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7 Tips To Minimise Vehicle Depreciation

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Although all cars depreciate in the short to medium term, you still have some control on how quickly it loses value. If you plan to get a brand-new car, you should know what vehicle depreciation is all about. 

As a simple description, vehicle depreciation is the difference between your car’s worth when you bought it and its value if you decide to sell it. Expect the value of a vehicle to drop over time especially due to the wear and tear of daily use. Generally, the more you use your car, the faster its value will depreciate.

It’s vital to note that depreciation is one of the highest costs of owning a car, especially if you purchase a new one. In reality, most new cars lose 20% of their value once driven out of the lot. 

Although unavoidable, there are several ways to minimise vehicle depreciation. There are several ways to maintain your vehicle’s value in case you decide to sell it in the future. Here are several tips to lessen vehicle depreciation: 

1. Safe Driving 

Accidents, especially major ones like car crashes that result in severe injuries, can result in costly repairs that can hasten your vehicle’s depreciation. Any accidents or repairs you detail to your insurance company will be part of your car’s history report. Sadly, this can lessen the value of your vehicle, making it difficult for you to sell in the future. 

Depending on the type of insurance you have, such as an SR22 insurance which you can discover here, it might be a necessity under certain circumstances. A SR22 insurance is a certificate of insurance that proves you’re carrying car insurance. Hence, it states that you comply with the car insurance coverage requirements of the state you are in. 

Some of the reasons that would call for an SR22 is when you were sighted for reckless driving, involved in an accident without auto insurance, driving a motor vehicle on a suspended license, or caught driving without an auto insurance policy.

2. Select A Standard Color 

The color of your vehicle plays a role in how quickly it depreciates. The standard colors like white, silver, black, and gray are popular and better in maintaining value. 

Remember that if you intend to sell your vehicle in the future, it might be hard to find a buyer if the color is neon orange or bright pink. Always remember this factor if you’re planning to paint your car with a bold color. 

3. Research The Model And Make

Although the difference between a new and used car is often the highlight of vehicle depreciation costs, the make and model of a vehicle you’re planning to buy can have an equivalent or higher impact on its depreciation.  

When buying a new model in the car market, there’s a significant variance in depreciation between the various car producers and even models by the same manufacturer. The luxury sports cars usually lose value at a slower pace than the mid-range sedans, while several German brands depreciate at nearly half the pace of their French counterparts.  

4. Get A Nearly-new Or Pre-owned Vehicle

An excellent way to avoid vehicle depreciation is to look for a car that is nearly-now or that already experienced the initial drop in value. You can use the car for three to four years but if you decide to sell, do it at the six and seven-year mark. With this approach, the vehicle is still relatively new once you acquire it, but if you make sure that it stays in good condition, it will remain attractive to potential buyers once you decide to sell.

When you purchase a pre-owned vehicle that is still in good condition, you can minimize the costs. In most cases, a certified pre-owned vehicle often includes a warranty coverage that significantly reduces the concern that comes with buying a used car.

5. Regular Maintenance 

Your vehicle should receive timely service at the manufacturer’s recommended service intervals, and make sure that you’ll keep the receipts. When you have a complete compilation of previous maintenance, it’ll reduce its depreciation.  

If you have a well-maintained car, it’ll always have a higher value than one that’s under neglect. Always remember that wear and tear is a significant factor that affects the value of your car. 

Some of the ways to deal with excessive wear and tear include: 

  • Use a protective film on the door edges, hood, and front bumper 
  • Install fitted floor mats to prevent carpet stains and allows easy clean-up of spills while also reducing shoe marks 
  • Invest in protection such as rustproofing, undercoating, and paint guard to ensure that your vehicle stays in good shape 

Making sure that your car is spotless and fresh is vital in minimizing its depreciation. Additionally, it might be best to avoid eating, smoking, and drinking in your vehicle. 

In case you lack time to clean your car, a trip to the car wash is also a good idea. Also, make sure that you park in a garage or covered space.  

6. Keep The Mileage Down 

Once you start driving with your car, the higher the chances that an issue will arise. One way to lessen the depreciation of your vehicle is to keep the mileage as low as possible. A maxed-out odometer will have a significant impact on the resale value.

7. Avoid Non-standard Modifications 

If you plan to add upgrades to the engine or install an elaborate sound system in the trunk, you should think twice. These upgrades will reduce your vehicle’s value and make it less attractive to potential buyers. 

Try to keep non-standard modifications or upgrades to a minimum to ensure that your car won’t depreciate due to your personal choices. 

Conclusion 

With the help of these tips such as observing safe driving habits at all times, choosing a standard color, researching about the model you want, getting a nearly-new or pre-owned car, and providing regular maintenance, your car will retain most of its value while staying in optimum condition for years to come.

