An accounting system assemblages interconnected processes intended to amass, organize, and account for an organization’s transactions. The ultimate goal of this bookkeeping system is to engender informative reports to sustain an organization’s decision-making. Managers can make well-informed decisions based on their knowledge from these reports generated through an automated system.
Follow a step-by-step approach to assimilate a novel and efficient accounting system into your business. Implementing this approach for your accounting system includes a series of steps that must be undertaken before you are ready to go digital and say goodbye to your old ledgers.
The following list of steps is a theoretical impression of the implementation process in a formal organization. Factors such as the proficiency of your IT department, available resources, and ability to adapt to change will influence the design and related implementation stages essential to achieving the go-live plan.
Plan for Implementing an Accounting System
Before you start with anything else, it is imperative to devise a proposal as a project plan and perform a cost-benefit analysis of the whole project. Rest assured, the benefits outweigh the costs if you are serious about running a professional business. The plan should include:
The timelines.
Key milestones to be achieved.
A list of all required resources for the project.
Planning is the most critical phase of the full implementation because necessary details must be considered for everything to go smoothly.
Hire a Project Manager
The implementation of an accounting system has to be managed carefully. It would help if you designated an individual as a project manager. The project manager’s job is to lead the entire process and form cross-functional teams. Team members represent all departments with a vested interest in the system, using it in one way or another. Since these departments will eventually be the end-users, it is vital to have their input in the implementation process.
Tidy Records in the Previous Accounting System
Insufficient data is one of the main reasons for nuisances when you move to a new system. If you know that your books are imprecise, there is bad transaction coding, invoicing issues, and other areas that need to be fixed, you should always prioritize this.
Trying to start fresh without eliminating old mistakes can result in a colossal blunder. Even the best system in the world will not help you if you have issues related to the credibility of your data. The project manager is responsible for designating a special team to remove bad data clusters and repair them for reuse in the new accounting system.
Data Migration and Pilot Testing
A data conversion plan must be devised as most of your old data needs to be transferred to the new system. The key highlight of a conversion plan is mapping the data according to the new format. Depending on the format support of the old and new systems, the conversion can vary from relatively simple to highly complex. Therefore, before choosing the new system, it is essential to gather all of its technical details to avoid complications later on.
Once all data is transferred, the accounting system must be pilot-tested to ensure it works perfectly. Apart from being technically sound, you need to acquaint the critical people in your company with the new system to work with it efficiently. Arrange a conference room pilot testing for everyone to learn about the essential features from an expert hands-on. You may need to hire someone for the training session, or you can do it yourself.
Configure and Generate Reports
Once everyone is on the same page and your employees understand how to work with the new system, it’s time to configure it to their devices and reap all the benefits. The new accounting system will generate better, more detailed financial reports such as balance sheets, income statements, cash flows, and other reports that can significantly assist you in making critical decisions for 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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
Your business credit score is calculated using the statistical algorithm designed to measure several traits of your company and financial history.
Among these factors are:
Credit use ratio
Payment history
Length of credit history
Unpaid debts
Public records, such as bankruptcies, liens, and judgments
Business size
Business risk
Some of the factors are similar to calculating a personal credit score. However, many factors are different in building business credit scores.
How to Build and Improve Business Credit Scores
Get a Business Credit Card or Line of Credit
Of course, the first step in building a business credit score is to get a business credit card. You can also get a line of credit for your business. Be sure you are getting a business credit card for your business financing, not a personal credit card for your finances.
Separate your Business and Personal Expenses
Separating your business and personal expenses is essential for avoiding accounting mistakes and building your business’s credit score. If you keep the business expenses mixed with your personal, there can be confusion when completing accounting tasks for the company.
Select your Supplier and Lenders with an Eye on your Business Credit
Many small businesses have incomplete business credit accounts because their dealers and money lenders don’t report costs to the business credit unions. If possible, choose vendors or lenders that report to one or all credit bureaus and keep your accounts current.
Pay Your Bills On Time or, Better Yet, in Advance
You must pay on time to ensure your business credit score is high. A delay in payments ruins your business credit, and a delay in payments from your company affects the cash flow of other businesses. This failure to pay on time is the same as when your clients do not pay you on time, and it badly affects the cash flow process of your small business.
Much of your business rating depends on how you pay your suppliers and other contractors within an approved time frame. Paying in advance or on the spot will improve your business credit. Your suppliers and contractors will make remarks like “prompt,” “pay early,” etc.
Other companies might also be experiencing cash flow problems. Early payments or payments made on time significantly reduce cash flow problems. Your business credit score measures the lending and credit risk linked to your company. A good business credit score shows that your company can manage debts and finances efficiently.
