Ask a hundred or so business owners why they got into the “game” and they’ll give a wide range of reasons: for some, it was the chance to turn their love of something into a living. Others will explain that they have always been skilled at selling and that starting their own business was a natural progression. There are other reasons, too, but perhaps no-one will tell you that they got into business because they love doing admin.
This, as it turns out, is perhaps something of a shame, because when you are in business, the admin is a quite dominant, ever-present part of the deal. You’ll have to keep records, refer back to things and keep in contact with others on a regular basis. Even more importantly, an understanding of the importance of record-keeping can play an immense role in your business becoming successful – and maintaining that success. As we’ll see below, there are key reasons why record-keeping is so important.
With records, you can identify patterns
One vital reason for assiduous record-keeping is that, if you keep an account of everything, you can readily refer back to it when you need to. You can see, at a glance, where the peaks and troughs have been in your business record. Therefore, you can identify when things tend to tail off for your business, and why. This can allow you to make changes which will boost your business going forward. It can also be a way to identify the impacts of significant events (like a virus pandemic) which can be useful in future processes and potential litigation.
Solid record-keeping helps you answer questions
If you keep records of all correspondence into and out of your business, then you need never be caught on the hop by a customer’s question again. With a few clicks, you’ll be able to say when an order was placed, if it was delayed (plus why it was and for how long), and handle a wealth of other queries. Because you have it in black and white, you can answer a question with confidence.
If you don’t keep records in this way, you can find yourself stumped by a customer question and needing to foot the bill for an issue that wasn’t your fault. If that doesn’t get you asking “Where do I get better software for my scanner?”, presumably nothing will. Just keep in mind the ongoing benefits of having years’ worth of digital business memory.
You never know when you might get audited
Quite aside from the benefits to you when you keep proper records, one unbeatable reason for maintaining them is that you might, one day, get audited for tax reasons or undergo due diligence from a business looking to invest. In these circumstances, you can be asked questions and they aren’t the kind of question to which you want to be answering “I don’t know”. Having a ready reference and the ability to answer fully and accurately will be invaluable in these situations.
Admin and record-keeping might not be the exciting parts of your business – but when you do them properly, they can really help you out further down the line.
Investing your money can be a great way to increase your capital and even generate an income, providing you know where to put your cash. With numerous non-traditional investment opportunities available, you may want to try something different in order to maximize your returns. If so, take a look at these innovative investment options:
1. Real Estate Crowdfunding
Investing in real estate is an extremely popular way of making a profit but you typically need a large amount of money to get started. Until now, that is.
Real estate crowdfunding allows you to invest in the property market, even if you don’t have the capital to buy a house, apartment, or commercial premises. In fact, you can invest in real estate crowdfunding with a little as a few hundred dollars.
Although you won’t own property via this form of investment, you can choose to invest your cash into property funds. Depending on how the market performs, you could make a substantial return.
2. Cryptocurrency
Fortunes have been made by savvy cryptocurrency traders in recent years, so it’s not surprising that it’s becoming increasingly popular. By buying cryptocurrency at a low value, reselling it for a higher amount, or holding on to it and hoping its value increases, you can increase your capital by a significant amount.
However, you will need to familiarize yourself with the available platforms and the methods of buying cryptocurrency before you get started. In addition to this, you’ll need to consider the impact this type of investment will have on your tax liability. With a handy cryptocurrency tax guide, you can determine whether investing in the market is the right option for you. As more jurisdictions introduce legislation to ensure cryptocurrency returns are taxable, this is always an issue worthy of consideration.
3. P2P Lending
Peer-2-Peer lending allows you to make money by lending to other people. Depending on the platform you use, you could lend as little as $50 or thousands of dollars at a time. In addition to this, there are numerous repayment options, so you can choose how long you want to wait to get your money back.
The borrower will pay a pre-agreed rate of interest, which is how you’ll make your money. Of course, you’ll need to check what safeguards each platform has in place to ensure loans are repaid in full, or you could risk making a loss.
4. Seed Investments
If you’ve got an eye for business, why not become a seed investor? Working with startup companies can be a fun way to boost your capital and you may be surprised at how much you could make. Seed investors typically provide funds to budding business owners in return for an equity stake in the enterprise. It can take quite some time for you to make a return and, if the business folds, you won’t get anything at all. Despite this, it can be a lucrative way to make a large amount of money if the business is a success.
