The daily grind of owning and operating a business often leaves little time for planning ahead.
Whether you’re busy working in your business, managing staff or battling with bookkeeping, you probably find your to-do list never ends.
Unfortunately, that busy-ness can come at a cost to your business, and stand in the way of making valuable steps towards future growth.
This could also cause you to lose sight of the original vision for your business, and the level of passion you once had.
This battle is evident in the rising exit rate of Australian businesses, which increased from 12.0 per cent in 2017, to 12.5 per cent last year.
While the entry rate of new businesses into the economy has also increased, one report reveals 54,992 Australian businesses failed in the 2017-18 financial year.
A range of factors are at play in this picture, but many can be linked back to a lack of adequate planning.
In this article, we explore three growth strategies Allied Business Accountants can provide to support your business now and into the future.
Profit Improvement
A report by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) found 44 per cent of failed businesses suffered from poor strategic management.
Strategic planning activities such as profit improvement solutions are an essential but often overlooked component of running a successful business.
With the right tools and preparation, you can drive sales and increase profits while reducing overheads and minimising tax.
For busy entrepreneurs and small business owners, this might sound like an unattainable luxury. But it doesn’t need to be difficult, and support is more affordable than you might think.
At Allied Business Accountants, we identify opportunities to improve profits and financial planning.
This can include budgeting and strategic planning, reviewing goals and obstacles, assessing tax considerations and resolutions, and developing and running diagnostic tests to analyse the business.
Cash Flow Projections
The ASIC report also found 40 per cent of failed businesses fell victim to inadequate cash flow and high cash expenditure.
As a rule of thumb, all business owners should be able to pinpoint their financial position on any given day. But very few can.
At Allied Business Accountants, we help our clients put processes and practices in place to prepare cash flow projections, create budgets, and regain control of expenditure.
This can also include advising on payroll, salary and superannuation requirements, ensuring tax and GST compliance, and providing accounting and management advice.
Asset Protection
Successful growth strategies also rely on planning for worst-case scenarios and saving for a rainy day.
But the ASIC report found 33 per cent of failed businesses went under because of unexpected financial losses.
Allied Business Accountants can help safeguard you and your business against potential loss with asset protection strategies, protecting both your personal and business income and assets.
Many business owners are unaware of the potential risks to personal assets, including private savings and personal properties, resulting from litigation. But of course everyone wants to protect their business and staff, as well as themselves and their loved ones.
We work closely with you to identify potential risks to your income and assets, including those you might not have thought of, and develop asset protection strategies that limit your liability.
These strategies can include registering as a company or trust, developing succession plans, introducing risk management strategies, and advising on self-managed superannuation funds.
To learn more about growth strategies for your business, contact us today.