LLC vs. LTD Tax

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Are you planning to form your own business? If yes, you might be familiar with LLC and LTD. You see, LLC and LTD are different entities, but there’s still a large difference between the two. One main difference is that LTDs pay tax, but LLC doesn’t. Before you choose your path- it is best to consult with a business expert to help you avoid mistakes

Before we go the difference between LLC and LTD tax, let’s first talk about their meanings:

What Is LLC?

LLC or Limited Liability Company is under state law. LLC members are simply called “members.” When you’re an LLC member, you can file your personal tax return. We call this “pass-through taxation,” wherein the company’s net income goes to the LLC then to the members.

Note: LLCs aren’t taxed, but some states may impose a tax to a partnership or corporation. Members of LLCs enjoy benefits such as no annual meeting and recording requirements. LLC doesn’t allow its members to dispense stock.

Here are other benefits of being an LLC member

Member Protection

Don’t worry about debts and liabilities because LLC wouldn’t give you that headache. LLC protects its members from any debt or liability through member protection benefits. As an LLC member, you’re allowed to participate in any operation of the company or assign tasks to managers. All LLC members get liability protection regardless of the tasks they’re doing in the company.

Personal Liability Protection

When it comes to a limited partnership, limited partners have liability protection. But the general partner doesn’t have similar protection, and he or she is responsible for the actions of the limited partner.

The limited partner isn’t allowed to engage in any business transaction of the general partner because of the limited partner’s loss of liability protection. Also, the limited partner would be accountable for the general partner’s actions.

Keep in mind: The limited partner acts as a silent partner and can contribute money, but the partner isn’t allowed to participate in business transactions.

Series LLC

You might hear of Series LLC if you’re living in Delaware. Well, Series LLC is present in some states that improve your liability protection and also helps protects business assets. The assets of your LLC pass through small business entities that we call “Series.” The series company is managed differently from your main LLC or company.

If you plan to create a series LLC, Delaware is one of the best states to start your business. Other states such as California and New York have strict rules in constructing Series LLC. The laws on these states might be unfavorable to your company’s growth. 

What Does Ltd Mean?

The limited abbreviation Ltd doesn’t refer to a single business entity as most people thought. Ltd. represents different entities such as C and S corporations.

If you’re living in the European Union, you will notice that most businesses there are Ltd.  But the EU holds certain laws that govern the amount of shareholders a company could have.

LLC and Ltd – The Difference

Structuring your business isn’t easy. You need to give time and effort so that you don’t face big hassles in your business endeavor. One of the first things to consider is the difference between limited partnerships (Ltds) and liability companies (LLCs).

Since both LLC and Ltd Tax come from state law, most people think the entities are similar. Well, yes in some point, but there are still differences 

Main Differences of Liability Companies and Limited Partnerships

  • Tax of the company
  • Liability of the entity owners
  • Number of shareholders

Limited partnerships are present in commonwealth countries. Limited companies are considered as distinct entities that means the companies are legally separated from the shareholders and the owners.  The company shares are restricted to some people, such as the founders of the state.

LLC often reflects unincorporated associations. Liability companies and corporations share essential characteristics that you need to know. 

Here’s an example:

Company owners of both liability companies and corporations benefit from liability protection and pass-through taxation. 

Single owners of small businesses choose the limited liability company because of the benefits they can get. A limited liability company can select how the company is taxed:

  • Single business owner
  • Partnership
  • S corporation
  • C corporation

If you’re in a limited partnership, you and your partner should decide if the business should be taxed separately or taxed from the tax returns of both partners.  Partners often choose the latter because the company wouldn’t be taxed twice.

Structure Flexibility        

The structure flexibility is also different between LLC and limited partnership. A single person can manage a limited liability company, while a limited partnership (as the name suggests) requires two people to manage the entity.

Hence, solo business owners often structure their small business on LLC.

Taxes and Shares

A limited partnership has variations in tax-paying, while limited liability companies are flexible when it comes to taxes, unlike corporations.

For example:

Companies that are under the “C” corporation category are taxed as single business entities.  Shares of entities often remain private rather than in public.

Shares of Ltds are used to choose members of the entity or select the co-founders. If a share isn’t issued, a pre-authorization is required. The share transfers are often in a private agreement. But there are also occasions that the transfer is online.

Pros and Cons of Corporations

Besides LLC and Ltd, you can also structure your business from a corporation. But keep in mind that there are advantages and disadvantages of forming a corporation structure.

One big advantage is you can attract investors by issuing the company shares. Corporations also have the advantage of lowering taxation by splitting the company’s income.

When it comes to the disadvantages of corporations, taxes are a big example. For example, A C Corporation can face double taxation because the company’s earnings are taxed directly and shouldered by the entrepreneur’s tax return.

Another drawback is owners of corporations need to follow strict formalities such as shareholder meetings. Corporation owners only have 100 shareholders that limit the company’s growth.

So, what do you think? Are you going for a LLC or Ltd structure? If not, you might consider growing your small business into a corporation.

Give it a try now and become successful in the future!

Invoice Generator For Freelancers: A How To Guide

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A freelancer’s work has ups and downs, just like any job. It can be immensely overwhelming and exhausting despite how exciting the idea of having a better work-life balance, controlling your own schedule, and becoming your own boss is.

