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5 Money Management Tips for Entrepreneurs

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Finances Article

As an entrepreneur, you know how important money management is. Both inside and outside of the workplace, it can be the difference between struggling to make ends meet and paving your way for financial success. What’s more, it can be the difference between making and losing a profit. For this reason, money management simply must be a skill that you work on and try to become well versed with regards to.

If you feel that your career as an entrepreneur is being held back by a lack of knowledge on your part in the art of money management, then make sure to check out the five pieces of advice below.

1. Establish personal financial goals and steps to reach them

In order to turn over a profit in your career and grow your entrepreneurial portfolio as a result, you must, first, be able to manage your money on a personal level. Well, if you can’t look after your own money, how are going to be able to look after a business’s or even another person’s?

To learn how to look after your own money, you should establish some personal financial goals. It means setting targets and being proactive in the steps that you take to reach them. Whether this means aiming to have a specific amount of money saved by a particular time, or whether this means spending a certain amount in a week, you should set your targets and put plans into place so that you can reach and hit them. By becoming well versed in the art of goal setting and step taking as a person, you’ll succeed as an entrepreneur because these are skills that are exchangeable.

Something else that you should do on a personal level is to know what your credit score is. You’re never going to get anywhere as an entrepreneur if you don’t know what your rating is. What’s more, you could actually be held back from making future investments based on past discrepancies. It means that knowing where you stand with regards to credit is essential.

2. Get educated

If you want to become a genuinely great manager of money, then you need to educate yourself financially as often and as fervently as you can. It doesn’t necessarily mean taking a course in finance or accounting; this just means throwing yourself into tasks in which you have to be on the ball in a financial sense to stand any chance of success.

A good first port of call is to throw yourself into the deep end with investing and stock markets. By learning all about what it takes to study and manipulate ever-changing financial markets, you will soon understand how to stay afloat financially no matter what financial fiasco comes your way. By educating yourself in regards to bull and bear markets and what kinds of investments can and should be made within them, especially, you will set yourself up for a lifetime of financial strength and longevity. In this instance, you should check out Dr Kent Moors stock picks, specifically the information that details oil investment, as this will help you to have a better grasp on what, how and when certain investments should be made.

3. Learn to crunch numbers

By learning how to crunch numbers, you will be able to make sense of every financial figure that comes your way, which means that you’ll never be left dumbfounded by anything that you come across, and you’ll find yourself missing out on profit far less. To learn how to crunch numbers and reach financial figures easily, spend as much time as you can with your company’s accountants. Also, you could try playing games that rely heavily on one’s ability to read and understand financial patterns, one such game being poker.

Learning how to crunch numbers will also benefit you in your quest to become a great marketer. This is because number crunching will teach you what it takes to translate the impact of trends and then turn them into tangible results for yourself.

4. Become well versed in the art of organization

You’re never going to become an entrepreneur that has a reputation for being great with their money if you aren’t good at organization. It doesn’t just means learning how to organize your money, either. You should treat organization as if it is a way of life. You should know where everything is at all times, and you should know where you have to be at all times too.

In regards to chronicling your financial information specifically, start by organizing everything into categories. Put information of the utmost importance and outgoing payments that are deemed urgent at the forefront of your financial plans, and sums that can afford to be left unattended for a while on the back burner.

5. Find yourself a mentor

If you aren’t a professional accountant or financial advisor, you will struggle from time to time when it comes to money management. Sometimes you’ll feel like you can’t keep up with all of your monthly outgoings and incomings, and sometimes you’ll spend far more than you can afford to. To stop yourself from inflicting irreparable damage on yours or your business’s financial status, you should find yourself a mentor who can guide you. It could mean working alongside an accountant at your firm, it could mean hiring a financial consultant to help you from time to time, or it could simply mean talking to an older friend or relative of yours that has some experience in equity and asset holding.

