June 17, 2015

10 Simple Ways Your Business Can Save Money

Saving money wherever you can will help you build a strong financial future for your small business. No matter what industry you’re in, you need to pay attention to your bottom line. These simple ideas can help you save both time and money so you can get on surer footing.

Stop with the endless meetings.
We’re social creatures, but spending hours in meetings socializing with coworkers is not a way to spend your small businesses’ time. This is a crucial area where you can save time, and therefore money. Evaluate the true cost of those meetings to your company.
Be a discount hunter.
Even though they may not advertise it, many larger retailers offer discounts for small businesses. Just ask – it won’t hurt! This approach normally works better on larger items like home office equipment than a stack of Post-It notes. But small discounts add up so be sure to ask!
Save the delivery fee.
If you’ve ever ordered a pizza for a pick up, you know that there are savings involved in being your own delivery driver. For orders of reams of paper, and other smaller bulk office supplies, a truck or SUV will do just fine and may save you money on business supplies.
Keep track of petty cash to the penny.
Even if you’re spending a small sum of under $75, you should still keep record of all of your business related expenses. Petty cash drawers should be accounted for just as carefully as your checking accounts. Remember every penny does count.
Rely on the cloud to maximize storage and minimize costs.
Don’t sink your small business budget with hardware that will be outdated before you make it through your critical first year, and difficult to maintain in the long run. Cloud-based tools for accounting, project management, marketing automation, customer relationships and more is available to help you get more done without maintaining expensive hardware.
Associate yourself.
Trade and business associations can offer more than just a membership. You can save quite a bit on insurance and other business related expenses like car rentals and phone services. Sign up to get the best deals – most associations have reasonable membership fees.
Make outsourcing a priority.
Employees are helpful but can be costly in the early days of your business. Keep your budget in order by making outsourcing a top priority over hiring. Independent contractors can get the job done without coming with the salary, office space and benefits costs.
Lend out your expertise.
Save money on publicity and garner attention with your target market by showcasing your expertise. Look for opportunities to teach a class, speak to the community or write an article for your ideal audience. It costs time but it’s worth the investment for the exposure.
Focus on free software.
Freemium software plans offer multiple features for zero cost. As you look for cloud-based solutions to your business admin and online accounting issues, focus on the freemium products to save on your costs early on. You can upgrade later for more features as you grow.
Explore executive suites.
Solo or small business doesn’t have to mean home based. Executive suites and shared office spaces can improve your business’s prestige and offer helpful business services. Many come with receptionist services, private mailboxes and part time office hours. Search for office business centers, executive suites, coworking spaces and shared office space in your area for ideas.

It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting out or in growth mode, every dollar you spend is a dollar you don’t have to keep your business going strong.

About the author:

Tobi North – Creativity rock star and marketing master
I enjoy being innovative and creating communications that customers can relate to. I am always looking for that “light bulb” moment, when I find an interesting topic that I know our customers will love to learn more about. In between creative brainstorming sessions, you can probably find me at a concert or searching for the best BBQ joint in town. .

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June 15, 2015

How to Deal With Clients Who Don’t Pay

Paid_invoice Even though you’ve put an effective infrastructure in place to ensure your invoices are paid on time, there’s always this one stickler client who’s just not paying up. Before you send out the goons, know that there are better ways to encourage your clients to pay their outstanding invoices. If your past-due notices have gone unanswered, it’s time to channel your frustrations into these steps to turn delinquency into dollars:

Communicate – Reach out to the client using whatever method works best for them — phone, email, text. Keep a record of all communication attempts. Once contacted, the conversation should be empathetic in tone. Find out the client’s story. Was there a problem with the product or service provided? Are they just really busy? Is there a cash flow issue? We all know that small businesses can easily get into a cash crunch. Allow them a chance to explain the reason for neglecting payment terms.
Create – Once the client’s situation is understood, create a solution that works best for everyone. Setting up an alternate payment plan could be an easy way to resolve the situation, and maintain that valuable client relationship. Even if the payments are a small amount per month, something is better than nothing. Most businesses, even those that are struggling, want to be upstanding and work with you in order to maintain a positive professional image.
Continue – No luck the first time you reached out? Continue communication attempts on a daily basis. Email and/or leave phone messages every single day. And put it in writing. In your correspondence, include a list of the days and times you’ve tried to make contact. If this is all to no avail, it’s time to take your communication to another level.
Confront – If you can, plan a visit to your client’s office. It will be much harder for them to make excuses when meeting in person. During your visit don’t lose your temper, make threats, or harass the client. Talk through the situation professionally and come up with mutually beneficial solutions.
Consult – Still no luck? It’s time to have your lawyer draft a demand letter. It’s not very expensive and it might prompt your client into paying without having to resort to more formal legal actions.
Complain – Reporting an egregiously late client to a business reporting bureau can provide a powerful incentive for them to pay. A formal complaint to bureaus such as Dun and Bradstreet, TRW and Equifax will become public record and likely impede the client from obtaining credit in the future. In fact, most will pay you right away to get the complaint expunged from their business credit report.
Collections – If all else fails, you can turn the debt over to a collection agency (who, by the way, will take a large percentage of the total amount owed.) Before handing it over for collection, try offering that same percentage as a discount to your client in order to settle.
Court – If you feel it is worthwhile, you can go to small claims court for outstanding balances of $2000-$7500. For balances that are substantially more than that, you can take it to superior court. Consult with a legal advisor and budget appropriately if you decide to take this course of action. The amount of time and money required may not be worth it, especially if the client is going through bankruptcy or closing up shop.