Choosing the Right Investment Opportunity
Before you decide where to put your money, consider how much risk you’re willing to take, how much you can afford to lose and how quickly you might need to access your funds. By assessing these three core issues, you can narrow your search and find the best investment opportunity for you.
Money worries are the most common source of stress among US adults. Most of us would like to have more disposable income, but it can be challenging to save when it feels like money is flying out of your account on a continual basis. If you’re keen to improve your finances, we’re here to help. Here are some simple steps you can take to save, invest and grow your money.
Saving money
The first step on the road to improving your financial situation is saving. This involves reducing outgoings and putting more cash aside each month. The most effective way to take control of spending and identify areas where it could be possible to make savings is to learn to budget.
Budgeting is not everyone’s idea of fun, but it can make a monumental difference to your bank balance. One of the main reasons we struggle to manage our money is a lack of awareness when it comes to where our monthly paycheck goes. If you don’t check your balances on a regular basis, and you have direct debits, you shop online and you use contactless payments, it’s very easy to lose track of how much you’re spending. Use your budget to monitor outgoings, to set spending limits and to try and save more every month. You can draw up a budget using an app, create a spreadsheet, or stick to good, old-fashioned pen and paper. Your budget should cover your income, your regular outgoings and any additional expenses you expect to incur during the month ahead. Once you have a set of figures in front of you, you can work out how much you can afford to spend, how to divide your income and how much to save. Update your budget as you go, use accurate estimations, and always round up if you don’t have the exact figures. Once you’ve compiled your budget, take a moment to look at your outgoings closely. Many of us spend money on things we don’t need or even want, and having a budget is a great way to eliminate any non-essential expenses. Are you paying for a gym membership you never use, or have you forgotten to cancel a free subscription that is now costing you money?
You can also save money by making your cash stretch further and altering your spending habits. Take your weekly grocery shop as an example. Do you go into the store thinking that you’re going to spend $100 and get to the register to find that your bill is closer to $150? Supermarket layouts, marketing campaigns and promotions are designed to encourage us to spend, and it can be difficult to resist the temptation to fill the cart with all kinds of items that you don’t actually need in the name of grabbing a bargain. If you are heading to the store, and you’re keen to save money, always make a list in advance and ask yourself if you really need any of the items you put in your basket that aren’t on that shopping list. Use a calculator to track spending as you go, and avoid special offers that don’t feature products you plan to buy.
Comparing prices on household expenses like utilities, TV and broadband and insurance is also beneficial for maximizing disposable income. The Internet enables us to look for better offers and cheaper deals in a matter of seconds without even leaving the couch. If your health, auto or pet insurance deals are due for renewal, for example, don’t automatically renew with your current provider. Take a few moments to enter some details into a comparison site and see if you could save by switching to a different company. Competition is fierce, and businesses often go all-out to impress new customers with incentives like low introductory prices and free gifts.
If you dread your energy bills arriving, especially in the winter, it’s also worth taking some steps to increase energy-efficiency at home and try and reduce consumption. Using a smart meter can help you keep a close eye on usage and spending, and you can also lower bills by improving heat retention through insulation and double glazing, turning appliances off at the socket and replacing old bulbs and appliances with modern, energy-efficient versions.
If you have a pot of money set aside, and you’re keen to invest, there are several routes you could take.
Real estate
One of the most popular investment options is buying real estate. With property investment, you can take on long or short-term projects, boosting your income through rental fees or sales. Buying bricks and mortar requires significant investment, but it can be extremely lucrative, especially if you buy at a time when demand is soaring. When acquiring real estate for investment purposes, it’s crucial to focus on the figures. This is a very different proposition to buying the home of your dreams.
Before you start looking for a property, figure out how much you want to spend and what kind of house or apartment you’re searching for. Who is your ideal buyer or tenant, and what would they be looking for? Think carefully about location, and select properties that will appeal to your target market. If you’re keen to invest in a family home, for example, proximity to good schools and transport links is attractive, and it’s also wise to search for houses with features like large gardens and open-plan kitchens. Take your time to explore possibilities, research the local market and contact real estate agents, and keep a close eye on the news headlines. Buying at the wrong time can be costly. If you find a property that seems perfect, arrange a second viewing, make sure you know the local area well and consider whether it makes financial sense to proceed. It’s always worth trying to negotiate on the price if the house has been on the market for a while or the vendor is keen on a quick sale.