The freelance lifestyle has several stressful aspects, but making sure that your invoices get paid for the hours of hard work you’re putting in is one that stands out. It can be challenging to stay financially organized and keep track of payments because of the lack of an accounting team supporting you. It’s especially true when you work with multiple clients in a given period.

It’s totally up to you what invoicing method you’ll choose. However, it may be time for a change if you’re still using traditional methods. To improve your efficiency, use an invoice generator for freelancers. This great tool provides so much value to a freelancer’s work.

role of manager

Read on below to learn how to start using one for your business.

How Does An Invoice Generator Work

Invoice generators offer freelancers templates that effectively help them stand out to clients, on top of making the invoicing process easier. By choosing from an assortment of ready-made designs, users can create eye-catching invoices in minutes. Freelancers can take advantage of this technology by selecting an invoice template representing their personal work, style, and branding.

The templates in invoice generators can also be customized with a logo. You can effortlessly do it by choosing from the system’s gallery or uploading your own.

How To Create An Invoice Using Invoice Generators

Freelancers using invoice generating systems can create professional-looking invoices in a few simple steps. You simply have to fill out essential client information, including amounts to be collected, item/service descriptions, shipping, and billing. Select an invoice template afterward to generate the payment request. Each template in an invoice generation software has a distinct style.

How To Send An Invoice Created By An Invoice Generator

Make sure to double-check all the costs, business numbers, and names before sending your invoice. Ensuring correct information at all times is one of the simple invoicing upgrades you can implement to encourage prompt payment. But worry not because you have the option to save the payment request as a PDF and send it another time if you don’t want to deliver it to the client yet after working on the template and entering the required information.

Send the invoice directly from the software once you’re ready to send it. In most invoice generators, the client will receive an email with the invoice attached as a PDF file once you hit send. Your clients can then view the payment request by clicking on the attachment.

Unique Invoice Generator Features

invoicing-to-client-for-goods-purchased

Besides ready-made invoice templates, some invoice generation software also incorporates additional features to their systems to make their users’ lives easier. For example, some invoice generators give you the option to add partial payments, discounts, and multiple taxes within a single payment request document.

Other essential features in some invoice generators are the “Copy” and “Switch To” functions that allow freelancers to create invoices in seconds. With the “Switch To” function, self-employed individuals can convert invoices into quotes, estimates, receipts, etc. Duplicating payment requests to avoid the hassle of having to recreate a similar document to the same client manually also becomes effortless with the “Copy” function.

An added bonus in some invoice generation software is the ability to generate payment requests in multiple languages. It’s a significant boost for freelancers who cater to clients from around the world. Other invoice generators also include different currencies to accommodate worldwide users and their clients from across the globe.

Benefits Of An Invoice Generator

The obvious benefit that invoice generation software brings to the table is the ability to create invoices quickly. However, there are more reasons why freelancers should consider using invoice generators. Check them out below.

  • Better Invoice Organization

Any freelance business owner understands how crucial it is to have their finances in order. Chances are you’re having trouble organizing your payment requests if you’re still using traditional invoicing methods. Even worse, you may be also failing to remember which invoices are outstanding and which have been paid already. Lack of organization leads to unpaid invoices, and unsettled payment requests result in loss of revenue.

Invoice generators can help freelancers be more organized. They allow you to manage your invoices. One organization feature that surely helps is the reminder you’ll get from the software when a client still hasn’t paid you seven days after sending your payment request. Not only does better organization save you money, it also saves you time. As a result, you’ll know how much you’ve been making for a specific period.

  • Error-free Invoices

As already mentioned, freelance life has ups and downs. Sometimes it seems that you’re just chilling at work, but on other days, things can get really exhausting. There could be errors in your invoice when you’re writing it while you’re tired. Either you’ll end up undercharging the client, or upset them because of overcharging. You may even end up sending a payment request to one customer for a project you completed for another. Such confusion will only waste your time, and you don’t want to look like an amateur, do you?

Invoice generation software can help you avoid errors. From missing information to an invalid number, invoice generators can deal with them. For example, most invoice generation systems have an auto-fill feature. That enables the software to auto-fill every mandatory information when you key in your client’s name. You’re done after changing maybe two or three areas.

  • Secured Invoicing

When it comes to any money-related scenarios, security is paramount. With invoice generators, you get the guarantee of a secured invoicing process because of SSL certificates. Invoice generation software systems also use secured web servers in storing data. The best thing about using generators, especially cloud software, is that you can still have access to your data even after your computer got corrupted.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to use invoice generators is pretty straightforward. You don’t need an accounting background to create professional invoices with them. They bring many benefits, too. 

Unfortunately, many freelancers still don’t know about invoice generation software systems. Others have heard about it but simply chose to ignore it and stuck with traditional invoicing methods. Start making your freelancing journey more manageable with an invoice generator now that you’ve read this how-to guide.

