Believe it or not, the End of Financial Year (EOFY) is upon us.
For small business owners, like you and me, there are a lot of moving parts you need to be aware of.
Not only are you due to create yearly financial statements, but you’re obliged to pay taxes, claim deductions, and submit relevant documentation to the government.
It’s also a great time to take stock (literally) of your business operations and assets so you can adjust and reset for the new financial year.
I recently read a useful eBook from Fiverr that helps you and I “Get Set Up For Success” when it comes to the EOFY. Here’s the 7-point checklist I created for myself after reading it – feel free to use it too!
1. Does your website need a refresh?
Website design trends come and go in a similar way to fashion. If you take your finger off the pulse for too long, your website will be outdated and potential customers will be turned off.
I’m not just talking about the aesthetics of your website either, such as the colors you use and the configuration of your menu. You should assess the entire user experience on a regular cadence to ensure it’s optimal – the EOFY is a reasonable spot in the calendar to make this happen.
Think about the placement of calls-to-action, loading speed of pages, technical SEO optimization, and image design. Perhaps even your logo could do with a refresh.
Speak with a website design expert to keep up to date with the latest trends and optimize your website this EOFY:
2. Is your database in good health?
Your marketing database is a crucial asset for running effective campaigns in B2C businesses, and tackling prospecting in B2B. However, the success of your list comes down to data quality.
If you have thousands of non-responsive and irrelevant marketing leads, the database offers no value to the business. You’re better off having a fraction of the contacts with a high engagement rate.
Keeping your database in good health is all about conducting regular audits and cleaning out old or inactive contacts. The EOFY year is a great time to schedule this.
If you want some help updating or auditing your database, Fiverr has hundreds of email marketing experts with the experience you’ll need.
3. Are you up to date with your taxes?
The rate at which you pay taxes to the government will depend on your location, type of business, turnover, expenses, assets, and numerous other factors. However, the EOFY is the most common time for businesses to settle their tax account for the year that has passed – even if you’ve been up to date with your taxes quarterly. In some instances, you may even be due a tax refund from the government, so you don’t want to miss out on that!
For small businesses, it’s unlikely you’ll have an in-house accountant. So finding a bookkeeper you can trust to help crunch the numbers, claim relevant deductions, unlock government grants you qualify for, and manage your employee’s EOFY tax statements is critical.
Fiverr has over 9,000 qualified accounting and bookkeeping experts ready to help small businesses just like yours.
The great thing about Fiverr is you can determine which contractor is the best fit based on their customer reviews, portfolio of work, and Fiverr seller rating.
4. Are your finances in order for the year ahead?
As well as your taxes, you’ll have several in-house financial statements to prepare. Examples include your Profit & Loss Statement, Balance Sheet, and Cashflow Statement. All of these provide important data to analyze the financial position of your business.
For example, do you have enough cash in the business to pay wages and other expenses? Are there any outstanding invoices that need to be followed up? Are you declaring any bad debt that will affect business decisions moving forward?
Of course, if finance and accounting aren’t your things, these statements may look like a foreign language. But it’s critical for you, as the business owner, to be across such vital information. I’d recommend leaning on your accountant to dissect these documents and provide insight.
I use Xero Accounting Software to stay on top of this kind of stuff year-round – it’s easy to use and allows my accountant to get the info they need without me digging up spreadsheets, bank statements, and paper receipts.
5. Have you done a stocktake?
If you sell physical products, the EOFY is a great time to schedule a stocktake. With returned items, multiple distribution centers, numerous selling platforms, faulty goods, and several different people managing the process, it’s inevitable that your digital records of stock are out of sync with the physical inventory.
Stocktakes are essential to ensure you have adequate inventory on hand to fulfill orders, especially if you’re negotiating wholesale deals and committing to large contracts. Depending on the goods you sell, the production time could take weeks or even months, time you don’t have when customers want their purchase tomorrow.
6. Have you backed up important files?
As I mentioned above, the EOFY isn’t all about your finances, it’s also a good chance to reflect and take stock of other parts of your business. Backing up files, such as contracts, training documentation, work products, and more is essential for managing risk in any business.
Most smart business owners will already have a digital file-storing system in place such as Dropbox or Google Drive. These cloud-based platforms ensure your important documents are stored safely, securely, and automatically backed up to provide peace of mind.
In saying that, there is no harm in keeping a local copy of your files on a hard drive or computer for safekeeping that you update quarterly.
If you don’t feel like your file management system is up to scratch, you may like to hire a virtual assistant to help get things in order. Fiverr is the place to go.
7. Have you reviewed your growth plan?
The final checkpoint on my list is about the future. What does your business growth plan look like?
We often get caught in the day-to-day operations of our businesses and lose track of the direction we’re going. The EOFY is a good time to take a moment, reflect on where you are at, and get the train going in the right direction.
Fiverr’s eBook, which I mentioned earlier, goes into detail about four key growth drivers you should use to assess your current state and propel your business in the right direction:
- Creating a data driven strategy
- Strengthening your brand
- Sorting out your digital marketing plan
- Being present online with quality content
Read more about these growth drivers here.
Wrapping up
If you’re anything like me, the EOFY has crept up on you.
You’ve been too busy running your business to get lost in the detail of financial documents, marketing plans, and insurance alternatives.
However, you can’t underestimate the importance of this time of year. For starters, you’re legally obliged to file taxes and create financial documents. But it’s also just good business practice to assess your situation and plan for a better future.
If you’re struggling to keep your head above water, hire some help on Fiverr – it’s fairly cheap to get experienced experts in accounting, marketing, web design, administration, and more.
The post An Essential 7-Point EOFY Checklist For Small Business Owners appeared first on Jeffbullas's Blog.
* This article was originally published here
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