Growing a business is about more than just increasing profit. Yes, in many cases, profit is an integral part of growth, but your approach to growing should also take into account other metrics and areas of the business.
Que strategic decision-making.
In this article, we’ll highlight some of the key areas you should be using your numbers to make decisions to reach your growth goals and how Little Fish Accounting helps our clients manage those areas.
Strategically Building Your Team
On average, it costs around $4,000 to onboard a new employee, in addition to the soft costs of hours finding candidates, interviewing, and training. This is why it’s so important to get the right people on your team on the first try.
There are several key factors you should consider when thinking about hiring, each playing a critical role in your decision.
You’ll need to consider things like:
If hiring is the right move for the business
If the work can be done by a contractor instead
And how they should be paid
How to prepare to potentially have employees in another state
Classifying employees correctly
Your tax responsibilities for new team members
What payroll system you plan to use
At Little Fish Accounting, we make sure our clients understand the full picture so they can make informed decisions about when and how to expand their teams. We not only consult them on whether or not they can "afford" to hire but we also provide guidance on:
When to hire
What you need to keep in mind in regard to employee tax implications
Costs that will be incurred by the company (i.e. benefits, employer payroll taxes, etc).
Whether you should hire employees or consultants based on your needs
The Importance of a Project Management System
Most businesses understand the importance of utilizing an accounting system, but most overlook the value of also having a project management system to track the work. The problem with this is there is a lot of information that connects in both systems, so if one is lacking, they may fall behind as well.
Knowing when you should be getting paid is key to running a business and that requires close tracking of project status to understand when milestones are reached that correspond to the payment schedule.
For example, you may have a mental note to track when contracts come in to make sure an invoice has been prepared and the rest of the steps have been completed, but that becomes increasingly difficult to manage manually as the number of invoices increases.
Whether it’s your team members, vendors, or contractors completing work for your business, they need clarity and a solid system in place so that everyone can interact with each other efficiently.
This is especially important for projects that stretch on longer than anticipated thus requiring an adjustment in the payment schedule. If you fail to recognize this in a timely manner, it could lead to cash flow issues because you were expecting a payment that is going to be delayed for weeks or even months.
Little Fish Accounting leverages your current project management systems to gather the information we need to know when invoices should be paid. Then, we track the payment status in your accounting system.
This means the data you collect from your project management system is what triggers action on our part, which emphasizes the importance of the connection between the project and accounting systems.
Leveraging Marketing to Achieve Your Goals
Marketing is more than posting on social media. You have to have a strategy based on numbers and goals, because, in the end, marketing is about getting a return on investment.
Understanding how you make your money and where it's coming from are good indicators of where you should focus your efforts.
At Little Fish Accounting, we help clients navigate figuring out where to focus marketing efforts by walking them through the following questions:
What will the result of your efforts be financially?
What level of sales do you need to meet your budget or your goals?
How you should be tracking revenue to see what’s working and what’s not?
Are you doing the work you want to be doing?
If not, what kind of marketing or sales needs to be put behind shifting your service offerings so you are spending your time the way you want to?
We take a close look at revenue, the amount of time it takes to do the work, and whether or not you are charging enough based on the level of effort it takes to deliver. If we determine your current efforts aren’t producing the desired results, we’ll help you figure out how to market products or services that will generate a better ROI.
An Accounting System is Pivotal
To make strategic, informed decisions for your business, you need an accounting system so you have access to timely and accurate information. Having your finances tracked and managed automatically provides the ability to::
Access accurate and up-to-date financial reports
The ability to easily categorize things properly
An easy way to reconcile your accounts
With the help of Little Fish Accounting, you won’t have to worry about whether or not you can rely on your numbers.
Our team takes care of expense categorization to ensure our client's books are always up to date. We also go beyond the numbers and provide detailed walkthroughs of financial records, budgets, and forecasts to ensure clients understand what the numbers mean and how that data can be used to make decisions and achieve the goals of the business.
Growing Your Business Requires More Than Just Hiring an Accountant
We offer a variety of offerings to meet client needs regardless of where they are including Tax Prep Suite, Elevated Bookkeeping, and Financial Manager services. Our exceptional client experience goes beyond the numbers to provide transformative value to our clients by ensuring they understand their finances while also helping them reach their goals.
To do this, we only take on a select number of clients to ensure we can provide the highest level of service. If you’re ready to invest in an accounting partner to help you get to the next level we'd love to partner with you. You can check out all the details about our service offerings here.
And if you're not quite ready to hire an accounting partner but want to take control of your finances on your own, we've designed a resource library to help you build a strong foundation and set yourself up for success.