Utilize Credit, but Not Too Much
Your business should utilize its credit score, but make sure not to overuse it. It will be beneficial if you continue utilizing your business credit score for your business operations. You will keep building and using some of your credit scores. It is just like taking a loan and paying it back promptly. It builds trust in your business’s ability and financial stability. But consuming all of the credit score or too much of the score means your company is not financially stable and relies on the credit score it builds over time.
Fix Errors on your Business Credit Score Report
If there are errors in your consumer credit report, there is a fixed process for disputing them. However, there is a different process for business credit report errors everywhere. Every credit bureau has a process for disputing business credit errors. You can submit disputes electronically.
Conclusion
Using a business credit card or line of credit helps to build your business credit score. You must develop and keep improving your business credit score by making on-time payments, using the business credit card, and utilizing some of its scores to your benefit. These steps build a better and more trusted image of 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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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 business finances are relatively simple, DIY tax prep software can be used to complete your tax returns. Initially, the magnitude and frequency of financial transactions stay within the range of the software, which is a healthy sign for businesses who prefer using DIY financial tools to cater to their daily and evolving financial needs.
Since people always strive to make life easier, accounting tools and software can significantly help achieve perfection in the accounting and financial aspects of the business. These tools are ideal for small businesses that don’t have complicated financial transactions, as they are known to file clean tax returns.
As soon as a small business grows, its financial needs also grow. To achieve the intended results, businesses need to reevaluate their tax prep software’s effectiveness in the expansion phase.
The Right Tax Prep Software must be Integrated
Although the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law on December 27, is supposed to reduce and simplify income taxes paid by US citizens in the next year, there is a lot of DIY tax software that lacks practical evaluation of tax returns. This lack of assessment is why SMEs have become doubtful about whether to trust DIY tax software entirely.
Although industry veterans have claimed the authenticity and legitimacy of DIY tax prep software, you may be surprised to know that they promote different DIY tax software due to their vested interests. Money talks! Perhaps this is why industry veterans have played an active role in changing business owners’ perceptions on a massive scale.
The vast majority of tax preparers are small businesses that can’t afford to hire the expertise of in-house tax professionals. Since tax-related activities are seasonal, companies’ extra costs to bear after tax season accumulate to become a mere burden on their shoulders.
This cost is the core reason small businesses prefer to use DIY tax prep software instead of hiring the expertise of tax professionals. That’s precisely why most industry veterans endorse DIY tax software as an ideal alternative to hiring in-house tax preparation expertise.
Does This Perspective Ever Change?
Yes, it does change from time to time, depending on the nature of the change. When a business grows, so do its bookkeeping and financial needs. The frequency of financial transactions helps trigger the change, and companies that don’t deal with this change should prepare for the worst.
For example, let’s take a small business with an accumulatively 400-500 monthly business transaction. When the business grows, so do its transactions and the tax impact on those transactions. When this happens, the company must let go of its DIY tax prep software and hire a tax professional for seasonal tax preparations.
Why Have People Started to Take More Interest in Tax Preparation?
Tax preparation has become a big deal, so people have specialized in taxes. Preparing tax returns as a career can be lucrative as it offers people safe and healthy financial returns. This billion-dollar industry is expected to speed up exponentially as more and more businesses are stepping into the industry.
According to studies, tax preparers in the US alone generated about $24 billion last year. This dollar amount indicates that the industry is expected to grow, and tax professionals are likely to make more money than ever in the years to come.
There are a wide variety of tax prep software options on the market. All you need to do is select the right platform to fit your business’s financial needs and requirements, especially if your business is small-scale and desires to use DIY tax prep software to file a clean tax return. However, as soon as your business grows, you must consider hiring a tax professional or third-party vendor to file accurate tax returns.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
The concept of restaurant inventory management is directly tied to planning your menu. Tracking inventory is one of the best ways to be efficient and cost-effective. It’s an ultimately crucial task that certifies and ensures supply. In the restaurant business, clientele satisfaction is essential, and every customer’s orders are met to the best of your abilities.
Saying, “Sorry, we are out of that,” or recommending another item on the menu is not always what the customer wants and may discourage them from visiting again. Without proper inventory tracking, that happens a lot! Additionally, businesses’ yearly profit by regular inventory tracking and monitoring leads to increased profits.
Restaurant inventory management brings growth and positively impacts planning your menu, kitchen activities, staff protocols, etc. It is detrimental to understanding operations. Being aware of raw materials is essential for staff to perform daily functions.
Showing attention towards providing ease in their daily workload is encouraged. Small takeaways would benefit from regularly purchasing on a day-to-day basis. Each day, a new menu may be offered. Therefore, buying things is recommended. To keep ingredients fresh and with a small number of resources and staff, supervision is made more accessible.
Restaurant inventory management helps with planning your menu and other important aspects. By effectively handling all material coming in and out, along with what is needed or procured, a positive effect is achieved, setting things on the road to growth for a restaurant.
