Money. Do you have enough?
This may seem like a silly question but for a small business owner, knowing the answer could be the difference between a seemingly successful business suddenly becoming insolvent or moving full steam ahead to high returns.
The answer to the question lies in your cash flow. Simply put, the capital that you have at your disposal to manage your day-to-day affairs is the best marker of how you are doing.
So how can you improve cash flow?
Our brief guide will show you what you need to do.
Analyze What You Already Have
Having a clear understanding of how much cash you really have at hand may seem obvious, but because you are so involved in all aspects of your business it’s easy to lose track.
The best way for a busy business owner to get to grips with up-to-date info on their incomings and outgoings is to make use of the many software platforms available. They can track your expenses, inflow, and everything in between.
This information will enable you to stay on top of finances and see what specific areas could improve your cash flow.
Check Your Terms
If you don’t know how to improve cash flow, one of the best ways to start is by better managing the rate of what is coming in compared to what is going out.
Your payment terms when invoicing clients could be crippling you if you were to compare them to your suppliers. For example, simply requiring invoices to be paid in 15 days if your supplier needs them in 30 would speed up how much cash you have at hand tenfold.
Another step would be to put those good negotiation skills to use. Put on the charm and ask your suppliers to extend their payment terms. Doing so could greatly improve cash flow for your business.
By Any Means Necessary
Even though you may want your customers to pay you faster, could it be that you are not helping them too?
Whereas in the past it was a simple case of cash or credit card, now the average consumer has a plethora of options and platforms available to them. By extension, humans are creatures of habit. So if you are used to paying one way, having to change it can bring about a mental lethargy which ultimately can affect a business’s bottom line.
Regardless of your industry, retail, or landscape gardening, make it easy for your customers by expanding your payment options to include Paypal, Apple Pay, credit cards, debit cards, and anything else in between.
More great tips specific to how to increase a landscaping business profit margin are found on this post by AccountSolve.
Cash Is King So Aim to Improve Cash Flow
The fact of the matter is that the only way for a business to take off is with good money management. So taking heed of our tips to improve cash flow will serve you well, regardless if you are in black, red, or pink.
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