After a period of time, consider cutting your losses. Avoid throwing good money after bad and turn your efforts to more positive and profitable endeavors. Prune the delinquent client from your customer list, write off their debt and chalk it up to a lesson learned.
About the author:

Lawton Ursrey – Sage One awareness guru and fellow entrepreneur
I have a healthy disrespect for the impossible and a passion for the little details. While I run my own small business, I am also passionate about helping other small business owners. If I’m not running my business, or helping you run yours, then I’m probably playing guitar.

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June 12, 2015

Run Your Business Like a Pro with Sage One

As a small business owner, you wear a lot of hats. And as you grow your company, you’re going to have to fill the roles of general manager, marketing manager, advertising manager, order fulfillment, shipping clerk, secretary, customer service agent, file clerk, bookkeeper, IT department and more. Phew! Although it can be exhausting to wear so many hats at once, you can’t let anyone see you sweat. You have to make a professional impression everywhere you go – from working with clients to dealing with suppliers.

If your invoices and your books are in disarray, your life probably feels that way, too. But here’s the good news: with a simple, online accounting software you can save time, eliminate hassles and make a good impression with everyone.

Run your company like a pro by:

Creating and sending professional invoices – Imagine a clean, simple invoice with your company logo at the top. Sage One makes it simple to look professional when you create and send invoices that reflect your brand. You can also accept credit card payments from your clients with Sage Payment Solutions or Paypal – so you can get paid faster.

Making your accountant smile – Do you scramble at the end of the calendar year to get everything in order for tax time? With online access, automatic reconciling and seamless categorization, Sage One Accounting makes your life easier – and your accountant’s as well. You’ll reduce the time spent on tax preparation because your information is kept in order month in and month out. Then you can easily send your accountant the information that they need to do their job as well as you do yours.

Knowing where you stand – Leading your business to new heights means that you need to know where you’re headed. Know exactly where your businesses’ financials stand with the dashboard and reports in Sage One. The dashboard gives you an overview of your company so you can make important decisions. Are you making money or burning cash? Do you need to follow up on more proposals? Which clients are past due on their invoices? Answer all of these questions and more at a glance.

It’s simple to look like a pro. Make your clients, accountant – and you – smile.

About the author:

Kangelon “Kay” Dexter, Product Marketing Strategist and entrepreneur advocate

I am passionate about marketing and ensuring that the voice of the customer is heard as I create new products and features for Sage One. I’ve built my career around being an innovator, straight-talker and forward-thinker, and always making sure that my work is relevant to customers. Outside of the office, I enjoy spending my free time mentoring local teenage girls who are interested in participating an winning in scholarship-based pageants, shopping for the latest fashion trends and being a Youth and Worship leader at my church.

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June 10, 2015

Interested in Growth Hacking? Here’s the List You Need

You’ve heard this buzz term growth hacking for a while now, and you’re wondering, “what is it and why should I care?” Growth hacking your small business means getting laser focused on your business one specific way – toward growth. The term was coined by Sean Ellis of Startups-Marketing in 2010 initially as a description of a type of team member that all startups need. Sean argues that at the startup phase a marketing department should be replaced with a growth hacker; someone who’s “true north” is growth for the company.

As a small business owner, you are your own marketing department, which means that you need to be your own growth hacker. Fortunately, growth hacking isn’t about expensive tools. It’s about adopting the right mindset and focusing your strategies.

Here are five essentials that you need to understand in order to become an effective growth hacker:

Rethink the sales funnel.
Growth hackers adopt a unique view on the traditional sales funnel. There are three phases – getting visitors, activating member and retaining users. Finding ways for people to locate your product, helping people take predefined actions in your product and helping people become habitual users (and advocates) of your product, will establish a reliable system for growth.
Focus on your story – not your product.
Simon Sinek, author of Leaders Eat Last, says that “people don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” When your marketing focuses on your story, and not on selling your product, your company becomes more memorable. The story of your company and why you’re doing what you do gives your audience something to connect with. As a result, they’ll be more likely to buy and spread the word about your business.
Circle back on your product idea once you’ve gathered an audience.
In order to grow more, faster, you need to give people exactly what they are looking for and what they desire. This can be a difficult thing to know until you’ve built an audience. Growth hacking experts recommend that you begin with a small target group and then poll that group once your list has grown. This will help you narrowly target your product so it fits their needs exactly. It’s called product-market fit.
Track, compare and refine your performance.
If regular marketing is a cross-country road trip, growth hacking is like a NASCAR race. You need to stop more often to check on your performance factors and make adjustments. Track your KPIs closely, and then focus on improving relative to yourself. Search for companies online who have published their numbers, or reach out to similar companies and trade stats for comparison. Make adjustments to refine your performance and see growth across the board.
Start content marketing with guest blogging.
Neal Patel of QuickSprout calls blogging a “no brainer.” It’s a powerful tool for your small business – and it’s easier than you think. Blog owners are on a hunt for new guest posts and this makes guest blogging a perfect starting point for small businesses. It’s simpler to create a single post than launch an entire blog at once. Eventually, you’ll want to incorporate a blog into your growth hacking strategy but guest blogging is a smart start.