If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, then learning how to manage money is an absolute must. To do this, you should ensure that your personal finance is as strong as it can be, you should educate yourself with regards to investment, you should learn how to number crunch, you should organize yourself in a business sense and as a person, and you should align yourself with a mentor. By doing all of this, you’ll be well on your way towards being able to handle even the largest sums of money. Lastly, don’t forget to check out https://www.moneyexpert.com/za/ for all the best deals for helpful financial purchases from loans to insurance for your business.

5 Methods to Attract More Customers to Your Restaurant

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article | 5 Methods to Attract More Customers to Your RestaurantRunning a restaurant is hard work. It’s not simply a case of cooking up some food, serving it up to customers, and earning a profit. Many different elements need to be considered. This includes everything from managing a front of house team to the logistics of regularly ordering fresh ingredients.

With so much going on, it can be challenging to find the time to actually market the restaurant.

However, adequate promotion is an essential component for your restaurant – particularly if you’re a newcomer to the market. Established, award-winning eateries can get by on their reputation alone, but beginners have to fight for every customer.

If you’re struggling to get people through the door to sample your food, here are five methods to attract more customers to your restaurant.

Place your restaurant details online

As a starting point, ensure your essential restaurant details can easily be found online. This should begin with both a Google My Business and Facebook page, where you can feature details such as the restaurant’s location and opening times.

Also, it’s highly recommended to create a dedicated website for your restaurant. This site can add further information, including your menu complete with prices and exclusive deals.

Speaking of deals…

Run a limited deal

If someone is undecided about visiting your restaurant, there’s one way to ensure they turn up as a paying customer: offering an enticement of some sort.

What can this enticement be, exactly? Well, for one example, it could be an offer where a customer buys one meal and receives another for free. It might be 20% off the total bill or a significant reduction on a set menu.

People love to feel like they’re getting a deal, and this is an effective way of giving them that feeling.

Use PPC advertising

If your restaurant is in a bustling city with a plethora of restaurant options available, it can be challenging to gain any visibility via local SEO means. There is, however, one way of having your restaurant show up in local search results: PPC.

PPC, aka pay-per-click, is a way of placing an advert for your restaurant above organic results in search results. Mostly, if you use Google Ads, your restaurant will appear first in any relevant local searches. For more information, Made by Factory, one of the leading PPC management agencies around, can provide all the help you could need.

Ask for reviews

Reviews are often the lifeblood for any small business. Positive reviews for your restaurant will help illustrate the quality of your food and service. The more glowing reviews you receive, the more potential customers will believe your eatery is the real deal.

As a result, don’t be shy in asking previous patrons to leave a review if they were happy with their visit.

Don’t avoid traditional marketing techniques

Yes, the above tips primarily focus on digital marketing. However, you should never avoid traditional marketing techniques. Leaflets are an excellent method for supplying potential customers with details about your restaurant. Another example would be to run a print ad in a local newspaper.

Choosing Your First Business Premises as an Entrepreneur: 4 Top Tips

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StrategyDriven Starting Your Business Article | Choosing Your First Business Premises as an Entrepreneur: 4 Top TipsMany entrepreneurs are used to working from home or working remotely, but if you’ve developed your brand and built your business substantially enough to move into the property market, you’ll want to find the perfect premises that work for you.

Finding your first physical building or office space to contain your business can be a daunting (and costly) step, but it should also be an exciting time that allows you to concentrate on moving your business forward.

Here are four tips for finding the right premises.

1. Choose to Buy or Lease

This is going to be an important first step, as it’s going to impact you financially. There are pros and cons to both options, and a lot of it is going to depend on your initial budget. As an entrepreneur, it might be that you simply don’t have an upfront deposit to buy a property, however much you would like to. Renting can be a much more flexible option for entrepreneurs, as you don’t need as much money upfront and you have the flexibility to leave the contract and find alternative premises when your business grows or changes in the future.

Of course, buying can be a great investment if you’re looking to make money from a property, and it also allows you more freedom to make any desired changes to the building.

