6th August, 2024
Now that we’ve hit the mid-year mark, it’s the perfect time to take stock of your goals and gear up for a cracking second half of 2024.
It’s crucial to think about ways to ramp up your results before the end of the year to better achieve your business goals and reduce stress along the way.
Let’s dive into some top tips to help you smash your goals and finish the year strong, no matter your industry.
We all know that admin can be a real drag. But there are heaps of ways to lighten the load.
For example, embracing project management tools like Trello, ClickUp, Monday, or Asana can keep your team on track, ensuring everyone knows what they’re doing and when.
This will help you and your staff avoid wasting time on double-ups of work, missing tasks, or frustrating clients.
In particular, though, it’s wise to look for ways to streamline and automate jobs related to your business finances.
Accounting software like MYOB’s extensive solutions can simplify your bookkeeping and other tasks, saving you time and headaches.
Software such as MYOB’s can also make creating invoices quick and easy.
Connecting your business data with a bank and connecting the right people to this business data is equally important.
— Jody Sitters, MYOB Community Relations Manager.
Plus, the tech will automatically follow up on overdue invoices, so you get paid sooner and don’t have to remember when to chase clients up for payments.
Setting up automatic bank feeds can also decrease the time needed to reconcile accounts and sort out tax and BAS reporting.
This way, regular incoming or outgoing amounts can be automatically allocated to the right accounts.
“Connecting your business data with a bank and connecting the right people to this business data (such as your bookkeeper, accountant, or in-house finance managers) is equally important,” says Jody Sitters, a registered BAS agent and an MYOB Community Relations Manager.
“This setup enables efficiency and convenience, resulting in fewer problematic situations and giving you the keys to better cashflow discovery for your business.”
Remember, the goal is to work smarter, not harder, so any task you find yourself doing repeatedly is a prime candidate for automation.
Right now, with all the tech solutions available, you should find many programs available that will cut down your administrative time and save you and your team time and stress.
Cash is king, so keeping it flowing is crucial throughout the year.
This is particularly the case in the second half of the year when many businesses, such as those in hospitality, retail, manufacturing, and wholesale industries, tend to have their busiest periods and need more cash available to invest in materials, supplies, parts, products, staffing, and the like.
Jody says, “Take control, and you’ll take away the stress. Understanding how the flow of money affects the cashflow of your business brings that element of control so you can begin planning for better business outcomes.”
You must monitor cashflow closely at all times so you aren’t surprised by unexpected shortfalls.
To boost cashflow, start by reviewing your pricing strategy as part of your analysis of your overall goals.
Determine if you’re charging enough for your products or services or whether it’s time for an increase.
It’s easy to undervalue yourself or your offerings, especially when you’re just starting out or launching new offerings.
Focus on invoicing quickly and getting paid as soon as possible to free up cashflow.
You might make early payment discounts available to encourage prompt settlements from your customers, which will help you get paid faster and improve your cash position.
Make it easier for people to pay you.
Jody says, “Using MYOB, you’ll soon automate and standardise your invoicing, give your customers better options to pay you faster, take the burden away from chasing overdue money, and get much more clarity around when money is moving into the business.”
You’re sitting on a goldmine of information, so put it to work.
“Set up your business with consistent reporting using MYOB report packs,” Jody suggests.
“Once you establish the appropriate reports that give you necessary insights, you can construct plans and navigate to better business decisions.”
MYOB reporting can help with everything from choosing which products to sell and when to roster more employees on to work to knowing when and where to expand or which areas to focus on.
Use analytics tools to understand your customers better, too.
Learn what they’re buying, when they’re buying, and how they’re interacting with your business and your website so you can make improvements.
Track your most profitable products or services and focus on promoting them.
Also, keep an eye on your social media engagement. See what content resonates with your audience and create more of it.
Plus, consider using top customer relationship management tools like MYOB’s CRM to track interactions with your key clients or leads and follow up with them to maximise sales.
This targeted data-tracking approach in every area of your business can yield better results than a scattergun marketing, sales, or operational strategy.
Data-driven decisions will always give you a real leg up on the competition and help you reach your business goals more quickly.
For product-based businesses, nailing your inventory management is key.
It’s vital to use quality inventory management software to track stock levels in real-time to avoid overordering and tying up cash in excess stock.
Don’t forget to review your product line regularly, too. If something’s not selling, it might be time to phase it out and focus on your winners.
MYOB’s Business solutions can help with inventory management and, in turn, with cashflow.
The software can show you when stock levels are running low and automatically fill orders for you to review and send, which saves you time and lost sales.
Plus, with an overview of upcoming work, supplier orders, and invoicing all in one system, you can register what you’ve promised customers ASAP and increase accuracy while saving time.
There are even advanced inventory options within MYOB that allow you to coordinate multi-site inventory and distribution solutions so you can manage, fulfil, and deliver products from a single platform but for multiple warehouses and locations.
Need more hands on deck? There are ways to do it without stressing your finances.
Consider part-time or casual staff for busy periods or even contract out to specialists as needed.
This gives you flexibility and keeps costs down during quieter times, while still achieving key goals and milestones.
Explore internship programs with local unis or TAFEs, too, which offer a great way to find enthusiastic workers and potentially groom future full-time employees.
You might also look into government incentives for hiring apprentices or trainees — you’d be surprised at what’s available.
The key to growing your team, though, is knowing if and when you can actually afford to do so and understanding the responsibilities involved.
Use reporting such as those enabled via MYOB’s software to check your profit and loss, cashflow, and other finance numbers so you can tell how much you can afford to spend on getting more help.
Plus, you can utilise MYOB’s tech to set up new employees, pay them on time, and handle compliance and reporting more easily.
Jody explains, “It’s always easy enough to get your employees’ bank details, but all the other information, like tax file numbers, superannuation setup, etc., is a headache, and we can often feel like we’re chasing these.
“Happily, MYOB payroll now includes digital employee onboarding forms to take the stress out of getting on top of those time-takers.”
Payroll doesn’t have to be a pain anymore, either.
“Payroll compliance is always increasing, but MYOB has you covered,” Jody says.
“MYOB gives you a comprehensive payroll platform that delivers effortless STP reporting, faster superannuation payments, and reporting anywhere at any time.
“Paying and reporting super obligations using MYOB Pay Super saves hours, so the days of clearing houses and bank transfers to get this job done are long gone. All you need to complete the job is MYOB’s software.
“It’s quick and easy to pay super obligations in MYOB because you simply jump into the system and ‘pay super’ at the end of a pay cycle or the end of the month.
“Within minutes, the job of paying and reporting superannuation is done. You don’t have to stress about big lump-sum surprises and scrambling to find the money by the super payment deadline.”
So, there you have it. With these strategies in your toolkit, you’ll be all set to tackle the second half of the year head-on.
Remember, success doesn’t happen overnight, but with a bit of planning and elbow grease, you’ll be well on your way to smashing your goals.
Stay focused, stay positive, remember that technology can be your friend, and don’t be afraid to adapt as you go.
Information provided in this article is of a general nature and does not consider your personal situation. It does not constitute legal, financial, or other professional advice and should not be relied upon as a statement of law, policy or advice. You should consider whether this information is appropriate to your needs and, if necessary, seek independent advice. This information is only accurate at the time of publication. Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of the information contained on this webpage, MYOB disclaims, to the extent permitted by law, all liability for the information contained on this webpage or any loss or damage suffered by any person directly or indirectly through relying on this information.