Category: Content

When running a small business, there are many aspects of the business that need your attention. While every aspect of your business operations is essential, marketing is essential as if you don’t have customers, the rest of the business will crumble. If your business has a good business plan, you should already have a marketing strategy. Still, there are a few areas of marketing you should highlight that can make a world of difference and drive customers to your business. Here are five simple marketing strategies you can implement that will boost your business.

Know Your Customers

Knowing your customer should be a given when it comes to business. Surprisingly, many business owners don’t take the time to get to know who their target customer or demographic is, which hurts them tremendously. First, no matter how big your business gets, you need to realize that your customers are responsible for your success and growth.

While it is understood that some businesses have a wide or unlimited target consumer, most businesses have a specific target clientele. Having this knowledge will direct your marketing strategies to have a laser focus on the intended target. This strategy will gain you customers, but it will save you valuable marketing dollars if you direct your marketing strategies this way.

Use Your Social Media

Social media marketing is perhaps one of the most popular marketing strategies because it’s free (or low cost) and easy to execute. Most people have an online presence on one or more of the three major platforms, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. All three can be effectively used to promote your business and specific products and services you offer.

Facebook has some fairly inexpensive adoptions, and you can create free business pages that will allow you to reach potential customers and interact with existing customers. Twitter and Instagram allow you to interact with customers and potential customers in real-time and inform them of what products and services you offer. You can also answer questions or concerns on all of these platforms and receive reviews on your business page on Facebook.

While you will need to supplement social media marketing with other marketing types, if you have a strong online presence through social media, you can focus the majority of your marketing attention on this area and have great success.

Reward Your Loyal Customers

Sometimes business owners and marketing strategists get hyper-focused on gaining new business and forget about loyal customers. Just take a look at any cable/internet provider and see how many offers they have for new customers and how many they offer loyal customers; those large corporations don’t have to care for you after they get you because they already have your dollars and regular payments. Small businesses should never take on this mentality even if they grow to be a corporation. If you take care of your loyal customer, you can trust they will tell everyone they know about your business. So place in rewards, make them feel loved and cared for at every turn, and keep them happy. Your most loyal customers can be key to ideas and changes that will improve your business, product, or service.

Build Your Network

Networking over the years has almost taken on a negative reputation. When people think of networking, they dream up scenarios of people wandering around, drink in hand, handing out business cards, and having pretentious and shallow conversations. Today’s networking is done more in the digital world and, when brought into real-life, usually culminates in meeting for coffee one on one or social events that have more of a “getting to know you better” vibe than hitting as many people as possible in the palm with your business card.

With this in mind, when building your personal network, keep the word personal in mind. Your network needs to be filled with true “go-to” people you can call upon when you have a need, and they will do the same. Some of the best businesswomen and men have strong relationships, even with their competitors. There are times when your business or theirs cannot fulfill the need of a client, and if you send them their way, that will be bankable networking credit that can prove useful and profitable.

Change Your Strategy

Change is good, especially when it comes to marketing. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it is an old adage that carries over in our business world today. However, if your marketing strategies that were working before are now letting you down or not as effective, change it up! Nothing says you have to do the same marketing you did at the beginning week over week or year over year. Your business should be a living and breathing thing, and so should your marketing strategy. Why do you think large and even medium businesses have entire marketing departments? Do you think they would need them if they were doing the same things repeatedly?

Conclusion

When it comes to marketing strategies, something is better than nothing, but if you follow these simple strategies, there will be a large and positive impact on your business. None of these take a lot of time or focus, but they do take some time, focus, and strategy. Try these ideas and see what happens. What have you got to lose?

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

A surprising amount of working Americans have little to no savings, nor do they have a working budget. There are multiple reasons savings and budgeting take a backseat when it comes to household finances. These reasons include living paycheck to paycheck, spending more than your means, the time it takes to make and keep a budget, and worry that they will have to give up their lifestyle to save, to name a few. The truth is making a budget and saving is easier than people think, and there are some things that people can do to decrease expenses and increase savings. Here are five easy ways to increase your savings that you won’t even feel.

