Owning a small business can be incredibly rewarding and life affirming, but it can also be incredibly stressful. You only have yourself to rely on when it comes to managing your business, and you have to remain constantly aware of your finances.
Figuring out new ways to save money here and there will be one of your top priorities– rightfully so, as money is what will keep your company from sinking. Even if your small business is doing really well and you cannot imagine having any money troubles in the future, you should still be doing whatever you can to save up. Here are some important money tips for your small business.
3 Money Tips for Small Business Owners
1. Prepare for Tax Season
Without a corporation behind your company, you will need to seriously prepare ahead of time for your big tax payment at the end of the year.
You definitely do not want to be one of those companies who panics at the end of the year because they didn’t take the time to prepare early on for the inevitable. Lucky for you, preparing is pretty easy once you know what to do. You should start with setting a yearly budget for your company and – now, here’s the tough part – stick to it. Set aside however much money you might need for taxes from every pay check. Think of it as money that never belonged to you, if that helps.
If you’re already in the hole with Uncle Sam, or you’ve been targeted with an audit, it’s time to get serious about your repayment plans. If you need, seek professional tax audit help, so that way, nothing will fall through the cracks.
If you plan ahead and set aside enough money, you shouldn’t have to worry about scraping together one lump sum at the end of the year to pay Uncle Sam back.
2. Think About the Environment
Taking the environment into consideration doesn’t just help the earth sustain itself, it also helps your wallet. Look for Energy Star-qualifying products that will save you money on your utility bill. For instance, an energy-efficient lightbulb will last 10 times longer than a similar traditional lightbulb.
Turning your company into a paperless one will also save you some bucks in the long run, since you will be saving on paper and ink. Plus, being able to sell your company as an eco-conscious business might draw in a lot more clients, as people want to work with forward-thinking companies.
Related: How to Start a Solar Energy Business
3. Where Do You Work From?
Do you run your business out of an actual office, outside of your home? If so, can you change that? Paying rent and utilities for a “real” office might be an expense that you don’t really need to be paying. Unless you have tons of employees, you can probably work from a home office just fine.
Think about all of the money you would save if you worked from home. Obviously, you wouldn’t want to meet with current and prospective clients from your house, but there are options out there for that issue too.
Many companies rent office spaces for daily and hourly rates, and other professional buildings will have impressive lounges open to the public to conduct meetings in.
4. Always Pay Your Bills –On Time!
Just as you do (and if you don’t, you should) with your personal accounts, you need to pay off your monthly bills in full as often as you can.
Nothing can weigh down a small business quite like debt can, so don’t let your bills hang over you like a black cloud, building up interest with each missed payment. This may seem obvious, but that doesn’t mean that it is actually easy to pull off on a monthly basis.
One way to ensure that you will have enough funds is to plan ahead for expenses, which we already told you about when we were discussing taxes. If you find yourself unable to pay in full month after month, consider places that you might be able to scale back in. Like your cell phone bill for instance. Is there a cheaper plan out there? Or maybe look to your internet bill. Can a different company offer more?
Turn these tips into habits and you will be well on your way to success!
Author: Ibraheem
