Last year’s introduction of Single Touch Payroll (STP) means that tax time this year will be a little different. Employers are now required to report pays, taxes and superannuation information directly to the ATO each payday through STP. Employers that do report this way will not have to give you a payment summary as they usually would at this time of year. Instead, employees will get an end-of-year income statement… Read more
Increasing efficiency and minimizing costs are essential to running a profitable business. Yet many small business owners waste countless hours on meetings that lack focus, run on too long, and pull staff away from more productive tasks. Follow these seven tips to make your meetings more efficient and cost-effective. What’s your goal? Every meeting should have a clear objective, and a reason the meeting is needed (versus an email or… Read more
Social media time management and web strategy concept with a clock and social network word and sign printed in multiple colors 3d render image. With social media, you can connect with business associates quickly and creatively. But this communication mode is not without risk. A thoughtless post can offend customers and other business partners and damage relationships rather than build them. By following a few ground rules you can be… Read more
Business dashboards are a valuable business intelligence tool, offering an “at-a-glance” big picture view of a company’s performance. Most accounting software companies are jumping on the bandwagon, which is making your life so much easier to instantly see your business highlights. Some business owners use a dashboard to track KPIs relevant to just one aspect of their business, such as sales growth, marketing, or financial data. Others rely on an… Read more
If you’re like most small business owners, there are never enough hours in the day to complete every task on your list. So how do you set good business habits to ensure the right things get done at the right time? Often you’re faced with prioritising what you need to do right now – deal with a customer, meet a deadline, attend an event – and the things you know… Read more
Good news for those business owners with the capacity to invest in assets this calendar year. This week the government announced that the Instant Asset Write-off has been extended for six months, taking the initiative to 31 December 2020. Australian businesses with less than $500 million annual turnover will be able to take advantage of the write-off and invest in assets to support their business. This government initiative is designed to… Read more
The start of the financial year is the perfect time to dust off last year’s business plan and set some new goals for the next 12 months. While some entrepreneurs love planning, others feel overwhelmed by the process. How do you decide on just a handful of goals that take priority, with so many moving parts that make up a business? These tips can help you get started brainstorming how… Read more
Email marketing is one of the best ways to develop a relationship with your customers. Yep – even us nerdy accountants can use email marketing. But let’s not confuse email marketing with spam. Nobody wants spam. The key to maintaining high open rates with your email campaigns is to craft catchy subject lines for every email you send out to your customers. You need to get their attention, and amongst… Read more
Since the first internal corporate note was sent—probably reminding employees about casual Friday—companies and organisations have relied on written communications to keep employees up-to-date on company policies, procedures and changes happening within. These days, though, more companies are switching to videos to relay information to their staff. In a lot of ways, video is more effective than written communications. It grabs peoples’ attention, conveys important information quickly and is usually… Read more
Standing desks are not new, but they are still a bit of a luxury. Or are they now a necessity given our change in working conditions and more of us working from home? Many articles focus on the negatives of sitting: sitting at a desk is as bad as smoking, people who sit at their desks have shorter life spans, or sitting all day promotes terrible posture. Is the solution… Read more
Running a business in a smaller city may mean you have a more limited talent pool to draw employees from, but it doesn’t mean you won’t have access to top notch workers. You may need to alter your recruiting strategy to show those skilled employees why they should consider working for your smaller business instead of going to a large corporation in a big city. Here are some ways you… Read more
I have no words to describe the past three weeks of being a business owner running their own accounting and bookkeeping business during the Coronavirus pandemic, but I will try. There has been so much negativity, so much uncertainty, increased levels of stress and anxiety, frustration through the roof, so many tears – and that is from both clients and from me. “We are not immune to any of it,… Read more
Over the course of a few weeks nearly everyone’s business and life has been turned upside down due to Coronavirus. It has been a crazy time with toilet paper shortages, pasta shortages, businesses forced to close or stand staff down and overload of information (and mis-information on social media). With the recent Coronavirus disruption in mind, we wanted to help support you however we can. We have seen a number… Read more
Small business right now is hurting. The level of uncertainty across the board is causing sleepless nights, increased anxiety, job loss, cash flow crisis and basically a level of doom that I just haven’t experienced before as a business owner. So what if we could all help each other create a ripple effect of positivity? I was thinking about “what can I do” to help others in business. Obviously I… Read more
How does “saying no” improve your business? Well, bloody hell don’t ask me as I say yes to everything and try to figure it all out later. But the only thing I figure out is that I am burnt out and exhausted. So what a bloody resounding surprise it was to listen to Elizabeth Gilbert this week in Melbourne. Now I have read her book “Big Magic” yonks ago, and loved it. So I… Read more
I don’t know if it is just because it is the festive season that everyone seems to have their tinsel in a tangle. But if you are wrong, please say sorry. There is no need to be rude, abusive and pretend those around you, whether they are a service based business, retail, customer service or anything in between, is any less deserving of your time and attention. Most people think… Read more
Small business is at times, heartbreaking. You bend over backwards for clients. Always going above and beyond behind the scenes which clients don’t see. You work 24/7 including weekends to get things done on time. Perhaps you initially didn’t set clear boundaries as you want to help so bloody much. You explain the same thing what feels like 57 times – and then the client will send you yet another… Read more
Small business owners know how important it is to save money and be frugal. They know that one day that dollar could come in handy, especially during slower times. Saving money is definitely important, but there are also things small business owners can, and should, spend their money on today. It might seem counterproductive to spend money when you want to put it in the bank – and make no… Read more
When you run a small business, you’re involved in your company’s sales, accounting, marketing, and human resources, among other things. Being responsible for human resources isn’t just about hiring and firing people, although those are large parts of the role. It’s also about managing the people who work for you while they work for you. Conducting regular employee performance reviews is part of managing your workers. While performance reviews may seem… Read more
Do you know how many times we hear/see this question? Oh at least 3 times a week. We get it, you need to be getting value from your accountant/bookkeeper. And what your accountant or bookkeeper charges you needs to be reasonable. However, what are you factoring in when you get your answers to that question? Skill? Service level? How many people touch your data file? The scope of work included… Read more