Focusing on Business Finances!
15 Feb 2022
News
Ask an entrepreneur to cite the most important aspects of starting a business and most will name market research, finding a suitable location or securing necessary funding. Yet many small businesses overlook the potential for business failure due to inadequate financial management in the areas of accounting, invoicing and budgeting.
Growth Dimensions Economic Development can offer our expertise to direct you to the knowledgeable experts and programs that will make financial management an advantage in your business success. Financial experts can assist entrepreneurs and small businesses with business essentials, such as how to create an initial budget, develop financial projects and learn how to manage cash flow. Several regional organizations offer financial consulting opportunities regardless of business size or experience.
The Illinois Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the Greater Rockford Chamber of Commerce is an excellent resource of technical assistance for small business owners and entrepreneurs. Experts provide free, one-on-one confidential business advising, including financial management tools. Contact the SBDC today to develop a relationship that will pay dividends throughout the course of your business venture.
New to the area, the Accelerating Creatives & Entrepreneurs Conference and Expo will be held on March 2 and 3. Aspiring businesspersons have the opportunity to learn from experts and ask pertinent questions about financial management and other business parameters. It’s extremely affordable at only $10 for this two-day event. Register at https://bit.ly/22ACE.
Rock Valley College’s Associate in Applied Science Business Administration Degree provides education in business leadership principles, including courses on financial accounting and principles of finance.
Technology Assistance
Many business owners possess a basic understanding of financial management and seek to hire a full-time accountant, controller or CFO. For those who prefer to tackle the topic themselves, technological applications have made it easier than ever for entrepreneurs and small business owners to manage their finances. The following tools offer many advantages for solopreneurs and small business owners to manage company finances on their own:
Keeping track of business expenses is not always easy, especially for business owners who are incredibly busy or on the road a lot. Expensify allows for integration between the app and credit cards and debit cards. This way, expenses can be uploaded and managed without manual data entry.
Service-based businesses will find the customizable invoicing features of FreshBooks to offer significant advantages. Beyond invoice management, the cloud-based bookkeeping and integrations with many other financial software programs make FreshBooks a program small business owners should investigate to help streamline their daily operations.
This app allows companies to manage their payroll, tax and benefits. The app reports any new hires to the government, ensuring that nothing is accidentally missed during the onboarding process. Plus, they handle state and federal taxes and even email digital pay stubs to employees. This means that a business owner can manage everything from their phone late at night or on the road. There is no need to print out paystubs or worry about tax filings.
QuickBooks is still a popular tool for small business accounting. It can sink with your bank accounts to make it easier to reconcile the books at the end of the month, manage invoices, keep track of vendor payments and more. Most businesses can benefit from using this software daily, or at least monthly. Since QuickBooks is full accounting software, it can take time to learn how to use it. Fortunately, we have resources who can help.
Accepting payments is easier than ever thanks to Square. It is possible to order a card reader that plugs into any smartphone. This means that business owners, salespeople, and employees can all take payments on the spot. Doing so can improve cash flow by providing quick access to capital, rather than waiting for invoices to be mailed and paid at a later date.
Small businesses looking for free accounting software should investigate the features offered by Wave. Accounting, invoicing and receipt scanning is made simple with its mobile app, which seamlessly incorporates multiple businesses into one account.
Micro-businesses are defined as those small businesses with only a few employees, who often wear multiple hats to keep their operations running smoothly. These individuals will find the accounting software Xero to be extremely appealing. Its cloud-based platform offers flexibility with a mobile app, along with payroll integration with Gusto and inventory management, all at a subscription rate that makes sense for small businesses.
Seek assistance today!
There are many resources in Boone County and throughout the region available to help small businesses and entrepreneurs with their financial management practices today. New tech is changing the business landscape by making it possible for business owners to do more with less time. Still, technology cannot replace the benefit of sitting down with an expert knowledgeable in your region. Please contact Growth Dimensions via email or by calling (815) 547-4252 to learn how we can help today!
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