Make a Budget

Making a household budget is not as challenging as most people think it is. Gather all your expenses and sources of income and use a spreadsheet or even a calendar or planner and input the amounts in categories that make sense to you. Some free online budget templates will help make this process simple. The vital part of the budget is that you add savings to your expenses and make it your most crucial expense. Financial planners and advisors agree that if you pay yourself first by making savings a priority, all other financial responsibilities will benefit because you will be more thoughtful about spending.

Make it a Habit

Saving money is just as much a psychological endeavor as a physical one. Most don’t save because they think it is too difficult or that they don’t make enough money to spare some of it to save. The truth is no matter the amount you save, just doing it regularly, even if a few dollars, will build a savings habit. As you find more places in your budget where you can spend less, you will already have a savings habit and grow the amount you have saved more quickly.

Make it Automatic

Most banking institutions not only have savings accounts, some that even gain interest. They also can directly deposit a portion of your paycheck directly into the account. Setting up a direct deposit and allocating a certain amount to be deposited into your savings account each payday does a few things to boost your savings. It helps with the psychology of saving because the amount is not in your main account of disposable income, and often people don’t miss it and budget accordingly. It also sets a certain amount of savings that is consistent and can add up quickly.

Seek Extra Income

When you are working on your budget, you must find places you can cut spending and put 100% of that money into your savings. If you cut out some unnecessary expenses, you might be surprised how fast your savings grows when you transfer those funds into your savings account. When considering your budget and savings, you may also want to consider earning more income through side gigs or other income streams such as investments. It is easier to find side work in our gig economy that doesn’t take too much of your time and can generate enough income to build your savings fast.

Use Company Benefits

Most people who work for corporations are aware of company savings plans like a 401(k). Generally, it is talked about in your orientation. Still, employees often don’t understand exactly how it works or what contributing to company savings and retirement plans can achieve their savings goals. A significant amount of the companies that have a 401(k) also have a matching program. When deciding on what percentage of your income to contribute, consider contributing the percentage your company will match. If your company matches up to say 10%, you should be contributing at least 10% of your income. You can, of course, contribute as much as you can afford. Remember, however, you won’t have easy access to the savings with this type of account, and when you do pull money out since it is not taxed going into the 401(k), it will be taxed upon withdrawal.

Conclusion

Budgeting and having savings are the most crucial part of your financial health and future. Using these five easy ways to increase your savings will have your savings account fat in no time!

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Are you looking for a loan to finance your small business? Banks no longer have the monopoly as the only financing source for companies in Europe and the US. The lack of financing options for small businesses and the self-employed in our country has facilitated the development of alternative ways to obtain financing that has nothing to do with traditional banking institutions.

Business owners are tapping into and exploring new routes of financing their businesses, and banking advancements are taking the financial world by storm. It’s time to hop on the bandwagon and devise strategies for your business, even if it means taking the big plunge in a new direction. By utilizing these tools, chances are your business will grow and increase its returns. All in all, if you dread raising finances for your business, untraditional financing options might be the way to go. Here are five alternative financing options, what they offer, and how they work.

Personal Microcredits Online

Online loans are one of the best financing options to not only finance your business quickly but to do it without so much bureaucracy. These are small loans that can be requested online through platforms such as Credit Cashier and ranging from $50 to $300. This financing option offers flexibility in terms and gives you thirty days to repay the loan from the time the loan is approved and issued. It also has a lower threshold of credit score requirements. While this loan is not large, it is fast and can help you with immediate needs less expensive.

Angel Investors

If what you need is not just a small but a more significant investment, from $50,000 to $200,000, you can seek out angel investors. These investors often provide financing, business experience, and contacts that will further your business. Angel investors are professional investors that are both entrepreneurs and philanthropists. In some cases, they invest without expecting a return. Other angel investors will look for some level of return on their investment. These investors tend to finance riskier businesses that other investors and lenders won’t approve.

Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is based on a model of mass financing or multiple investor financing. Different people interested in the start-up and promotion of a project become its prominent investors or patrons. In collective financing, the endorsement of the project is through the financing and confidence in it. The internet and social networks make it possible to quickly publicize the business idea, which triggers many potential investors.

Public Subsidies

The aid of official government or public subsidies that offer grants and loans is another option that is unconventional and outside the traditional banking institutions. This type of financing can boost your business or fund a specific project without paying it back. While these grants or loans are ideal since they are free money, they are difficult to obtain.