Antiques and collectibles
Have you ever thought that your attic could be an unlikely treasure trove, or wondered if you could make a mint from a collection of vintage dolls, silver coins or oil paintings? It’s not easy to make money from antiques and collectibles, but if you make the right choices and you sell at the right time, this can be a lucrative option. If you already own antiques, or you have a small collection, take good care of each individual item. Damage and signs of wear and tear can affect resale value. You can use toothpaste to clean silver coins, protect vases and ceramics with heavy-duty wrapping and preserve decorative items like trinkets and ornaments by keeping them behind glass. If you’re a beginner, or you’re keen to add to an existing collection, always buy from a reputable dealer, negotiate on the price and carry out thorough checks to look at the condition of the item and its history and value before you shake hands on a deal. It’s hugely beneficial to research before you buy and to look out for products, collections or pieces that are in demand.
Stocks and shares
Investing in the stock market can be exhilarating and it’s possible to reap substantial financial rewards, but this can also be a high-risk strategy. When you buy stocks and shares, you pay a price and then hope that the value increases. It is up to you to decide when to sell or to appoint a trader to act on your behalf. If you haven’t bought stocks and shares before, it’s useful to analyze the market, to keep an eye on movements in the weeks and days leading up to your first investment and to read business and financial news posts. If you’re a novice trader, take advantage of free trials, which enable you to use virtual funds to buy and sell. This will help you learn the ropes and get used to the processes.
Saving and investing go a long way to improving your finances, but it’s also useful to identify ways to grow your money and make your funds work harder. You can do this by putting money into high-interest accounts, setting up a side hustle and paying into pension and retirement schemes that offer incentives for savers. It’s wise to speak to a trustworthy, experienced financial adviser to help you make plans, reduce risks and protect your money.
If you’ve already invested money, and you have more funds available, build on successes. If you’ve sold a property at a profit, for example, you could put the capital into a new property and eventually create a portfolio. Look for ways to keep adding to your balance, but be aware of risks that could threaten to undo all your hard work. Economic uncertainty has a direct impact on the real estate market, so it’s vital to buy and sell at the right time.
Many of us would like our financial situation to be healthier. If you’re looking to reduce debts, save money and work towards boosting your savings balances, there are ways to improve your finances. Start by learning to budget, lowering expenses and putting more money aside each month and work your way up to investing and growing your money.
To make sure that your business is as secure as possible, you will often need to think about future-proofing it. That is something that all business owners do in their own way, often without really being aware of how they are doing it, and it is a hugely valuable thing which you need to try and be aware of. In this article, we are going to discuss some of the most valuable ways that you can secure your business’ future, thus keeping it safe from a range of potential pitfalls and problems. This is vital if you want it to be a major player for longer.
Protect Your Data
Data really is becoming increasingly important to protect. Given the nature of much of the data that you hold, and the fact that a lot of it will be personal or sensitive data regarding your employees and customers, you obviously need to protect it as best as you can. And when it comes to your plans for the future, product ideas and so on, the last thing you want is those to be hacked by nefarious competitors. So encrypt everything necessary, and ensure that your digital protection is up to scratch.
Insure Your Most Central People
It is often necessary to think about the worst case scenarios when you are trying to protect your business from possible problems, and one of the very worst is when someone important to the business passes away suddenly or unexpectedly. Of course, the worst part of this is that you have lost a close friend. But it’s also a problem for the company itself, and you need to find ways to protect your interests when this happens. You can do that by insuring those key people using key man life insurance, which will pay out when a key person dies.
If you feel that you are merely constantly trying to keep up with the latest threats, digital or otherwise, you are not alone. Very often it can feel that way, and sometimes it is true that all you are really doing is desperately trying to protect your business from a range of attacks one after the other. The best threat response is an automated one, as this means you are not having to spend too much time or money on it, and that the response is going to come into play as and when you need it to anyway. Automate this stuff as much as you possibly can.