Menu Rapture
Effectively planning a menu is the first of many benefits of proper inventory management. Half of the menu dilemma is solved by knowing what is in the kitchen and the tools needed to deliver it to hungry clients. You can quickly determine how many you can serve by tracking the ingredients used and utensils required to furnish an item on the menu. By planning your pantry, crafting menus becomes convenient and practical, and by keeping variety high, it is appreciated by devoted clientele.
Avoid Wastage
Tracking well must become a habit to avoid wastage. Keeping an excessive amount of perishables must be minimized. Tracking also keeps a healthy stock so that no emergencies happen. Always check how ingredients are used over time. By buying enough ingredients, it is understood that a certain level is maintained, which is vital for cost-effectiveness. For example, sometimes, a particular ingredient in restaurant inventory management is often in high demand for salt. Therefore, a sufficient quantity is procured as it’s cheap and vital.
Calculating Costs
After all, money is spent to produce everything, so keeping records and files helps in financial matters such as setting prices. A record gives a clear picture of how much you’ve spent and how much you need to earn to yield profits. Budgets can be created from these records, and an item’s usage frequency can be determined. This determination helps reveal an image of overall financial health.
Other Restaurant Inventory Management Benefits
By knowing and planning your costs, many cost-effective benefits allow business owners more control over their business. An accurate inventory will lead you to cope confidently and more effectively with customer orders and requests. Because of the First-In-First-Out (FIFA) rule, inventory of vegetables, meats, fruits, and dairy products is easily handled, and with a bit of effort, nothing will be wasted.
Also, by utilizing everything and not wasting food, businesses can tackle expenses that overburden them by lowering wastage and utilizing efficiency. Chances for success increase while creating an atmosphere for growth. Restaurant inventory management is crucial for more than just planning your menu.
Inventory Taking Pointers
Organizing and regular upkeep help decrease time-consuming activities such as item-wise stock-taking. By setting up a daily schedule and tasking a responsible staff member to update and maintain all stock levels, you can quickly pay attention to the quantities available.
Throwing out expired or non-usable items is strongly recommended, and managing space well is essential.
Label and store containers and boxes in a specific order for ease of retrieval. Kitchen operations are automated, and your staff executes and processes orders with careful attention to stock. Track the availability of ingredients by creating routines and kitchen protocols with restaurant inventory management details and information.
Planning your business and using cost-effective, proficient, inexpensive software and computer programs will significantly help on many levels.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
While initiating your entrepreneurialventure without needing a business account can be enticing, this might not be the shrewdest of decisions. With time, your business will grow, and it will become critical to differentiate your business and personal day-to-day finances.
Start-ups and part-time business holders often mix up their finances, and while it looks like an easy, practical, and cheap way to operate, it certainly won’t be the same later on. Any business operator must treat their business with due diligence, regardless of its scale. While setting up a separate bank account means additional bank fees and expenses, you will save yourself from inconvenience in the future.
Manageability
Many people who own businesses will attest that, to manage your spending and money from your business activities, it is indispensable to have a business account. Business accounts may appear to charge much more than regular, personal accounts. However, some banks only charge minimal fees if you deposit a certain amount of money regularly. This is an excellent deal because if your business is doing well, the money will keep flowing, resulting in minimal fees. At minimal cost, you can handle all of your start-up’s financial matters proficiently.
Legitimacy
Suppose things spiral downward, and you are stuck in a bad situation. In that case, it will be hard for you to explain the legitimacy of your business to any government institution or your partners if your finances don’t reflect that. Also, there are some other government fees that you will need to pay for running a business, and your business account is often checked for verification. You can only get away with it if you prove you are running your business as a hobby. Still, it is better to be safe than sorry.
Filing a Tax Return
Filing your tax return can be a nuisance in itself, let alone also suffering the exhaustion of going through your account statements and deciphering your business-related transactions. For a start-up, filing seamless returns in the first few years can provide your business with a solid credit history. When your credit report is unblemished, you can apply for loans, business credit cards, and other financial perks that can eventually lead your business to success.
A business account will also facilitate auditing as you will be able to provide a clear picture of all of your transactions, making the job of an auditor much easier. And you certainly don’t want to anger an auditor!
Professionalism
When working with clients or seeking new partners, a business account will reflect your professionalism. No one will take you seriously if you get into a business deal with them through your account. It would help to treat your start-up like a real business before expecting others to do the same. Business environments these days are hugely competitive, and you will most likely not get a second chance with the same client twice. Therefore, it is always beneficial to learn from the mistakes of others and do it right the first time.
LLC, Partnership, or Corporation
Having a separate account is a must if your registered company is an LLC, Partnership, or Corporation. Because more than one person owns such a business, there can’t be an exclusive account for it due to legalities. An account in the business name gives all partners equal authority over managing the account, ensuring that everything runs smoothly.
Protection
Many experts call for a business account for a start-up from the beginning, as this protects you and your business. An account in your business name provides you with asset protection and corporate veil protection. There will be a lesser chance of having an issue with the IRS, and you will sail smoothly through any financial troubles.