How Can You Save More on Merchant Processing Overcharges

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Merchant servicing is one of the branches of financial services widely used for business purposes. It is a service that enables businesses to accept transactions or payments through an encrypted and secure channel using the customer’s credit/debit card or any other NFC/RFID-enabled device.

Usually, the merchant processing fee is considered to be an added cost of doing business. Merchant and credit card processing is a significant business expense. It is also tough to comprehend due to the lengthy statements, unclear rates, and endless fees attached. One should be fully aware of the gimmicks and typical games played by the merchant service providers.

One can save much more on merchant processing overcharges by implementing a merchant processing audit. There are many things that you might overlook in your transactions, but a third-party audit can give your business various advantages such as:

1. Team of Professionals

Having merchant processing auditors gets you a team of professionals who are there for financial help. They have in-depth knowledge and relevant experience in their field. It is almost impossible to go through every past transaction or statement. It is also tough to calculate the fees and find out at which point you or your business are paying extra. 

Having a team of professionals can help you track the merchant processing overcharges and inform you in case of any discrepancies in your transactions.

Professional auditors are aware of the credit card companies, their work processes, and how they make profits. Also, subsequent negotiations are done to reduce credit card processing fees. 

2. Continuous Monitoring 

One can have a reasonably large business where many transactions occur during the day, and there can also be more than one source of payment. In such a case, the bills would pile up into massive statements which are left unattended. If you have a merchant processing audit expert, this can be easily handled.

The auditors look at the many factors that affect the merchant account fees, which can be very confusing for busy business owners or managers. This monthly audit will also help you to highlight any other overlooked faults. Now, all your merchant processing problems can be handled hassle-free and in one go. 

3. Hidden Fees

The most important task of a merchant processing auditor is to highlight any hidden costs. These transactions always are associated with an additional fee, and they might keep adding up without you even realizing the same. Your auditor can keep a check on the merchant accounts and also on their interchange rates. The fees can be reduced by negotiating the interchangeable rates and cutting the average spending method per month by at least 20% to 30%. This can eventually help you save a lot on your pocket.

4. Advisory and Consultation Services

Once you connect with your merchant processing auditor, he/she can consult you from time to time and suggest ways to save money in the future. These basic tactics can genuinely benefit you and your business. They can help you restructure the best rates that are available among your current processor or banks. They tend to ensure continuous savings and also guarantee that such excessive merchant processing fees shall not return. 

5. Customer Services

All of the prominent merchant service processors often offer 24*7 customer and tech support at no extra charge. Ensure that whenever you are stuck in such a situation, the other side’s representative can help you in the right direction.

But if you have a self-employed merchant processing auditor, you need not rely on others. You can have a faster and experienced person at your disposal who would give you the suggestion for your betterment in a fair manner.

Now that you know how to save on merchant processing overcharges, you need to protect your precious business money by getting a merchant processing audit expert. Start today to get the best results!

How to Choose an Accountant for Your Small Business?

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Sometimes an entrepreneur comes across loads of challenges while running a small business, including choosing the right accountant. An appropriate accountant can help you boost up your organization while the inappropriate might cause problems for it. Although there are scads of experienced people needing a job, it’s quite a difficult task to choose the best.

So, when we talk about finding and picking the ablest accountant, we should consider some important rules to reach a closing decision.

Here are the essential tips to follow while choosing an accountant for your small business.

Essential Tips on Hiring an Accountant

Search for the Right Qualification

Finding an accountant with magnified knowledge about tax, business & finance will support you in expanding your business. An ideal option is to seek a qualified accountant with a secure grip on business dealings. For example, you can hire a CPA who will look after your business tax and accounting issues with great ease.

Make Your Business a Priority

Business runs all on the “give and take” system. So never hesitate to ask about the availability from your accountant. It will prove beneficial for your organization if your appointed accountant resolves the business issues on time. Always keep your business on priority.

Choose the One You Personally Like

Another essential factor is your personal liking. Even a qualified accountant for your business can go to waste if you have a communication gap with him. Before reaching a result, always make sure to engage with your new accountant and observe if you can continue working with him or not. There is no point in paying him if you’re not satisfied operating with him. Despite changing the accountants and distracting yourself from your official tasks, why not initially choose the one you like?

Remember That Your Accountant is Your Business Investment!

Every company would prefer deriving the maximum of its budget. Always stay active while choosing an accountant for your small business. Whatever you are spending on business taxes and accounts is no less than an investment, so pick the one leading your organization toward success. It can be done by hiring services of any company like Szweda Consulting.

Always Be Selective in Hiring Process

It has always been a critical situation to hire the fit accountant for your company. Sometimes, even after struggling hard, you get nothing but a misfit accountant. So, always take time and be selective throughout the employing procedure. It’s worth getting life-long advantages from your employee rather than being inconvenient with him on a short term basis.