Go Paperless
There are many great benefits to going paperless in your office, and it’s a good idea to make sure that you are considering this. One of the main reasons to do it is that you are going to be so much more secure in terms of your intellectual property. It is much easier to secure digital data than paper in an office, especially at night. This is a deceptively valuable way to future-proof your business, and it’s something you should try not to overlook.
With the ever-changing world of technology, it can be a great market to get into. Everyday technology is growing and becoming better than ever. It helps us with everyday things such as searching the internet or making a phone call.
Finding high-quality parts
One of the most significant factors in doing successful business in technology is sourcing the right quality parts. Without them, the products could break quickly or not give the results you want to convey when using the items. This could lead to you spending more money than replacing the things and knocking your business’s reputation. Take time to invest in the parts that will work effectively for your products, such as TSMC. Although investing in these could affect the sale prices, you will have the peace of mind that the products will be reliable and could potentially transform your business.
Get on social media.
When done right, technology adverts can transform the overall look of your products to make them sell. Social media can be a great place to start as you do not need to spend a lot of money, to begin with, but you can promote the posts. Your posts can reach millions of potential customers with a click of a button. Posting every day can keep your viewers interested. Ensure that you engage with your audience by replying to comments and messages while getting them involved in answering questions. Linking your posts to your website can increase the number of visitors to your site. Sharing your website across the world to ensure a large number of people can hear how amazing your products are.
Research what products you are going to sell
Researching other products on the market in your area of interest can be inspiring. It can often give you many ideas for your future launches without the need to copy them. Look for what the market is missing as well as what your target market needs and wants. This can be done by taking note of the products and improvements that are not invented yet that could make people’s lives more comfortable, which could improve your business massively.
Hopefully, with this guide, you will launch a successful business that could transform the technology world. While being different from the rest by using high-quality parts that you feel are the best on the market. Places such as TSMC have many great reviews that can take the weight off your shoulders. You are launching a reliable product that will improve your potential customers’ quality of life. Ensure that you are present on social media because this can be a great source of advertisement which can allow your business to reach millions of readers. Social media is great as people can comment, like, and share on your posts to spread your products’ knowledge even further without you having to press extra buttons or add more money into the kitty. If your posts are constant and high quality, then often your customers will do this for you.
As important as your business fleet can be to your business, it can also easily be one of the biggest overheads to manage. Any vehicle can become a serious financial drain if you let them. Here, we’re going to look at how to keep the costs of your fleet light to make it a much more manageable part of the business, looking at both how you purchase your fleet and how you care for it.
Look at different ways to purchase the vehicle
If you’re looking at adding more vehicles to the fleet, then you should take a closer look at how you’re going to pay for it, as buying it one payment or financing it on your own credit may not always be the most affordable option. For instance, there are some ways that you can have the funding and ownership of the vehicle split with staff members. There are also fleet financing options such as hire purchase and contract hire. When it comes to financing a vehicle, just be sure that you’re aware of who owns the vehicle at the end of the agreement. If you’re dead set on making sure the vehicles become a company asset at the end, then financing a purchase might be the option even if it’s not the most affordable.
Take advantage of what deals you can
When you’re looking at vehicles, it might pay to consider going a little outside the box. By looking at the used and refurbished market, you might be able to find vehicles much more cost-effectively. However, if you look outside of the market of vehicles strictly meant for storage, you might find even more opportunities to save. For instance, you could look at used ambulances for sale and compare the costs with vans that might offer the same space. Add the costs of renovating it to suit your purpose and you might find that you still come out on top with some savings.
Take better care of your vehicle
Don’t just look at the cost. Look at the cost-effectiveness of your purchases, as well. If you take better care of your vehicle, then it’s going to last a lot longer and bring more value to the business. What’s more, a preventative maintenance schedule can help you cut the overall costs of repairs, reducing your overheads dramatically. Keeping your fleet safe on the road is going to help you cut costs, too. Not only can you reduce the very expensive risk of accidents and collisions on the road, but you can track driver habits like over-acceleration and harsh braking. These habits can lead to more maintenance and replacements and by addressing them, you can reduce these behaviors thus cut down on those costs.
A commercial vehicle needs to be both built and maintained with care. Getting a good deal on a new vehicle might be all well and good, but it’s not going to mean much if the costs of repairs and maintenance soon outweigh any savings you might have made in the first place.
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