90%) of their value. You can then draw credit on these invoices and leave the debt collection to someone else. Invoice discounting allows you to take out loans on your sales’ ledger, while you still keep control of the invoices and debt collection.
Both invoice factoring and invoice discounting save money on overdraft or loan interest. Factoring also saves money on wages as you don’t have to employ someone to chase debts. However, discounting is an option for companies who don’t want a third party to collect for them because they wish to maintain a personal touch in their customer relationships.
Invoice financing is also a good alternative if you struggle to secure a bank loan at a fair interest rate. It allows you more control over your cash and this provides opportunity to grow as a business.
2: Invoice Correctly
A healthy cash flow can dry up due to mistakes in invoicing. One small error and at the end of the payment period a customer may demand a new invoice. And so you have to wait another 30 days for the cash. It is vital to have a system that ensures all invoices are correct the first time they go out. Secondary to this you should always have a good follow-up process in place. If the cost of setting up and manning this is a strain on your business then using an invoice factoring firm could be the next step to take.
3: Negotiate Your Payments
Just as late payments can cause you cash flow problems, delaying your own payment of invoices can ease cash flow. So always wait as long as possible to pay any invoices due. And try to negotiate with your seller. A standard 30 day payment term can often be extended to 60 days. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
4: Cash Flow Projections
Always carry out a cash flow projections at least two quarters in advance. This means you should be able to foresee any shortfalls on the horizon. This is particularly relevant if your business has a seasonal ebb and flow. Banks are wary of businesses that need cash in a hurry so good projections allow you to plan loans in advance. You can often get a better deal if you are in a strong cash position but if you are finding it hard to negotiate a bank loan then invoice financing is often a more financially viable alternative.
About the Author: David Summers is the Invoice Finance Product Manager for SimplyBusiness.co.uk who offer a range of finance and insurance products for UK SMEs.
Photo Credit: AJU_photography
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