Conclusion
With all of the overwhelming arguments supporting having a business account, it must be the first thing you do when starting an entrepreneurial venture. Your personal and business success highly depend on your professionalism and ability to stay out of trouble when times are tough.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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 motivated professionals and expert entrepreneurs know the importance and advantages of investing in themselves – developing and sharpening valuable skills that boost their strengths over time. While you certainly require guts and patience to initiate and run a new venture, you also must concentrate on nurturing these six essential business skills, which are vital to succeeding as an entrepreneur in critical situations.
Communication
Your company can instantaneously turn from a good to a bad situation when your communication lacks clarity, purpose, and impact. On the contrary, effective communication has enough potential to revolutionize an idea, thus breathing new life into your product or brand. Besides being a creative and design genius, Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple, was also an influential communicator.
If you revisit his marketing taglines and keynote speeches, you will immediately realize how communication played a crucial role in building one of the most valuable companies in the world. Many psychologists and business experts also believe that effective communication is essential to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Branding (Personal as well as Business)
In today’s digitally evolved corporate environment, knowing how to establish yourself as an expert professional in your industry is critical to your entrepreneurial success. Branding now includes being active on social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat.
Content marketing, both on and off your business website, shapes it. However, poor content can result in negative branding. Consequently, it is necessary to determine how to share your content and marketing resources so that your target audience wants what you have to offer and finds it valuable.
Critical Thinking
The objective analysis and assessment of a matter to form a logical judgment are collectively known as critical thinking. It typically begins with questioning assumptions, hypotheses, opinions, and claims rather than simply accepting them as gospel. Just like bookkeeping is fundamental to creating business accounts, critical thinking is essential to intelligent, entrepreneurial decisions, making that, in turn, a key to becoming a successful businessperson.
Today, we are continuously bombarded with tactful content and sound bites. That is why our ability to question what is real and what is not, understand casual relationships, and reason logically instead of generalizing from a given data point has become more critical.
Listen to people who challenge your popularly held beliefs. Resist habitual pressure to view matters in “us vs. them” or black-and-white terms. In addition, learn to view the world from different viewpoints, perspectives, and angles.
Sales
Although you may not identify as a salesperson, you are greatly involved in sales when running a business. You might have a great sales team handling all of your corporate sales. However, you typically tap into your sales skills when you give a presentation about your business products, negotiate with a vendor, or convince anyone of anything.
There are numerous strategies to sell even without selling. Take a moment to think about corporate conversations you have with your potential clients. Those that rendered a sale are probably not hard pitches to get your potential customers to purchase from you.
They primarily focus on helping them find a solution to their problem. Thus, it would help if you also concentrated on helping them instead of selling. This will give you more confidence in the sales process, which will result in more sales.
Confidence and Assertiveness
While listening is necessary for effective business communication, you must also determine when to take control of a conversation and assert your viewpoints, opinions, and beliefs. Although you need to be attentive to other people’s requests and claims, you also must understand when to say no. It would help if you learned to be consistent and open-minded to earn the trust and respect of those around you.
Perseverance
Most successful entrepreneurs have faced devastating failures and defeats in their lives. Instead of looking at such situations as a demotivating factor, they view them as stepping stones towards their business success. Besides maintaining their perseverance and optimism, they also make smartly calculated changes to their future efforts. Remember that you fail when you do not try, as persistence is the key to success in just about any aspect of a 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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
Large corporations are no longer the ONLY target of cyber-criminal activities. SMEs (small and medium enterprises) have become increasingly exposed to the cyber world’s dangers, which is why SMEs are having difficulty securing their systems and networks. Cyber-criminal activities have reached the point where industry IT experts have started assuming a universal threat. Unless security measures aren’t implemented, systems and data security are doomed.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a single organization in the world that can claim that it has fool-proof cybersecurity. The biggest threat to SMEs is not the breach of their system. It does not realize the fact that cybercriminals can target their small-scale businesses.
Cybercrime is costly to SMEs, causing them to lose millions of dollars each year. The US alone is at the top of the list with the highest number of cyber-criminal activities. According to estimates, the reported cases of cybercrimes account for about $700 billion yearly, multiplying rapidly. The thing is that the culture of “cyber-stealing” is growing, and individuals with hacking knowledge and expertise are considering it a safe career path that has a lot to offer to them.
That’s why con artists and highly organized crime syndicates are coming up with sneaky tactics to break into SME accounts to steal sensitive information from companies. In short, cybercrime is a reality, and those who ignore it can expect to face troubles in the future.
What Do Cyber Criminals Usually Look For?