Tips When Requesting Financing

To successfully obtain financing for your small business or project, there are a few things to keep in mind.

• A matter of Faith: You must believe in your idea and trust in its success. Convincing investors to finance your business or project will depend on your belief in your business and yourself.
• Time and Dedication: Do not give up after the first rejection. Finding investors and financing is possible, but it is not an issue that happens overnight as it requires a continuous search.
• Initial Financing Plan: This plan accounts for financing needs and available resources. It is usually presented in the form of a table, either through an investment or financing plan or through a complete financial study with cash flow and analysis of key ratios and magnitudes.
• New Technologies: Take advantage of the internet and social networks’ connections to help you find and attract future investors.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Cloud hosting is an IT environment designed to allow consumers to use shared resources over the Internet. Many entrepreneurs and businesses adopt cloud hosting services as it provides several benefits to help manage business activities efficiently.

Cloud hosting allows you to access all applications of your company from anywhere in the world. With the implementation of cloud hosting, businesses have changed how they run their applications and store information.

Instead of using desktop applications to store and access data, everything is now shifted to “cloud,” mainly used for hosting purposes. It is important to know that cloud hosting is not for everyone, so before deciding whether to use cloud services, it is necessary to look at cloud hosting’s pros and cons.

Pros of Cloud Hosting

Computer costs

You don’t need a high-powered and large capacity computer to run cloud-based applications. This is because these applications run inside the cloud, not on the computer. When using a less expensive PC with less memory and a smaller hard disk, one can easily use the cloud as it doesn’t have any hardware or software requirements.

Improved Performance

Only a few programs and limited memory need to run on a PC to use cloud hosting services. As a cloud consumer, you put your computer on a cloud system, then boot, and your computer will run at high- speed because only a few programs are loaded into your computer memory. 

Storage Capacity

The main advantage of using cloud services is that cloud consumers have virtually limitless storage. This storage space can be hundreds of petabytes. This space allows the cloud consumer to store anything they need without limitations.

Data Reliability

In desktop computing, a hard disk crash is enough to delete all vulnerable data of any business. But in the cloud, if your computer crashes, the data will not be affected as it is stored in the cloud and can be reaccessed easily using another computer.

Group Collaboration

Using cloud services will allow cloud consumers to share documents with multiple users at once. It enables several users to collaborate on projects and documents as they are hosted inside the cloud, not on personal computers.

Cons of cloud hosting

Availability of Internet

To use cloud services, it is most important to have a good internet connection as cloud services can never be accessed without the Internet. In simple words, without the Internet, cloud computing won’t work.

Slow Loading

Whether cloud consumers have a good or poor internet connection, there can be times when web-applications take time to load. This slowdown is because the entire program is sent from your computer to the cloud, and then after completing requests from the cloud consumer, it is sent back to the personal computer. This whole process takes time to complete. As cloud consumer is requesting and in return, the cloud provider is responding to user requests.

Unsecure Data

With cloud hosting, all data is stored on a cloud-based server online that can be subject to hacking and other cybercrime forms. It is necessary to ensure that the cloud is secure. Several unauthorized users somehow manage to gain access to the company’s confidential data if an eye is not kept on who has to access what information.

Lost Data

Stored data in the cloud may not be completely safe as it is replicated on multiple servers. To rely completely on cloud hosting can put the user at risk because data could be lost on a server and be difficult to find.

Any users contemplating using cloud hosting should consider the pros and cons before making any decisions. Undoubtedly, cloud hosting has many advantages to cloud consumers, but it is necessary to consider the risks and do some research before putting your data into the cloud. 

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Owning a home is a dream many people never realize, but for those who do, homeownership is not only satisfying but a great investment. Simply put, home equity is the portion of your home you have paid off. The growth of your home’s value and paying down your mortgage’s principal will grow your home equity. This equity can then be used to get a home equity line of credit (HELOC) and can be used for various needs a homeowner may have.

Credit’s home equity line is a way to borrow a large amount of money with a low-interest rate and be useful in multiple situations. Here are five ways you can use your home equity line of credit instead of a high-interest loan.