Utilize Your Social Network to Fetch More Details

You can also use your official apps, like LinkedIn, to bring more of your accountant’s details, such as:

  • Are they connected to other professionals?
  • What are their discussions about accounting services?
  • How do the clients rate them on social media?
  • Do they have enough working experience?
  • What is the qualification, and do they stand on your requirements?

A Right Accountant Will Let You Touch Skies!

We’ll consider our efforts went well if the above tips and tricks helped you choose an accountant for your company. An accountant plays a leading role to kick start and boost up your business, so always reconsider your preferences and liking. Hire the one you can completely trust on and the one with sufficient tax experience. Make him a part of your business family, so he can comfortably deal with your daily finance issues.

Accounting for Small Business – Top 5 Softwares

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Individuals and businesses use accounting software to record their incomes and track their financial progress. This digital bookkeeping method reduces mistakes and eliminates the chances of human error. Modern features such as automation even allow business owners to calculate their profit and loss electronically.

If you own a small company, you can try some of these programs before investing in one for your company. The selection criteria for our article emphasized that each program has unique features and characteristics.

Benefits of Accounting Software in 2021

The international accounting software market will reach around $12 billion by 2026 since it’s expanding at a growth rate of 8.6% annually. You can try many software versions though finding the most suitable program for your company can be a difficult choice to make.

Every business has different financial demands and software requirements. So, we’ll discuss accounting software programs designed for small businesses after talking about this technology’s benefits.

  • It allows simple, quick, and secure data entry.
  • It’s a scalable resource for an expanding company.
  • It centralizes the data and makes it easily accessible.
  • It automates the process of data entry and saves staff costs.
  • A computerized invoicing gives you quick reports regarding payments.
  • This automation also lessens the chances of manual errors, making data more reliable.
  • These programs let you track the inventory and make sure your finances are up-to-date.

5 Best Accounting Software in 2021

Around 38% of business owners disbelieve in the security provided by accounting software. At the same time, 35% of them dislike the expenses of purchasing these tools. On the other hand, less than 20% of business owners admit they’ve found these programs difficult to understand.

Therefore, you must employ people who have a master of accountancy degree and some experience in the field of finance. They can support you with understanding and implementing accounting software such as these five:

QUICKBOOKS ONLINE

With a starting cost of $25/month, QuickBooks gives you an initial 30 days trial period. This software got first introduced in the ’80s, but it released a cloud version just two years ago. It’ll run fine on your computer if you’re using Windows or macOS (in the USA only).

It’s an American product developed by the Mountain View-based company Intuit. You have two versions of this program, one online and the other licensed. It’s cloud-based, mobile-friendly, scalable, easy-to-comprehend, and has extensive tracking capacity. Furthermore, being used by 70% of SMEs, it’s the most popular accounting software in the market. But it has poor customer service and inventory tracking.

FRESHBOOKS

Available in around 12 languages, a Canadian company named 2ndSite built this web-based SaaS model. It was initially released in 2004 and had a starting price of $15/month. Learn that QuickBooks has the highest starting price of all these programs. It’s an affordable cloud-based invoicing solution with a user-friendly interface.

These reasons make it popular among more than 11% of small business owners. This program is an optimal financial friend for those who don’t come from a financial background. However, it doesn’t come without a few disadvantages. Its mobile app is meager, and it offers no payroll service or inventory management. You can bill only five monthly clients.

SAGE ONE

It’s popular among 9.6% of small-to-medium business owners. But Sage One is no longer known by that name. Released by a British company in 2011, it’s 2019 stable release goes as Sage Business Cloud Accounting. It has provided the best customer experience of all accounting software programs.

It allows invoice creation, billing tracking, and even syncs with your bank account. Its low starting price ($10/month) also makes this tool user-friendly and scalable. The inventory management here is of supreme quality, and this program provides you an excellent dashboard view. But customers have found its journal entry difficult, and the homepage can be cluttered.

XERO

Founded in 2006 by a New Zealand-based company, Xero made this product for micro-business owners with little/no accounting experience. This cloud-based program has mobile applications too, and provides an easy-to-manage dashboard. After a 30 days free trial, you can purchase this tool for a starting cost of $11/month.

You can also enjoy payroll integration with Gusto and excellent inventory tracking. This program also gives you more than 500 tools to customize it as per your company’s specifications. That’s why it’s popular among 8.7% of small business owners. But its customer service is limited and provides multi-currency support with an expensive plan.

WAVE ACCOUNTING

Are you a spendthrift?  Well, here’s one Canadian cost-free accounting software for you. It’ll let you create an account for exactly $0 with no hidden charges. However, not all features are accessible in this free version. It further allows multiple users, double-entry, and limitless income tracking.

You also get a clutter-free dashboard without any billing limit. Like other in-demand products we’ve mentioned, you can also download an app to use this program’s features. Its multi-business quality makes it superior to others and popular among 6.7% of SMEs.

Conclusion

Accounting software helps small business owners get a clear understanding of their finances and profitability. No wonder more than 64% of them make use of this remarkable technology.