2. Think Carefully About Your Location

For certain businesses, location is everything. If you are a physical store or if you are going to have consumers or clients visiting your property on a regular basis, being stationed in a location that is easily accessible will be a must. You should think about being close to public transport links, busy towns, and city centers.
If your business doesn’t depend on external visitors, you still need to think about commutability for your employees. If your property is quite remote and some of your employees do not drive, it is going to be difficult for them.

3. Consider Any Renovation Work

You may find the perfect property, but it may take a little extra to make it the most suitable for your budget. Renovation work can be factored in, if you have the means and budget for it.

With buying, you have more freedom for renovation, but renting may also be flexible if the landlord is happy for you to take care of the renovations yourself. Always remember to get professional guidance on large jobs, such as reroofing from Lidoran.

4. Stick to Your Requirements

Know in advance what you require from a building and stick to it. Don’t compromise on requirements, as the daily workings of your business will suffer in the long run. You need to think about:

  • General office space
  • Warehousing space, if necessary
  • Parking facilities
  • Other facilities, such as a cafeteria
  • A reception or lobby

Conclusion

Finding a property is all about preparation and budgeting in advance. Knowing what you need ahead of time will ensure that you can then price-match your requirements with what you have, and make a more informed decision regarding affordable properties and whether you buy or lease them.

Dealing with Payroll for Small Business Owners

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Finances Article | Dealing with Payroll for Small Business Owners

Single touch payroll is one of those essential tasks that small businesses must undertake, but it can be a confusing and time-consuming process. The basic principle is straightforward enough – calculate the gross monthly earnings of your employees, then subtract deductions to arrive at a net figure. Inevitably it isn’t as simple as it sounds, and you need to be aware of every detail and produce 100% accurate net figures. If you don’t yet have small business accounting software, here is how you can understand it.

Deductions

Statutory payroll law states that the employer must retain this deduction and transfer the money to the relevant tax office. Statutory deductions include federal income tax, social security tax, Medicare tax (with an additional percentage for high earners) and state income tax. There will also be local taxes that come under the statutory umbrella, such as city and county taxes, plus school district, state disability and unemployment insurance.

Voluntary deductions are agreed with the employee and cover employment benefits such as health insurance, life insurance, retirement plans and stock purchase plans. It also includes any job-related expenses, for example, uniform, meals and union subscriptions.

Employer’s role in tax collection

It is essential that every employer keeps records of their payroll accounting and adheres to the law regarding tax deductions. It is the duty of the employer to deduct the correct tax amount from the employees’ wages and ensure that it is transferred to the right tax agency. To maintain comprehensive accounts of all monies dealt with, the employer must produce reconciliation reports, file payroll tax returns and include all payroll expenses in the company accounts and financial reports.

Taxes paid by the employer

In addition to the taxes an employee pays, the company must contribute to payroll taxes. These are payable in addition to an employee’s earnings and include social security, Medicare, federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) and state unemployment taxes (SUTA).

The importance of good record-keeping

Make sure your payroll accounting is kept meticulously recorded and up to date. Taxes need to be paid on time, and the mandatory forms filed when due. These forms include the annual federal unemployment tax return, the employer’s quarterly payroll tax return, the annual return of withheld federal income tax, and the wage and tax statements form. As well as federal requirements, employers also have to file reports with state and local agencies.

How do you run your payroll accounting

Large businesses can employ payroll experts or even entire teams to take care of all aspects of payroll. Small businesses often don’t have trained personnel, and with payroll being a crucial factor in running a legitimate business, the responsibility needs to be taken on by someone with the knowledge and abilities necessary to ensure that standards are being met. Small business owners often need to learn new skills, and this can often be facilitated by researching the topic on the Internet. For many needs, as long as you are careful to check that your sources of information are authoritative and reliable, then the knowledge you wish to obtain can be found quite easily. However, the skills required to run a well-managed payroll operation will not be so readily acquired using the same method. The intricacies of payroll and possible complications require professional training if you want to be confident you won’t end up in a payroll tangle further down the road.