Home improvements

Home improvement is likely the number one reason homeowners take out a home equity loan. Renovations can be a costly endeavor, and many homeowners will put off renovations or repairs, which can lead to possible disasters that could be more devastating financially. Whether you are looking to upgrade, add on, or beautify or fix issues such as foundation cracks or an old and broken air conditioner, having a home equity line of credit can be a quick way to get repairs, upgrades, or improvements started.

College costs

Most parents dream of sending their kids to college but oftentimes don’t have the money to do it. While your child may get scholarships, full-ride scholarships are difficult to get, and the alternative to scholarships or grants is for you or your child to obtain a student loan. Rivaling credit card debt, student loan debt is among the top types of personal debt people carry. Many graduates spend years working towards paying off student loans. This is especially true of those whose education goes beyond a four-year degree.

A home equity loan is perfect to put towards a college education. Simultaneously, it may not cover the entirety of the debt. It can be a low-interest line of credit that will be easier to pay back and minimize the time it takes to pay this debt down.

Debt consolidation

Because the home equity line of credit has a lower interest rate, it is a great way to consolidate your debt. If you have high-interest credit card debt or other loans such as a car loan, using your home equity to roll these high-interest lines of credit into one lower interest payment will give you some relief. Paying off these debts will also improve your credit score.

The only danger is that if you decide to use your credit card while paying down the debt through the home equity line of credit, you could potentially get yourself back into debt and now have two payments. It is suggested you put yourself on credit card restriction until your home equity loan is paid back.

Emergency expenses

Every person at one time or another has had an emergency happen that called for a sum of money you didn’t have built into your budget: sudden car repairs, hot water heater burst, an unexpected medical expense. No matter the emergency, if you don’t have an emergency fund set aside, this can be a financial disaster. Using a home equity line of credit can not only take care of the emergency but can prevent financial devastation due to unexpected financial burdens.

Long-term investments

Many people don’t have the funds to invest in the stock market or real estate. Using a home equity line of credit can be an excellent source to finance long-term investments. This use for the home equity line of credit is the one that has the potential for a great financial pay off for years to come. If you invest well, not only could you potentially have income for years, but you can pay off the loan from the dividends you gain from the investments. If you invest in some rental properties, the payoffs could be a great source of passive income that you have to finance your future.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

When starting a new small business, there are several areas of the startup process that an entrepreneur must execute well to ensure the business launch’s success. While starting a new business can be a challenge, here are eight essential steps you can take that will help you avoid making mistakes that will hurt your new small business.

Create a Business Plan

A well-written business plan with all the components needed for potential lenders, partners, and investors is essential for every small business to have. These components include an executive summary, company brief, organizational structure, market analysis, marketing plan, sales strategy, and the financial plan. Your business plan will be upgraded and changed as your business develops and grows. However, the initial business plan should be focused purely on the needs of the startup.

Do Market Research

Though market research is included in the business plan, it cannot be stressed enough how important it is that a new business owner is aware of its market. Knowing your ideal demographic, the geographic advantages, competitor best practices and weaknesses, and other information that market research reveals will be essential at startup and beyond.

Build the Right Team

While a successful small business needs to have a strong and knowledgeable owner, it is equally important to have the right staff. When hiring for your new small business, you must consider skills and experience, but you also need to consider how your staff will function as a team. As opposed to a larger corporation, a small business is dependent on the team getting along well, so aspects of potential employees beyond skills and experience will also need to be factored into the hiring process.

Create an Optimized Website

When the Internet first started, having a company website seemed like an expensive and complicated dream. In today’s digital world, it is an assumption that any business has a website. A small business must have an informative website and lets potential customers know what your business offers. It also has to be optimized with keywords and other data so your business will show up in search engines. Many sites offer free website templates, or you can hire a professional to build and host a website for you.

Obtain Solid Financing

Financing your new small business will be essential. It may be impossible to even launch without it. There are many types of financing to consider if you are unable to finance your startup yourself. Some of the financing types include investors, friends or family loans, bank loans, and grants. The most crucial aspect of the financing is that you have plenty of capital to operate while working to turn a profit. Most businesses that fail do so due to poor finances.

Pricing Your Products and Services

Pricing your products and services may seem like a difficulty. If you price too high, people may not even give you a chance, but if you price too low, you may risk not covering costs and not making a profit. Pricing is another area where research is key, and knowing the market you are in and what others in similar businesses in your area are charging will be vital to setting your prices correctly from the start.