Most people who don’t use accounting software believe it’s insecure, expensive, and complicated to learn. But the demands of this century have outgrown the human fear of modernity. Your business can’t survive without technology. That’s why you need to switch from manual bookkeeping to digital accounting.

How data analysis help businesses in the longer run?

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In this modern world, everyone has become dependent on technology. Whether it is buying clothes, booking a ride, or storing business data, people enjoy the benefits of digitalization. As online activities continue to increase, the digital world is exploding with data. Businesses can leverage this data to drive change with positive outcomes and make relevant decisions. After all, making blind guesses or following instincts don’t drive results in the 21st century.

Entrepreneurs have to back their decisions with factual data, facts, and reasoning. Fortunately, data analysis can provide insights into changing market dynamics, letting you make the best decisions to serve customers. It unfolds future trends and evolving customer behavior, allowing you to make futuristic inventions in your products. Similarly, you can determine what forms of advertising reach customers effectively by using analytics.

However, some people back off when integrating data analysis techniques – machine learning algorithms, automation, etc. Indeed, analytics tools have high upfront costs, but their long-term benefits are second to none. Here we are unfolding five ways how data analytics helps businesses in the longer run.

1.   Forecasts Demand With Predictive Analytics

Today, markets are volatile and uncertain, making it challenging for businesses to plan. Predictive analytics uses data, algorithms, and artificial intelligence to determine the likelihood of future outcomes. It delves into past sales and purchase behaviors to detect patterns and assess demand.

Professionals with a bachelor’s degree are now pursuing advanced and specialized programs as per their career propagation interest. Considering the busy schedules, optimizing the work, and learning time has now become inevitable. Thus, if you aim for expertise in this field, go for an online master of science in analytics to develop analytical skills. In addition to forecasting demand, you will learn to perform computational data analysis.

It can assist with new product development decisions. Analytic tools pull in data from social network discussions, marketing databases, and customer relationship management (CRM) software to figure out customer needs. Identifying future trends will help you design a high market demand product, driving sales, and profits. With these innovations, you can also gain an edge over your competitors and stay one step ahead in the industry.

2.   Fosters Tax Calculation

Usually, businesses struggle when it comes to managing taxes. From calculating corporate tax, withholding income tax to collecting sales tax – everything needs a lot of expertise. Similarly, staying on top of tax filing and return dates is no easy feat. Fortunately, data analytic tools help with tax management practices. Firstly, it collects all financial data – fixed assets, expenses, other incomes, and calculates taxes automatically.

Simultaneously, these tools can keep a check on the current status of filings, returns, and pending tax payments. Most importantly, you can predict and calculate the tax payable amount for the coming fiscal year.

3.   Boosts Productivity

Data analysis provides insights on workplace productivity levels in addition to finding what works best for the customers. It ranks employees by quality work they are producing and their reliability. Likewise, these tools also collect data for employee energy, well-being, and weak points. Thus, giving a better idea of how employees work and how to assist them in increasing their productivity levels. Besides this, here some more contributions to data analysis in organizations.

  • Shortlists resumes and analyzes interviews of potential candidates, helping with the recruitment process.
  • Tracks the real-time impact of employee training.
  • Solve payroll errors and glitch in management practices.
  • Performs day-to-day, repetitive tasks – booking keeping, sending emails, etc.

Believe it or not, but more and more businesses are using analytics to find ways to bolster efficiency levels.

4.   Creates Mass Personalization

These days, people are giving out plenty of information online. As a result, they expect brands to treat them as individuals. So, why not create mass personalization? Data analysis can help in personalizing email marketing content. You can automate content by creating segments, new leads, regular customers, and different target groups of people. Similarly, if a potential customer has something in his/her shopping cart, send a personalized reminder with a special discount.

Besides emails, consider personalizing the user experience. Use analytical tools to build customer profiles and optimize your website with them. Based on the customer’s interests, the webpage will show ‘recommended for you’ products, increasing conversions. Approximately 74% of marketers approve that targeted personalization fosters customer engagement. Thus, utilize data to design relatable experiences across your customer’s purchase journey and boost profits in the long run.

5.   Reduces Business Costs

Surprisingly, analytics plays a significant role in reducing business costs over time. Firstly, it ensures the effective utilization of the company’s resources, reducing downtime and inefficiency. You can determine the business departments using unnecessary finances and the areas that need funds.

Therefore, you will have a clear idea about where to cut costs. Likewise, analytical tools will inform which advertisement campaigns are not delivering results. Data analysis takes precise actions, filtering all activities that are not adding any value to the business.

6.   Optimizes Advertisement Campaigns

The tech-savvy marketing platforms have given the power to gather strategic data points. As a result, marketers can make better choices, reach out to target audiences, and create campaigns that drive business outcomes. Thus, instead of shooting in the dark, brands can send targeted messages to their potential customers, driving sales. Likewise, data analysis also uncovers strategies to entice customers through value propositions and call-to-action.

