Tony Barakat is the Director, Chief Financial Officer and Co-Founder of ABJ Solutions. He brings years of experience and financial knowledge that our clients depend on to make the right decisions for the future of their business. Let’s take a look at some of his top tips for small business financial success.
Have an Accounts Receivable Strategy
Every business, no matter what industry you’re in or how many employees you have, will always have one or two clients who refuse to pay on time. If it feels like pulling teeth to get a specific client to pay, you should look at your billing strategy and process. Make it simple, and incentivise them to pay early. This can help you avoid any potential cash flow problems in the future.
Spread Out Tax Payments and Manage Cash
Are you a fan of making a big tax payment every year? Although there isn’t any way to get rid of taxes, spreading the burden throughout the year can make it sting a little bit less. This way, you can treat your taxes like any other monthly expense, and you’ll avoid dropping significant amounts all at once.
The other way to manage your tax payments better is to set up a separate bank account which you can keep as your “tax savings” account and regularly deposit money into this account throughout the course of the year.
Finally, you can manage your cash flow better by including your tax expenses in your cash flow forecast and plan for when tax payments are due – this way you are left with few surprises.
Stay on Top of Your Books
Even if you don’t do it yourself, you should stay on top of reporting and reconciliations – depending on the size of your business, this can vary from daily to weekly to monthly.
By reviewing your accounts regularly, you can learn more about your business’ finances and how the business is performing as well as some interesting analysis, such as which of your customers or products are the most profitable – handy information to focus on and then help with growing the business.
Get Help When You Need It
Not every business owner needs to be a financial genius to be successful. It’s all about knowing your limitations and assembling a team around you that will help you out wherever necessary. Working with experts and delegating tasks will help you stay on top of your day-to-day duties while the people at ABJ Solutions help ensure that your business is on track and ready to reach your financial goals.