Learning to run the payroll

The American Payroll Association runs courses on payroll, and offers virtual study options as well as having training suites in most major cities. The study can lead to Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) and Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC) qualifications. It could be a good option if you wish to master the art of payroll for yourself or have a member of staff that is suitable for the role.

A less formal option might be to enlist the help of friends, family or anyone else who understands payroll and could help you with keeping records and doing tax returns to the required standard. It could be a good option if you only have one or two members of staff and limited resources. It cannot be stressed enough, however, that whoever you ask for help must be an expert, not just a buddy from the office next door who says he knows all about payroll! Make sure your adviser is qualified and can prove their expertise. Payroll is far too important to get right to trust it to just anyone.

Not learning to run the payroll

You may not want to spend your precious work time doing payroll, let alone learning about how to do it properly. If you don’t have the time or inclination to do it yourself, one option is to outsource. Outsourcing has become a popular choice for many discrete business functions and is a good way of getting aspects of your business taken care of professionally when you don’t have the skills or availability to do it yourself. If your business needs you to bring in sales leads and meet with clients in order to generate business, then that is what you need to devote yourself to. The business is likely to make more profits with you acting in your strongest role rather than spending time doing payroll, which could be accomplished more cost-effectively with outsourcing. Choose your outsourcing company carefully to ensure you get the highest standards of service. This option sounds expensive, but it needn’t be. It is perfectly possible to find a Cheap Payroll Service that will do a good job for you, so don’t assume it will be too costly.

Payroll matters

The thought of tackling payroll may make you groan, or induce a headache as you contemplate the lists of tax percentages, welfare contributions and complicated calculations. The key message here is that payroll is vitally important, and it won’t go away. However much you might dislike it, it has to be done. Spend some time assessing which solution is most suitable for you, your staff and your company. Decide the method you want to use to tackle your payroll, put a plan into action, and then quit worrying about it.

Helpful Tips for Running a Successful Property Development Business

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article | Helpful Tips for Running a Successful Property Development BusinessMany people have the desire to begin their own property development business. This shouldn’t come as a surprise due to the potential financial rewards on offer. Not only can properties be sold for stacks of cash, but they can also be rented out for a fruitful passive income.

Aside from the monetary gains available, property development also has several other advantages. It allows you to tap into your creative side, where you attempt to solve issues and devise attractive room designs. Also, you don’t require any prior qualifications or knowledge to get started, and it can be done at the same time as working a full-time job.

While the advantages are clear for all to see, the pitfalls are often disguised. If you want to avoid these and run a firm that generates a healthy profit, consider the following three tips for running a successful property development business.

Choose your location

Location is an important aspect when it comes to property development. You want to try and pick a location that isn’t in the most affluent areas, as this will typically leave you with limited room to earn a profit. Then on the opposite end of the scale, you don’t want to end up in the outskirts where nobody wants to live.

Ultimately, it is best to aim for somewhere in the middle. This is on the fringes of a popular area, where it is likely to grow to be part of said popular area in the near future. The reasons for this are simple. Firstly, the property itself will still be relatively affordable to purchase. Furthermore, you are still in an attractive place that will appeal to homebuyers.

Add value… with a helping hand

In general, you’re always in search of properties that possess untapped potential. This could be drab décor, a loft space that hasn’t been converted into a room, a garden that looks more like a jungle than a tranquil oasis, etc. By transforming these spaces and adding value in the process, you stand to gain a larger slice of profit for your trouble.

While this can be done on your own, it’s often recommended to bring in expert help. Say you’re doing up high-end homes in San Diego. Rather than trying to design the rooms in your own style, you could hire an experienced interior design firm in San Diego to do the job for you. This way, you can be safe in the knowledge the property will boast a transcending style that delivers the quality buyers seek in an upmarket home.

Avoid getting personal

In the end, you have to remember that any property you purchase and develop isn’t going to be your home. This means you have to try and remove all personal feelings from any projects you take on.

While you can add touches that you feel will benefit a property, avoid going all-in with your own tastes. The design must be one that appeals to the market on the whole, rather than just you.