To protect your business from cybercrime, you must implement a prevention plan to push infiltrators away from your company’s servers. Since cybercrime is multiplying, SMEs must adapt to improved network security protocols to prevent leaking sensitive data. Hackers, intruders, cyber criminals, or whatever you name online scammers usually look for business data, bookkeeping and accounting records, vendor details, sensitive personal and client information, banking details, and more that can be sold on the dark web for money. Therefore, improving your system and network security can help you prevent costly loopholes.
What Can Cyber Crime Mean for SMEs?
First things first: business disruption with an immediate effect! Cyber-criminal activities can be hefty for SMEs, costing them a sustainable competitive advantage and financial and reputational damage. Those who trust you with sensitive information and rely on you for essential aspects like data security, the secrecy of business transactions, the privacy of vendor details, and more significant business interests need not be disappointed.
So, you must ensure that business data is protected against all predictable or non-predictable cyber threats. It is ideal for keeping proper checks and balances to prevent information leakage from the company’s servers.
Keeping Your Business Safe from Cyber Crime
To protect your business from cyber-attacks, creating and implementing your security policy is ideal as it will give you more control over your company. Having a written, clear-cut security policy helps your employees know the menaces of cybersecurity threats and repercussions they might have to face due to an incident of cyber fraud. Also, you must encourage your staff to use complex passwords and shut down their computers once they leave the office.
Cybercrime occurs when you fail to update your system and networks. You must update your operating systems, software, and browsers and install anti-virus software and firewalls to prevent cyber-attacks. Moreover, it would help if you were very careful with software installation, as hackers are inventing new ways by which they can target SMEs that are vulnerable to cybercrime.
Hiring an IT Expert
Hiring an IT professional is the best way to secure your business from cybercriminals. SMEs can employ IT experts to ensure their data safety and network security when they independently fail to comply with network security protocols. They are not as expensive as you may think. The choice to hire an IT expert is a fair trade. Spending money on data safety and network security is a wise move compared to what you could lose if you are not protected.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
One of the most critical aspects of every business is allocatingcosts. Cost accounting has increasingly become the key focus where IT infrastructures are being constructed. For example, keeping in mind budget limitations, funds allocated to computers, networking, and communication hardware make up almost one-third of the IT budget.
It is normal for infrastructure costs to be determined by the number of units a business has and how they are placed in the cost allocation plan (CAP). All assets are used according to the roles of the business units, so a simplified cost allocation plan is implemented in which servers and networking infrastructures are allotted accordingly. The latest technology enables user-based cost accounting using enterprise software, leading to pricing bliss.
IT Infrastructures
IT infrastructures, especially enterprise software architecture, are designed to use multi-tier client-server applications. With such a vital and complex need for essential software, the determination of allocating costs becomes perplexing. Once assets are inducted into a business unit, hardware and software costs are dedicated and preserved as direct costs.
Using the asset in a shared environment per resource capability has been seen through business today among many, including DCHP, ISA, databases, applications, email, hosting, and cloud servers. In such environments, the cost driver is determined by the workload produced by clientele and the consumption of resources in IT infrastructure for cost accounting.
Usually, all such software and hardware come within tiers; one is needed to run the other within the IT infrastructure. A cost accounting method would diminish major problems and obstacles while providing other assets with more resources. For instance, 3-tier database applications consist of three servers, i.e., web, application, and database servers, which can all be shared to perform various duties for different applications.
This does bring up concerns like application owners would have to handle most of the costs as direct costs while other users would be utilizing them as well. Therefore, a usage-based model would be advantageous to implement as costs can be allocated to owners or users to produce more transparency. It may even determine consumption-based cost accounting keys for allocating any IT infrastructure.
Simple Ideas to Determine Usage-Based Cost Allocation Keys
Practices
Identification of costs is an organizational practice that distributes cost allocation. This focuses on making IT costs identifiable and ensures proper assignment to accounting objects, for instance, IT services. It also makes assessment and evaluation easier. Forecasting and decision-making are also straightforward and simplified. Also, it helps with cost recovery, which is setting IT service prices and charging the units using it. One objective is determining incentives, for instance, to regulate supply, cost-conscious behavior, and IT services demand.
Resources Profiles for Cost Accounting in IT infrastructures
From the customer’s point of view, business units, users, and complex software and hardware integration are not truly understood in some cases. They view it as a box that uses GUI software to provide services. Categories used can include transaction execution, such as stock or order, and information access, like retrieval and storage details. There could be several selections of one or more of such services, and some services consist of several applications, resulting in similar resource consumption in an IT infrastructure.
Resource Estimation
Existing tools for profiling resources in the heterogeneous environment have drawbacks for significant cost accounting purposes. Firstly, performance diagnostic problems and technology and vendor-specific tools do not cover all resources. The service profiler tool is a load generator that uses standard monitoring tools of UNIX, Linux, and Microsoft Windows. These OS Tools help in detailed monitoring. Several other tools used for resource profiling help prepare an overview of resource consumption expectations for various user behavior patterns.