At the same time, it measures the performance of marketing campaigns. You can see how many people visit your site, make purchases, open your email, and make amendments accordingly. Data analytics leverages artificial intelligence that helps in streamlining the marketing campaigns. 

Final Thoughts

Nowadays, every business is thriving to keep up in the industry, and data analysis provides a pathway. It enhances the company’s ability to make informed decisions using facts and figures, putting all assumptions aside. Simultaneously, it gives an in-depth understanding of customer needs, which, in turn, establishes loyalty. Most importantly, data analysis promotes flexibility to adapt and react to the changing dynamics quickly. Therefore, instead of basing your decisions on the upfront costs, look at the bigger picture, and see how analytics can help in the long run.

Difference between Petty Cash and Cash Float

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We all are well aware that one of the most challenging assets to manage within any company is its cash. One way to manage cash is for a company to mandate all purchases to be done by cheque. However, there are cases in which the use of a cheque is not practical.

Imagine that the Galaxy’s Best Yogurt is out of milk one day. It is impossible to work without milk, and the usual supply does not arrive for another 48 hours from the distributor.

To sustain the process, it is important to go to the supermarket across the street and buy three gallons of milk. It is not effective for time and expense to write a cheque for this small order, meaning that businesses build a petty cash fund, a fixed sum of cash kept on hand, to make payments for small regular transactions.

A petty cash fund is a form of imprest account, which means that it holds a certain sum of cash substituted as it is expended to retain a fixed balance.

What Is Meant By Petty Cash?

Businesses usually hold small cash sums to cover small miscellaneous expenses, such as entertainment and stationery charges. These transfers are usually done by a petty cash imprest system that fixes the volume of ‘Float.’ This is the full sum of cash that can be kept at any time. Every time the cash amount is limited, a petty cash imprest is inserted with cash by drawing a cheque. The refund’s value must be equal to the cost spent in petty cash from the time of the last refund. Petty cash balance is returned to the level of the float following repayment.

Any time a payment is made by petty cash, it is usually reported in the cashier’s petty cash journal. When a cashier demands the refund of petty cash, he shall create a petty cash voucher documenting the expenses incurred by petty cash during the time after the last refund, along with any supporting invoices serving as photographic proof of the allegation. If all is in order, the approved signer (e.g., the operations manager) draws a cheque equal to the value of the cost detailed in the petty cash voucher.

The Petty cash printing scheme is an easy way to handle minor day-to-day expenses. However, because cash is the entity’s most liquid assets, strict protections are required to prevent potential misappropriation. The following controls can be used for protecting petty cash:

  • Petty cash must be stored in a safe location ( e.g., money box)
  • Petty cash must be stored safely in a safe while it is not in service.
  • The cashier should be responsible for managing supporting invoices for purchases done by using petty cash.  
  • Cash counting must be made from time to time to ensure the cash balance in the Petty Cash Registry is all accurate.
  • The sum of petty cash float should not be raised significantly.
  • Since the Petty Cash List is not part of the double-entry scheme, transfers done through petty cash are eventually placed in General Ledger and the Cash Register.

What Is Meant By Cash Float?

Although paying by credit card, debit, or smartphone pay is popular in many sectors; some people also choose to pay in cash. Getting a cash float, which is the cash you have in the registry to provide customers with change whenever they pay in cash, is a vital business process. If you have a minimal float, you can run out of individual denominations and end up with angry customers. If you’ve got so much float, you may need to make a cash drop amid the day to deter robbery.

The cash float helps cashiers to bring about change for customers early in the day or transfer until a large number of cash purchases accrue to make the change from the day’s sales. Some companies and organizations often regard petty cash as a cash float and use this system to minimize the number of cheques or credit card charges required for small services and transactions.

What Is The Difference Between Petty Cash And Cash Float?

A business seller with a lot of money — apart from the one earned by the business they’re hoping to peddle — may float this money through the operation to make it look like a sale. This raises the apparent worth of the selling and buying price of the company. Cash floating is typically the simplest thing to hide if a vendor has two separate companies. Money can be flown from one company (because there are no taxes charged on the function of that business) to the one sold so that taxes are paid on that operation only.

On the other hand, to set up a petty cash system, the basic sum of money falls from a company checking account. Employees accept cash from the petty cash account, and then each transaction is recorded with a date, number, vendor (who was paid), and business intent. Any transaction using petty cash must be reported in the same manner as all other company profits and expenditures. The petty cash slips and petty cash logs can help obtain these costs so that they can be used to cover revenue for corporate tax purposes.

Conclusion

Summing it up, Petty cash has a lot of control risks involved. If you correctly follow the cash management/security routine, you will be able to keep petty cash under control. Build an approved float. Only set it up for less than a month of expenditures. Designate the custodian to monitor the physical access to the box. Finally, the caretaker must ensure that the cash and receipts complete the float.