Invest in Marketing

Many small business owners believe they can’t afford marketing. The idea that you have to run ads or slap your product or service on a billboard may seem overwhelming or expensive. In the digital world, when it comes to marketing, you can spend little to no money and drive a lot of business your way if you know what to do. Using social media and some low-cost advertising strategies will make marketing not only inexpensive but easy to accomplish.

Focus on Accounting and Bookkeeping

Since the entire purpose of having a business is to make a profit, every company’s main focus is financial. From the beginning of your small business, you should have an accounting and bookkeeping plan in place. Whether it is employing an accountant or bookkeeper or using accounting software, do not start your business without this in place from day one.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Every business must focus on accounting and bookkeeping to be financially healthy. They will need to have meticulous records for tax purposes, budgeting, payroll, and to produce financial statements required for financial uses. Though it is highly recommended that you hire a professional accountant or bookkeeper (or both), many small businesses cannot afford to do so and must utilize accounting and bookkeeping software.

Most software dedicated to business accounting and bookkeeping is practical and useful. Some are better than others. The software may be superior in quality or function, or it may be better because it is lower cost or more user friendly. Whatever the reason, here are the best five accounting and bookkeeping software and their key features to help you decide which is best for you and your business.

Quickbooks

Quickbooks by Intuit is perhaps the best known and most used in this list. Despite this, it may not be what every small business needs. Quickbooks is widely considered the best overall accounting and bookkeeping software, but this means its price tag is a bit more than other effective software in this category. It can be purchased for a one-time expense for the desktop version, or it can be purchased through a monthly subscription for the portable cloud-based version.

The desktop version is compatible with all computer types; however, the cloud-based version is not compatible with Mac computers at this time. It is expected it will eventually work for all users in both versions.

Xero

Xero is a fantastic and easy to use cloud-first accounting and bookkeeping software. It has over 600 integrations meant to help business owners with basic accounting, payroll, inventory, and much more. One of its advantages is that it is a cloud-based software compatible with the Mac making it an ideal software for those Mac users who want cloud-based accounting software. One of Xero’s most remarkable functions is a money and time tracking component that will analyze real-time costs for a project using this function.

Zoho Books

Zoho Books is one of the more user-friendly accounting and bookkeeping software on this list. This software includes easy to read dashboards and graphs that are straightforward as far as any user would be concerned. Because it is simple, it doesn’t include some of the features of Quickbooks. Still, if your business doesn’t have payroll or heavy inventory, it is perfect, and the price tag reflects the simplicity. Some of the excellent features it includes are automated payment reminders for your business accounts payable and receivable. It also has some features for project management and smaller inventories. While it is less expensive than other software, the monthly fee will vary depending on the features you choose to include in your package.

Wave

Wave is a free accounting and bookkeeping software that offers only basic personal and business accounting and bookkeeping features. This software was developed with the sole proprietor or freelance businesses, as it has no features to deal with heavy business accounting. It does do the job if you need a simple software and doesn’t have it in your budget to purchase something with more functions

FreshBooks

FreshBooks is similar to Wave in that it has limited accounting features and was developed with the freelance or sole-proprietor business in mind. It does have a few more business-related features than Wave and includes a low monthly subscription fee, but it comes highly recommended by those business owners who use it as intended. It is simple in design, which keeps its user friendly for the sole proprietor.

Conclusion

Suppose you are a small business owner and cannot afford to hire an accountant or bookkeeper. In that case, you will need to implement accounting and bookkeeping software or risk financial issues that could destroy your small business. Consider your needs as a business owner and apply those needs to the information provided to help you decide which accounting and bookkeeping software are best for you and your business.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Before you build a business plan, you need to understand what a business plan is for and how it will be used. A business plan has multiple functions, most of which are financial, but they can also help you know what you need to focus on every new year your business exists. Most people believe you need a business plan to start your business and don’t realize as your business grows and changes, so will your plan. Businesses constantly have to change strategies or budgets. Your business should not be the same as it was when you conceived your initial business plan.

Your business plan is, at its core, an introduction of your business, what it does, and what it is expected to do to anyone who reads it. The target audience of most business plans is those who would be investing in or financing your business. But you are also always going to be a member of the audience of your business plan as you should be referring to it and changing and updating it as your business changes and grows. To make an effective business plan, seven components must always be incorporated. Here they are and what they should include.