How are you going to growth hack your business?

About the author:

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May 28, 2015

How to Get More Done – So You Can Get Paid Faster

How to get paid faster
Your time is money – and as a small business owner there are hundreds of things you can fill your time with. So, how do you fit it all in? You need a smart tool that can help you get it all done – faster too. With the right resources, breeze through admin tasks and get back to doing more of what you love.

With Sage One, you can save time across the board. Do those essential tasks that help you get paid and keep your business thriving – in less time. With effortless expense and income tracking and easy to use admin tools our platform offers everything you need to get more done with less hassle.

Sage One is a one-stop shop for your business. Rather than logging into one tool for invoicing and another one for accounting, you just have one place to go. Best of all, with all the data under one roof, you can easily get a high level view of what needs to be done and how to keep your business running.

Here’s how Sage One helps you get more done – so you can get paid faster:

Simply stay on top of invoices – Stop putting off your billing! If you aren’t sending invoices out in a timely manner, you aren’t getting paid in a timely manner. With Sage One, you can send professional looking invoices from anywhere. With just a few clicks, you can quickly create invoices to send to your clients and get paid faster.

Effortlessly track expenses and income – Put an end to manual entry! When you link your bank and credit card accounts with Sage One accounting software, it will automatically pull in transactions into the system. It reconciles your accounts, categorizes your expenses and takes note of your sources of income – so there’s less manual entry for you. With all of your essential accounting information in one place, it’s simple to find out how your business is doing.

Easily see where you stand – Stop digging through spreadsheets and crunching numbers to check out where your finances stand. With all of your accounting under one roof, you can run reports and more with just a few clicks. You’ll gain insight into your business that will help you make strategic decisions – in as little time as possible.

If your admin tasks are dragging you down, it’s time for an accounting software that simplifies your life. Get more done – and get back to what you love.

About the author:

Kangelon “Kay” Dexter, Product Marketing Strategist and entrepreneur advocate

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May 19, 2015

How to Be a Social Selling Superstar

The sales game has changed – has your approach? Using social media to reach out to, connect with and nurture new clients is a smart move for your small business. By offering helpful content and answering questions, you can make valuable connections with prospects that can lead to more sales down the road.

It’s called “social selling” and it’s a great way to get to know what your target market wants and show that you can help them meet their needs. Salesforce’s recent survey showed that 79% of salespeople who use social media outperform those who don’t. If you fall into the latter category – or just want to improve your social selling skills – here’s how to be a social selling superstar.

Pick your platform wisely.

Social media is a great selling tool – but only if your prospects are using social media. If they are, you need to figure out which platform will help you make the most impact. For B2B businesses, LinkedIn is a natural fit. Businesses that deal with home improvement or design might find a good home on Pinterest. Facebook users run the gamut so this is often a good place to start – and Twitter is perfect for businesses that might have customer service inquiries that need immediate attention.

Create a business (but personal) account.

Social selling is the process of taking the one-on-one connection that happens in person and taking it online. Your customers want to connect with a person – not a brand. In order to make social selling work you’ll need to create a persona that can connect with customers online. This will help you establish a relationship with your network and become part of the social media community.

Grow your network.

After establishing your profile on your preferred social network, get connected! Do a search on each website in order to find people who are in your target market, or are talking about your brand. Try a tool like Social Mention to find conversations about your company or important keywords. Then reach out to those people. Contribute to the conversation, answer questions or offer advice – but don’t make a sales pitch!

Keep it helpful.

When you find conversations and reach out, don’t go for a hard sales pitch. Which of these are you more likely to respond to?

“Hey! I saw your post and you totally need our product. Buy it here at www.buymenow.com”

“Sally, here’s some info you might find helpful in your search for a solution. Let me know what you think!”

It’s pretty clear that the first version will put people off on social media. They are there to connect and find new information, not be sold to. The second version is much friendlier, puts the emphasis on being helpful and doesn’t make a hard sales pitch.

Stay connected and consistent.

Social selling isn’t about making a one time connection that leads to a sale. Stay involved with your growing social connections by posting helpful articles, linking to great resources and answering questions. Follow up with users that you’ve interacted with directly without being pushy. Over time, you’ll start seeing the clicks, signups and sales that you’re looking for.

Ready to use social media selling for your small business? Share your profile information below and let’s get connected!

About the author:

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