During an economic downturn, it is not uncommon for accounting departments to notice an increase in DSO (Days Sales Outstanding). As receivables start to drift beyond payment terms, you’ll want to be sure your team is ready to act fast. Depending on the circumstances, the accounts receivable response may be varied from demand letters to payment plans.
Whether you're a freelancer, small business owner or employee, working from home can be quite an adjustment. It's easy to get distracted by laundry or other household to-do's and you're probably reading this because you know that already. With a couple of tweaks to your routine, you may find that you're more productive working from home than the office.
When a client hasn't paid their invoice on time, business owners feel the pinch in their cash flow. Even if sales are being won and the work is being done, without timely payments from their customers, vendors, accounts payable and employees go unpaid. It takes time and resources to chase down payments, affecting efficiency and productivity as well. Instead of wondering if your clients are going to pay their invoices, take control of the situation proactively and in a non-threatening manner.
As a business owner, you're dedicated to managing your relationships with your customers. You've agreed on the products or services that help their business and you've agreed how much they will pay your business. You may have also learned that you have to set boundaries with your customers, especially when it comes to paying their invoices. They need to know how much they owe, how to pay, who to pay and when payment is due.
When working a 9 to 5 grind has got you down, you may be considering how to start your own business. If you've been the expert at something in a corporate job, you could break into the business of speaking about it or even consulting to other businesses. Do you want to make money with your expertise, working on your own terms, and are you ready to get started?
Entrepreneurship starts when you decide what you're good at and how to sell that.
Whether you're a freelancer, contractor, startup or small business, tax season is the time of year that reveals any changes in your business over the past year. If you've not kept up with your income and expenses, tax season will kick you into gear. If you're unsure about write-offs, deductions or even how much tax you owe, tax season is the time to get informed.
Fan or not, The Walt Disney Company is widely successful. Even with a few movie flops and challenges in management, things have definitely turned around for the better with Bob Iger as their CEO since 2004. Recently, Iger released a memoir entitled, "The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company". Within the pages are intriguing stories and messages of inspiration for any business owner. He details his steps up the ladder at ABC, Disney's acquisition of Pixar and his relationship with Steve Jobs, acquiring Marvel and Lucasfilm, and opening more Disney parks across the world.
If this blog is anything, we hope that it's helpful to small and growing businesses. Our focus is intended to offer education on getting organized, retaining clients and ensuring that your invoices are paid in a timely manner.
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In many growing companies, sales teams acknowledge new business with a mini-celebration. Every little bit of encouragement helps when business development seems to be working. After the celebration, the rest of the organization prepares to bring on the new client. Accounting sets them up as a new customer, the product gets shipped or the agreed-upon service is provided. An invoice is subsequently sent to the client and the wait begins.
The weather has turned colder, holiday shoppers are looking for gift ideas and your Accounting team is cleaning up year-end finances. It's during this time of the year that they're taking a closer look at unpaid accounts receivable invoices and deciding what to do. Before taking a financial loss, there may still be an opportunity to collect on some outstanding accounts. Read on to determine what to do next.
