Running a business, especially one undergoing a rapid growth phase, is a challenging task. The long list of responsibilities, as well as limited resources, may overwhelm and overburden every business owner. One way to overcome this difficulty is to streamline your business finances, so you can establish an organisation that is both efficient and effective. The question is: how do you achieve this? Read on to discover five ways to employ faster and dependable methods that secure the success of your venture.
1. Automate
There is truth to the philosophy work smarter, not harder. It boosts creativity and productivity and lets you save time and money. More importantly, it frees up your schedule, allowing you to focus on more relevant responsibilities. How do you make this happen? Can you easily consolidate repetitive activities and accomplish them with just a few clicks? There are ways to streamline your business while taking the stress out that won’t cost anything.
Start by evaluating how you handle time-consuming and tedious tasks. For instance, ditch calculating costs manually. Instead, use a cleverly programmed spreadsheet to make budgeting and accounting quicker and more convenient. Automated reminder emails to customers and clients instead of spending your day completing the task. Utilise software that automatically generates invoices and billing processes. Use a central server to store important information and get rid of the paper trail.
Digitising your files enables you to access and retrieve documents instantly, helping you save time, as wells as reduce paper use, allowing you to save both on money and storage space.
2. Financial Technology
When it comes to streamlining, technology is your best friend. From website marketing to disseminating internal communication to scheduling meetings and creating workflows, you can count on technology to ease the process. Think about how much time do you waste looking through folders or traveling to off-site storage to retrieve a document? How much money do you spend on paper? Selecting a reliable server that works as a digital filing cabinet allows you to save money and time, as well as promoting efficiency and increasing productivity. Just make sure to replace or upgrade out-dated or ineffective hardware to reduce, if not eliminate, disruptions.
One of the most innovative uses of technology is allowing you to make payments online or on mobile devices, using a card reader like those from Takepayments. These online transactions help you manage your time wisely, so you don’t have to take long trips to the bank or spend on in-service bank charges. You can pay smaller bills in advance and not worry about incurring late fee charges. Additionally, you can use technology to file taxes electronically, making the once arduous process nearly effortless.
Whether you want to transfer money internationally, make purchases, or process payments for businesses, you will easily find reliable apps to suit your needs. Check out PayPal, Venmo, Google Wallet, Apple Pay, Intuit, ProPay, TransferWise, and 2Checkout, among others.
As well as an enabling efficiency, every business these days needs to assess whether a more technological appraoch could also be a central part of their product or service range. Getting the right people with the right skills will be essential for that ambition and it might be a worthy investment to hire in a fintech agency to help.
3. Expenses
There is no doubt that the team outings boost the morale of employees, but these trips are only profitable when the company can afford them. While outings are essential in fostering camaraderie and teamwork, they should be well within the company’s budget. Outings don’t have to be frequent to be memorable. For instance, instead of expensive weekly eat-outs, plan a meaningful annual getaway where employees can relax and get to know each other. In the end, it boils down to quality over quantity.
Another way to save on expenses is to avoid unnecessary trips. Although face-to-face meetings are crucial parts of a business, they are not always applicable in every circumstance, especially if your clients live across the country or the globe. Be sure to utilise video conferencing for meetings and business deals to save on cost, effort, and travel time.
The same applies to employees’ career growth. At times, you may need to send your employees to out-of-the-office seminars. Ask yourself if the training is worth the travel expense and if it provides long-term benefits to both the employee and the company. Be sure to invest in seminars designed to enhance the skill-set of your personnel.
4. Hire an Accountant
Navigating employment can be a headache at the best of times. Keep in mind that there are tasks beyond your expertise, so delegate responsibilities to people who are experts in the field. Every business should hire accountancy support as soon as possible. If you are growing fast, there will come a time when you decide to bring that function in-house. Deciding to recruit a qualified accountant could help your business become more efficient, it lets you save money in the long run, and make financial concerns more manageable.
Good accountants do not only keep your business organized, but they also ensure that your enterprise grows steadily by giving you sound advice on investments and aiding you in managing expenditures. They are in the best position to explain business reviews, financial reports, and stock market trends. From the information they provide, you can make wise business decisions.
Accountants know how the tax system operates, so hiring one will ease your anxiety. Moreover, your accountant can help lessen tax liabilities by making accurate computations and preventing hefty penalties from late payments. Also, accountants can assist you with bookkeeping, including recording sales, purchases, balances, and other monetary matters. With one aspect of the business out of your mind, you can focus on other vital tasks, such as sales and marketing, management and business expansion.
5. Outsource
Distinguishing which job to give to outside contractors and knowing when to do so is a manifestation of effective management. Your most suitable option for one-off projects is outsourcing. It is not only practical but also very cost-effective. Outsourcing allows you to work directly with experts who are guaranteed to provide high-quality output, enabling you to cut on expenditures incurred during the training of employees. Additionally, you can choose from a large pool of knowledgeable and experienced freelancers without spending a lot of money on recruiting and screening applicants.
Outsourcing lets you pay for the expertise and ability of the freelancer, with no extra expenses on operational costs. For instance, you can conduct business with skilled content writers in freelancing platforms such as Upwork, and get excellent results without spending money on regular salary or shelling out additional costs for insurance and other benefits owed to full-time employees.