It’s Time to Spring Clean Your Finances
Spring Clean your Finances?! Spring time is traditionally the time to ultra clean a house. While it’s incredibly popular, there is no one origin to this desire we have, once it gets a small bit warm.
Cleaning companies the world over ramp up their advertising spend at this time of the year appealing to this sense of Spring Cleaning. For business owners, you too can take advantage of the bright weather and spring clean your finances.
Here are ways to maximise your finances and put a spring in your step for the year ahead.
Spring Clean Finance Tip #1. Review Company Expenditure
This is something to do at any time of the year, but it’s particularly useful in Spring time. As a business owner, it’s crucial to keep a close eye on your company’s expenses. Now is the perfect time to identify patterns and areas where costs can be curbed. Look for any unnecessary expenses and identify where you can make cuts without negatively impacting your business. Spring is also the time to review any subscriptions or services that you may no longer need.
Pay particular attention to those areas where costs can be curbed.
Spring Clean Finance Tip #2. Make Strategic Plans
Everything is brighter in Springtime. It’s a good time to focus on your business strategically speaking. An element of strategic planning is blue sky thinking – where do you want to go, where do you want to grow, where do you want to be in three years, five years even ten years time?
Take some time to think about where you want your business to be in three, five, or even ten years. Then, create a tactical plan to implement ways to reach those big goals. Remember, planning is essential to ensure that you are taking the right steps to achieve your business objectives.
Spring Clean Finance #3. Identify Trends
As part of your strategic, blue sky thinking, now is the time to look for trends in your industry. If you are in fashion, you are already eyeing up trends for the Autumn/Winter season. Take some time out to identify trends particular to your niche.
It’s also a good idea to look back at this time last year. What trends did you identify then? Use this time to research and analyze trends that are particular to your niche. Look back at the trends you identified this time last year and determine if they came to pass. If not, identify what you can do differently to take advantage of new opportunities.
Write these down and plan for them.
Spring Clean Finance #4. Stay on Top of Credit Days
Cash flow is the lifeblood of any business, and it’s essential to stay on top of it. Keep track of your credit limits, the length of time it takes to get paid, and the length of time it takes you to pay your debts. Ensure that you collect on sales promptly and don’t pay your debtors too early. A healthy cash flow is critical to achieving your business’s financial goals.
You can’t reach your blue sky thinking goals if you don’t have cashflow. This is essential.
Spring Clean Finance #5. Check your Budgets
If you did the above Spring Clean items, then you have a clear idea of how your budgets look. You may have to recalculate them or revise them. Whether you revise them upwards or downwards, it’s always good to make a decision based on real-time information.
In summary, spring cleaning your finances is an essential task that can help maximize your money and set your business up for success. Take some time to spring clean your finances, dust the cobwebs from the business that often build up and appreciate the business you’ve built up.
If you’d like to discuss anything in this article, please get in touch. I’d love to hear which one stood out for you or which one would you dread the most?