Evaluating Queuing Network Theory
For cost accounting allocation keys using resource profiles, profiles have to be independent of the system’s workload or services. Resource profiles are excellent tools for validating assumptions. By accurately predicting resource utilization, it is safe to assume that estimates are accurate and independent of system workload.
Other Vital Work
Service-level resource profile needs are well substantiated in cost accounting. Funke, Scheeg, Nagaprabhanjan, and Apte have published individual works in cost accounting and IT Controlling.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
Adopting cloud computing for small and medium accounting firms is essential for many reasons. With the information highway at our fingertips, knowledge has increased. Research, science, and technology have allowed businesses to do more with their time and resources.
The digital era has made connectivity and other valuable mediums businesses use to enhance and develop them mentally. With the dawn of the cyber world, companies from every industry have sought their share in this new space, spawning new opportunities for many professionals, i.e., e-marketing, e-commerce, etc.
The Adoption of Cloud Computing
The adoption of cloud computing for small and medium accounting firms, businesses, and professionals from every industry benefits from the next generation in Information Technology. Cloud computing is the latest innovation that changes how IT resources are provided.
It combines already-existing heterogeneous technologies into one fully compatible ecosystem instead of creating new systems afresh. Cloud computing is a model for adequate, convenient, sustained, and on-demand provisioned network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources requiring minimal management-labor or service provider assistance.
Software as a Service, or SaaS, is the most common and refined form of adoption of cloud computing for small and medium accounting firms where a cloud service provider offers both hardware and software, and users are permitted to access the software. The capability and energy required to maintain their software are relieved from the SaaS model users, but there are limitations regarding the customization of the system.
Exploring SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS in Cloud Computing
Other forms of SaaS are commonly used: PaaS and IaaS. Infrastructure as a Service helps users provide storage computing resources, and hardware infrastructure while users utilize their OS and software. It minimizes the need to maintain hardware but only sometimes relieves the users from keeping their software. Large corporations and other institutions, such as universities, use IaaS.
Meanwhile, PaaS is in the middle of SaaS and IaaS. A platform of systems and essential toolkits is provided, and users own their compatible applications deployed conveniently. PaaS is ideal for supporting those businesses that develop their applications without delivering hardware.
The main purpose is to provide multiple users with centralized computing resources as services. Not being a technology or a product, the adoption of cloud computing is the arrangement of computing resources. Any IT infrastructure differentiating users from cloud providers can be cloud computing, but the concept of shared resources certainly isn’t new.
Like grid computing and application service, among many others, cloud computing is differentiated from grid computing by heavy virtualization. Computing resources are accessed from the internet instead of specialized interfaces.
The Strategic Impact of Cloud Computing on Business Resources
Cloud computing has more flexibility in the way that businesses use computing resources. It helps set the illusion of limitless resources due to its virtue of connecting widely with various computing devices. Cloud service providers can give an infinite amount of computing resources because all the resources in the cloud computing model are pooled and offered to users at any given time, shifting unused resources to others who need them.
This helps business users match their actual demand by configuring their IT services that eradicate the need to forecast yearly resource usage and capacity addition. This is great for businesses whose needs fluctuate considerably or whose demands increase and decrease irregularly.
Adopting cloud computing also helps invest in IT resources and infrastructure with reduced risk by using capital investment as operational expenses. IT infrastructures do not come cheap, and even though they produce significant benefits, they do not guarantee services to a firm. However, building upon a cloud computing model would help use it meaningfully.
Cost-Efficiency Unleashed: The Financial Advantages of Cloud Computing
Cloud computing has no upfront costs or investment charges, so it is considered desirable. Cloud-based services are changed based on usage, which helps businesses acquire new IT systems without bearing higher costs for licenses, software, hardware, etc. Cloud computing is more meaningful for small and medium accounting businesses that do not possess the financial capital or expertise needed to implement, configure, and manage complicated IT systems.
Centralizing computing resources and cloud computing provides enhanced and improved efficiency and lesser need for maintenance, so users enjoy many reliefs. Organizations and large corporations usually have in-house IT support, which is generally inefficient. Cloud service providers combine and amalgamate computing resources, which helps economically unburden businesses. Furthermore, it may even aid in cost savings by eliminating the expenditure to manage IT systems.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
Post-Holiday Sales Slumps: 5 B2B Tactics to Boost Revenue
B2B tactics for combating post-holiday sales slumps include proactive customer engagement, strategic incentives, mobile-focused outreach, intelligent pipeline management, and targeted marketing reinvention—each designed to maintain momentum when buying patterns traditionally slow.
I’ve watched countless businesses struggle through the January doldrums, watching their sales pipelines dry up after the holiday rush. Over my 20 years leading Complete Controller, I’ve witnessed firsthand how smart B2B companies transform these traditionally slow periods into opportunities for growth. The businesses that thrive don’t just wait for the market to recover—they take decisive action with proven strategies that keep revenue flowing. What you’ll discover in this article are five battle-tested tactics that have helped our clients maintain and even increase their sales during these challenging periods, including real-world implementation steps and concrete metrics you can track to measure success.
