TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR BUSINESS CASHFLOW IN 2020!

Here are some tips from credit control expert Nicki Kinton, of Confident Cashflow, around having a healthy business bank balance in 2020.

To find out more around Nicki visit - https://confidentcashflow.com

"It’s January once again, and personal finances are stretched. It seems ages since the December pay day, ages until the January one, and there’s so much pressure on us to spend a lot over Christmas.

"But it’s not just individuals who can find January hard financially. Businesses too, especially small owner managed businesses, are often left a bit short at this time of year.

"Often they will have been a little late issuing those December / January invoices and many of your November / December invoices are still unpaid. This all adds up to less in the bank account to pay all those bills.

"January is a popular time for renewals, often to coincide with the start of a new financial year, so not only do business owners have the regular, monthly bills to contend with but maybe some annual ones too, such as insurances or membership fees.

"So what can you do to beat the January cash flow blues?....

• Speed up your collection cycle – improving the average time it takes your customers to pay can really make a difference to your cash flow. Make chasing unpaid invoices a priority, no matter how uncomfortable it makes you feel.
• Take advance payments on new orders – this may not go down well with existing clients but consider doing it with new clients. You can always extend credit to them later when they have proved their financial integrity.
• Review your spending – what do you really need right now and what can wait a couple of months? Are you paying for things you’re not really using? I often find this with subscription apps and software. Can you suspend a subscription until you really need it again?
• Talk to your suppliers – can you get your terms with them extended, even if only temporarily?
• Talk to your bank – as a last resort (because this one will cost you money) can you get a short-term overdraft? Keep it short term if you can, and only as much as you really need, as it can be difficult to climb out of if you get in too deep.

If this all sounds a bit overwhelming, there are experts out there who can guide you through this process and help you structure your business to try and avoid this happening next year. 

To find out more about Nicki visit - https://confidentcashflow.com