8 Bookkeeping Tips to Revamp your Business in 2016
The Holidays are here which means that it’s that time of the year again where we’re all out, standing in line lineups, hoping we have that perfect gift in our hands for the special someone on our list. We are so swamped with holiday parties, decorating and shopping that we forget there are daily tasks we are letting slip. Soon 2015 will be here and you will have to ask yourself, “What have I done to management my paperwork and my cashflow?”
Do you know your numbers? If so, have you worked out a plan to improve your cash flow during the tough (bill payment) months? Are you in the seasonal business? Have you thought of a valuable service you can offer your current clients? For example, a few clients who own small landscaping companies provide snow removal in the winter to their current clients. What other source of income can you produce by helping solve the current need or problem you clients may have?
Before you move on to bigger endeavours, I would like to provide you with some tips to keep your bottom line healthy. That means you need to be in control of your papers and numbers. Time and again I hear the same complaints from business owners who have to get their books in order to send to their Accountants. Here are some common characteristics that I see happening over and over again:
Procrastination, no systems, resistance in providing important information and complaints about pricing for completion of a messy shoe box.
What to do instead to avoid regret and frustration later on?
- Have a separate bank account for business purposes;
- Have a credit card assigned for business purposes only;
- Get in the habit of documenting everything you do. For example: Every time you deposit money, write on the deposit slip what that is about. If you have multiple clients, write the invoice number and amount that it refers to;
- If you are too busy to have a folder for each category, at least have an envelope for each month. It is better than having receipts scattered all over your office;
- Keep important documents such as contracts and other legal paper work in a folder that you know where to find when you need it. Bookkeepers and Accountants are working for you not against. When certain information is required, provide it as soon as possible. You have more to gain than to lose.
By following these five tips alone will save you a few hundred dollars. Make sure you add these suggestions to your resolution’s list.
Happy Holidays and May 2015 be a prosperous year for all of you.
“Reduce risks, pay on time, be efficient and save money and time” Renata Magalhaes
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