What are effective B2B tactics to beat post-holiday sales slumps?
Proactive engagement means reaching out to past customers with personalized offers before competitors do
Strategic incentives involve creative payment terms and bundled services that ease budget constraints
Mobile-focused outreach capitalizes on the 80% of B2B decisions influenced by mobile devices
Pipeline management ensures consistent lead flow through pre-scheduled meetings and nurturing campaigns
Re-Engagement via Proactive Customer Outreach
The most successful B2B marketing strategies start with reconnecting with your existing customer base before they even realize they need you again. Your previous buyers already trust your brand, making them five times more likely to purchase than cold prospects.
Post-holiday periods present a unique opportunity to re-engage customers when they’re planning budgets and setting priorities for the new quarter. The key lies in timing your outreach perfectly and crafting messages that resonate with their current challenges.
Post-holiday retargeting campaigns
Smart retargeting goes beyond simple reminder ads. Segment your customer database based on their purchase history, engagement levels, and industry vertical. Create tailored campaigns that speak directly to each segment’s pain points.
Launch email sequences featuring exclusive “loyalty pricing” for repeat customers
Deploy social media retargeting ads showcasing new features or services added since their last purchase
Use AI-driven personalization tools to customize messaging based on past interactions
Track open rates, click-throughs, and conversion metrics to refine your approach
Test different subject lines and offers to maximize engagement
Complete Controller recently helped a manufacturing client implement a sophisticated retargeting campaign that increased repeat purchases by 34% in Q1. The secret was combining purchase history data with seasonal buying patterns to predict exactly when customers would need replenishment.
Leveraging customer feedback
Transform your holiday campaign data into actionable insights for the new year. Every interaction, complaint, and compliment contains valuable information about improving your B2B sales tactics.
Send targeted surveys asking about unmet needs and budget priorities
Analyze support tickets to identify common pain points
Review sales call recordings for objections and buying signals
Create feedback loops between sales and marketing teams
Document insights in your CRM for future reference
One of our clients discovered through post-holiday surveys that 40% of their customers wanted more flexible payment options. By implementing this feedback, they secured 18% more contracts in January than the previous year.
Strategic Incentives for Quick Wins
Business-to-business best practices dictate that timing and value perception drive purchasing decisions. Post-holiday budget constraints require creative approaches to make your offerings irresistible without destroying margins.
The psychology behind effective B2B incentives differs significantly from consumer marketing. Decision-makers need to justify purchases to multiple stakeholders, making ROI demonstration crucial.
Extended payment terms
Cash flow concerns peak after holiday spending, making extended payment terms a powerful motivator. Structure these offers to benefit both parties while protecting your business interests.
Offer net-60 or net-90 terms for contracts signed before quarter-end
Implement milestone-based payment schedules for larger projects
Create “pay-as-you-grow” models tied to customer success metrics
Require minimal upfront commitments to reduce barrier to entry
Include early payment discounts to encourage faster collection
Value-added bundles
Strategic bundling transforms perceived value without significant cost increases. Focus on complementary services that enhance your core offering’s effectiveness.
Package implementation support with software licenses
Include training sessions with equipment purchases
Offer extended warranties or priority support tiers
Complete Controller developed a “Growth Accelerator Bundle” combining bookkeeping services with quarterly CFO consultations. This bundle increased average contract values by 27% while improving client retention.
The strongest B2B companies plan for slow seasons. See how Complete Controller supports smarter growth year-round.
Mobile-Centric Prospecting and Outreach
Modern B2B lead generation techniques must acknowledge that 80% of business buyers use mobile devices during their research and decision-making process. Ignoring mobile optimization means missing crucial touchpoints.
Mobile-first strategies require rethinking traditional B2B approaches. Decision-makers check emails, research solutions, and even sign contracts from their smartphones during commutes, between meetings, and after hours.
Optimizing mobile marketing
Effective mobile B2B marketing goes beyond responsive design. Every element must work seamlessly on smaller screens while maintaining professional polish.
Compress email templates to load quickly on cellular networks
Use SMS for time-sensitive offers and appointment reminders
Create mobile-specific landing pages with simplified forms
Implement one-click calling for immediate sales connections
Test all campaigns across multiple devices and operating systems
Intelligent scheduling tools
Automation eliminates the back-and-forth that kills momentum in B2B sales cycles. Modern scheduling tools integrate with your existing tech stack while providing seamless user experiences.