As far as the cash float is concerned, to speed up the collection float, you need to compress the time between obtaining cash/cheques and depositing it in the vault. To do this, you should set up a post office box with all invoice payments. This decreases the probability that cheques will be lost in the mail on the way to the office. You can even set up a remote deposit with your bank account. This would encourage you to deposit cheques on the day they arrive, as soon as your accountant or payment clerk reports the cheques in your accounting system.

Why You Should Hire A Professional Tax Consultant

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The government usually requires every business to file their tax returns at the end of every financial year. These returns are usually mandatory except for the special cases as prescribed by the existing tax laws. Therefore, it is important to take this responsibility seriously and plan for it adequately and failure to do so may culminate in hefty fines, criminal proceedings, and convictions, or both.

However, some tax laws may be a little complicated to abide by normal businesses which may make it difficult to file the taxes as required. Luckily, there exist a lot of professional tax consultants who offer specialized services that your business can benefit from.

Discussed below are some of the reasons why you should hire a tax professional: 

Saves Time

In as much as it may be a little tempting to personally file your tax returns, it is important to note that the exercise is rather cumbersome, time-consuming, and error-prone, especially if you are not a tax professional. Should you decide to adopt this do it yourself approach, you should be aware that the tax department usually verifies your tax filings and will be able to smell any inconsistencies from a mile away.

This may eventually force you to refile said tax returns, hire a professional to do it, or even worse, end up in jail. Either way, this will end up wasting a lot of precious time which you could have otherwise done something more constructive. Hiring a tax professional from R&D tax incentive in Australia helps you to avoid all these unnecessary hurdles and save you a lot of time which you can use to focus on running the business and growing your revenue.

Much Simpler

Tax laws and procedures are usually subject to constant changes from time to time. However, most people are not usually aware of such changes since it may not exactly fall in their interest domain. However, tax professionals are usually updated with such pertinent laws and can help your organization avoid unnecessary litigation by abiding by the latest tax regulations and provisions.

This gives you a much simpler approach towards ensuring that your business is tax-compliant thereby creating a healthy working environment for you free of tax-evasion fears. Therefore, you should trust the advice of renowned tax consultants and let them handle your business tax requirements; after all, it is what they do. 

Proper Financial Planning

A tax consultant can help you to effectively plan for all your organization’s expenditures. Whether you want to acquire a home, buy yourself a car, or implement business changes, having the advisory opinion of a tax consultant can help you to save some money while minimizing your tax liabilities.

Conclusion

Tax consultants provide a lot of important services that help various organizations to meet their organizational requirements. Therefore, you should consider hiring a professional consultant from R &D tax incentive in Australia to ensure that your business abides by all applicable tax laws while keeping your tax liabilities as low as possible.

4 Top Qualities of a Top Payroll Manger

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Are you looking to hire a payroll manager for your small business?

First things first, you’ve made a savvy business decision. Paying your staff is one of the most important functions. You have to do it right.

You might have been in charge of payroll management when you hired your first employees, but as the team expands, you might not be in the best position to handle the function. A payroll manager will ensure your employees are paid their due wages on time and that your business maintains compliance with payroll laws.

But how do you find the best payroll manager? Continue reading for a list of top qualities you should look for.

1. Proper Professional Training

You might have handled payroll without any professional training, but that doesn’t mean your payroll manager shouldn’t have the right training. This isn’t one of those positions anyone with a high school diploma can do.

Anyone who wants to become a payroll manager must go to college and pursue a degree in business management, accounting, finance, or economics.

As such, ensure the manager you want to hire as training in any of these academic fields. An associate’s degree can suffice, but it’s best to hire a bachelor’s degree holder, especially if your business has a large team.

2. Professional Experience

Having the right professional training, on its own, isn’t enough to make someone a competent payroll manager. They need a blend of the right training and professional experience.

When conducting interviews, ask the applicants about their experience. Have they worked as payroll specialists before?

Ideally, you want to hire a manager who has at last a couple of years’ experience as a payroll specialist. Such a professional will already be familiar with payroll processes, so onboarding them won’t be a big challenge.

3. Tech Proficiency

Gone are the days when payroll was a task of pen and paper. Today, payroll management is digital.

As such, the right payroll manager should be tech proficient. At the very least, they should be good with computers and payroll programs, such as this https://www.paystubs.net/paystub-templates, which is used to prepared pay stubs.

During the interview, feel free to ask your applicants about the payroll programs they’re familiar with.

4. Keen Attention to Details

Payroll is all about numbers.

Every day, the payroll manager will be recording the number of hours your employees have worked, calculating salaries and taxes, and whatnot.

If the manager isn’t keen, they can easily make a mistake that will result in errors. The last thing you want is to underpay or overpay an employee or, worse, withhold less taxes.

This is why you want to ensure the payroll manager you’re hiring is eagle-eyed. They should be able to catch small errors before it’s too late.

Hire the Right Payroll Manager for Your Business

Hiring a payroll manager is a smart move, especially as a small, growing business. However, you must strive to find the right professional for the position. With this guide, you now know what to look for in the best manager.

Keep reading our blog for more tips and insights.