Executive Summary

The executive summary will be at the beginning of the business plan, and it is what it sounds like. It is a short but extremely detailed summary and overview of the business plan. It is an “in-a-nutshell” piece that should be engaging and grab the reader, making them want to dig into your business plan’s finer details. If the executive summary is ineffective, most potential lenders, investors, or partners will move onto the next business. Though it is the first thing in the business plan, it should be written last to include a thorough accounting of the entire business plan.

Company Brief

The company brief is the component that will be more about the personality and mission of your business. This area will include your mission statement and what makes your company unique, especially if it is in a market with a lot of competition. Investors, partners, and lenders want to know if this is a good investment, and this component can give them a sense of that.

Market Analysis

For the market analysis component, the title of it says it all. You will have to do a fair amount of research and market analysis to have insight into the market you are entering. For the reader, this area should talk about where the market has been, where it is now, and where it is expected to go, and how your business fits into that flow.

Competitive Analysis

Every business plan should have a strong awareness of the competition. The best competitive analysis component will show where your competitors excel and identify their weaknesses and shortcomings. This awareness will show potential shareholders and lenders that you understand what works and what doesn’t for your business. This will go a long way to gaining financing because the risk versus reward will entice someone aware of how their competitors stack up and that you are aware of their mistakes so they can be avoided.

Marketing Plan

The marketing plan will be of much interest to potential shareholders or lenders because, in small businesses with shareholders, there will be an expectation that some of the invested income be focused on marketing. The marketing plan has to show you understand your business, the market, competitors, and what you need to do to drive your company.

Sales strategy

Sales are the most important area in a company as it is how revenue and profits are generated. Without sales, a business will fail and die. Your business plan should include a strong and well-planned sales strategy. This strategy will go hand in hand with the marketing plan but has unique qualities as to what is included in the strategy. You will need to do research specific to the market you are entering to devise the most winning sales strategy.

Financial Plan

Though your financial plan is at the end of the business plan, it may be the most important when it comes to potential investors, lenders, or partners. This area is where you discuss initial investment needs and both short and long-term projections. In an already existing business, this component of the business plan can be fairly easy to compose. However, for a new business, you are using other businesses in the same market of similar size and using analysis of these businesses to make predictions and projections.  This component will likely be of most interest to your readers because it will give them an insight into what’s in it for them financially.

Each business is different, so your business plan may look different from your competitor’s business plan. But a strong business plan that will have the most chance to help your business receive financing is key when starting a new business or even expanding an existing one.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Most small businesses have equally small budgets when it comes to marketing. While a small business can have a nice client base and steady revenue flow, revenue is often focused on operations and put back into the business or has to go to shareholders and investors after operations are covered. This pull on the small business income leaves little for the business owner to use towards marketing efforts. However, marketing is crucial to all businesses, large or small, and should get your attention, if not your business budget.

Having a low budget for marketing does not mean you do not have some marketing tools to build your business and budget. Online marketing provides multiple options, most of which cost nothing and a few of which have a minimal cost. All you need is some creativity and some marketing strategies, and you can increase traffic, revenue, and client base in no time. Here are six amazing online marketing strategies for small businesses that are sure to increase your bottom line.

Create an Optimized Website

First, just having a website alone is essential as it provides credibility when a person searching for what you offer can see it with their own eyes without ever stepping foot in your business. Your website can further be used to drive traffic that would otherwise never even know you existed. You can spend a bit of money and have someone build your website and host it for you as well as guide you in all you need to know to make your website effective, or there are free website building sites that are fairly user friendly that can guide you in building your website and how to optimize it to drive traffic.

Research Your Competition

It may sound a little on the stalker side to track down what your main competitors are doing or to search out businesses in your same niche that are successful and find out what they are doing to get those dollars you are after, but it’s not, it is good business sense. Since competing businesses have existed, competitors have actively sought out what makes their competitors get business over them. Online you can do searches for what your business offers and see what competitors come up with. Analyze their site and find out what their online presence is and how they use it. This research will provide you the opportunity to drive business your way by taking on the best online marketing practices of your competitors.