Deploy AI-powered schedulers that suggest optimal meeting times
Set buffer periods between appointments to prevent overcommitment
Enable prospects to book directly from emails or landing pages
Sync with multiple calendar systems to avoid conflicts
Send automated reminders and prep materials before meetings
Intelligent Pipeline Management
Account-based marketing principles apply perfectly to post-holiday pipeline management. Focus resources on high-value opportunities while maintaining consistent nurturing for longer-term prospects.
Successful pipeline management requires balancing immediate revenue needs with relationship building. The companies that excel treat their pipeline as a living ecosystem requiring constant attention and optimization.
Pre-scheduling Q1 meetings
Proactive scheduling fills calendars before competitors wake from holiday slumber. Use December downtime to lock in January commitments when decision-makers plan their quarters.
Research target accounts’ fiscal calendars and planning cycles
Provide valuable planning resources as meeting incentives
Follow up persistently but respectfully until confirmation
Post-holiday lead nurturing
Consistent nurturing maintains engagement when prospects aren’t ready to buy immediately. Develop content calendars addressing seasonal challenges and opportunities.
Create “Q1 Success Guide” email series with actionable tips
Host webinars addressing common new-year challenges
Share case studies demonstrating ROI from similar companies
Personalize follow-ups based on prospect behavior and interests
Score leads continuously to identify warming opportunities
Reinventing Your Marketing Strategy
B2B digital marketing tactics for growth require constant evolution. Post-holiday periods offer natural transition points for testing new approaches and refining existing strategies.
Innovation doesn’t mean abandoning proven methods—it means enhancing them with fresh perspectives and emerging technologies. The most successful B2B companies blend traditional relationship-building with cutting-edge digital strategies.
Cross-selling and upselling
Existing customers represent your fastest path to increased revenue. Strategic cross-selling and upselling initiatives capitalize on established trust while solving additional problems.
Analyze usage data to identify expansion opportunities
Create logical upgrade paths with clear value propositions
Time offers based on customer success milestones
Train customer success teams on identifying upsell signals
Complete Controller increased average customer lifetime value by 43% through systematic cross-selling of complementary financial services. The key was mapping customer journeys to identify natural expansion points.
Social media-driven campaigns
B2B social media requires sophistication beyond posting company updates. Use these platforms to demonstrate thought leadership and facilitate meaningful conversations.
Launch LinkedIn campaigns targeting specific job titles and industries
Create Twitter threads addressing trending industry challenges
Host Instagram Live sessions showcasing behind-the-scenes expertise
Develop YouTube tutorials solving common customer problems
Measure engagement quality over quantity metrics
Final Thoughts
These five B2B tactics transform post-holiday challenges into growth catalysts. Success requires commitment to implementation, consistent measurement, and willingness to adapt based on results. The businesses that thrive don’t wait for market conditions to improve—they create their own momentum through strategic action.
At Complete Controller, we’ve guided hundreds of businesses through seasonal fluctuations while maintaining steady growth. Our comprehensive financial services provide the foundation for implementing these tactics effectively. Ready to beat the post-holiday slump? Contact our team at Complete Controller to discover how our expertise can accelerate your B2B success throughout the year and beyond.
FAQ
How long do post-holiday sales slumps typically last for B2B companies?
Post-holiday B2B sales slumps generally extend from mid-December through late January, though some industries experience slowdowns into February. The duration depends on your industry, target market, and how proactively you implement recovery tactics.
Which B2B tactics work fastest for generating quick revenue wins?
Strategic incentives like extended payment terms and value-added bundles typically generate the fastest results, often closing deals within 2-3 weeks. Retargeting existing customers also produces quick wins since trust already exists.
How much should B2B companies invest in mobile optimization?
Companies should allocate 15-25% of their digital marketing budget to mobile optimization, given that mobile devices influence 80% of B2B purchasing decisions. This investment typically pays for itself within one quarter through increased conversion rates.
What metrics best measure B2B tactic effectiveness during slow periods?
Track pipeline velocity, average deal size, customer acquisition cost, and sales cycle length. Compare these metrics to both your holiday baseline and previous post-holiday periods to gauge improvement.
Can small B2B companies implement these tactics without large budgets?
Absolutely. Start with low-cost tactics like email retargeting, strategic scheduling, and social media engagement. Many automation tools offer affordable entry-level plans, and the ROI from even basic implementation often funds expansion into more sophisticated strategies.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
Jennifer BrazerFounder/CEO
Jennifer is the author of From Cubicle to Cloud and Founder/CEO of Complete Controller, a pioneering financial services firm that helps entrepreneurs break free of traditional constraints and scale their businesses to new heights.
Brittany McMillen is a seasoned Marketing Manager with a sharp eye for strategy and storytelling. With a background in digital marketing, brand development, and customer engagement, she brings a results-driven mindset to every project. Brittany specializes in crafting compelling content and optimizing user experiences that convert. When she’s not reviewing content, she’s exploring the latest marketing trends or championing small business success.
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 platform where their QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools are hosted in an efficient SSO 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.