Run AdWords ads

Running some AdWords ads will take a bit of your budget, but you can set a cap, and even if you can only afford a bit at first, this will give you a lot of bang for your online marketing buck. AdWords ads help you to boost your site even more than without it based on keyword optimization on your website. Utilizing the optimized website without AdWords ads will have your site doing a slow climb up in the Google ranking for search terms used on your site. AdWords ads speed up this process, so it is worth the money if you can afford to do it for even the lowest level or length of time.

Link Building on Other Optimized Sites

An extremely effective free online marketing strategy is to have links for your website on other web pages. While there are versions of this idea that would cost you to pay a site to have a link to your site on theirs, if you have friends, family, or partnerships with websites, most will easily allow you to link to your site. You can offer a little quid pro quo and have links to their site on yours in some cases. The more your site is linked from other sites, the more optimized your website becomes and ranks higher in Google searches.

Social Media Marketing

While everyone uses social media to advertise and market their businesses for free or paying for ads, it is still an effective marketing strategy to drive business your way. Even if your connections or those who find your business through hashtags and other social media marketing efforts don’t need what you offer now, they will easily know that you offer that product when they do or know anyone else who does or service when they need it.

Conclusion

Marketing doesn’t have to be expensive to be effective. Some of the most successful online marketers spend little budget but have a lot of impacts. Using these five online marketing strategies will increase traffic and let customers know about your business and what you offer, therefore expanding your business and growing your bottom line.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Clients or customers are the reason businesses exist. A business will not succeed without clients.  When starting a new business, however, having a client base can be difficult. You are building your client base from scratch and with zero reputation for them to refer to unless you have been operating independently. So this dilemma begs the question, how do you build a client base from nothing? The answer is multi-faceted. It would be best if you first started by creating a plan to gain clients. Once you start generating a base, you will need a strong and strategic marketing plan to maintain and expand your client base. Here are five strategies to build a client base for your new business quickly to get you started.

Referrals and Endorsements

Even though you are a new business, you should still have the ability to get referrals and endorsements. Most new business owners think about the business and not their jobs before starting their business that built and utilized their skills. Just as you can get referrals and endorsements from previous employers if you were seeking a new job with another company, you can seek referrals and endorsements from previous employers in your new business. You are not asking them to endorse your business. You are asking them to endorse you. Once you build a client base that can refer and endorse your business, you can build on that to gain more clients.

Partnerships

If you know other business owners, who are well established in the community, you can partner on referrals, projects, and sales. Even if the business isn’t directly related to yours, you can still benefit one another by lending credibility to their reputation and lending credibility to yours. In some cases, whether the products or services are related, you can find ways to do discounts and giveaways for each other’s businesses or partners on packages. These collaborations and partnerships have proven to be highly effective in building credibility and gaining clients and customers to help build beyond your partnership.

Use Social Media

Regardless of its size or years in business, every business can gain quick recognition by simply using social media platforms to tell your connections and followers you have a business and what it has to offer. By building business pages, or interesting and engaging business accounts, you can quickly gain customers from your connections. Also, if you are clever with your hashtags, you can gain customers that are not connected to you who find you through your hashtags. Finding the trending hashtags of the day is easy, and if you can incorporate it into your posts, you will get new eyes on your business and what it has to offer. Also, having a business page is on social media platforms is easy and free!

Offer Incentives

Once you begin gaining clients, you should offer incentives to help retain their business, but you should also offer every new client special incentives for referrals and reviews. Potential customers searching for the product or service you offer will often ask friends or family for what they recommend. Make sure your clients always recommend you by incentivizing referrals. Also, offer something if they write you a positive review. Some companies will even offer free products for reviews.

Identify and Target Potential Clients

Most businesses have a target demographic, have a niche product or service, or focus on a specific geographical area. Knowing who your target audience is, you can focus efforts on targeting groups and certain areas for marketing your business. If you offer a service or product that can only be found or utilized locally, you will want to focus your advertising in your area. If you have a product or service that can be done online, but for use by a certain demographic or group, it would make sense for you to target advertising or marketing to groups that included your target client.

Conclusion

Building your new business may seem like a far too challenging endeavor. However, if you use these easy to implement strategies, you can quickly build a client base, you can continue to grow for years to come.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.