An estimated eight out of ten small businesses fail within the first few years. One of the primary reasons for this relates to financial challenges and poor cash flow. While there are many steps that you can take to line up funding you need to get your new business off the ground, the reality is that your quest for startup funding is only as beneficial as your budgeting efforts allow for. More than that, once your business has become successful, budgeting continues to be important to its overall profitability. However, business finances can be complex, and more than 50 percent of small business owners outsource this task to a controller. If you are preparing to launch your business or you are already an experienced business owner, you can more easily create an effective budget when you include all expenses that will affect your business in your budget. There are some expenses, however, that many business owners fail to allocate funds for. By learning more about these expenses, you can more easily update your budget successfully.
Insurance
There are various types of insurance that businesses need. If you have a larger business with several employees, you may be required to provide them with health insurance. With this as a requirement, you may budget appropriately for it. However, you may also need insurance for your commercial vehicles, rental or property insurance for your place of business and more. You should budget appropriately for the premiums for these policies as well as for the deductibles. You never know when you will need to file a claim, but you should always be financially able to do so.
Marketing and Advertising
Marketing and advertising are the lifeblood of many businesses because they drive sales. As important as they are, some businesses regularly fail to allocate a healthy sum of money to this expense. As a result, marketing can be irregular and not as effective as it could be. As you update your budget, consider all ongoing marketing expenses, such as hosting fees for your website. In addition, create a complete marketing plan for the next year, and allocate funds necessary to execute this plan in a timely manner.
Professional Lunches and Social Events
In many business environments, socializing and networking is necessary. It can cost money to attend hosted lunches for industry organizations, to take clients to lunch and more. A savvy business owner will properly allocate a healthy amount of money to this expense category. This will prevent you from running in the red when you take advantage of a great networking opportunity.
Property Cleaning
The cleanliness of your facility can impact the health and well-being of your employees as well as the image you project to clients and customers. You need to budget for cleaning supplies and services on a regular basis. In addition, periodic commercial carpet cleaning may also be necessary to keep your venue looking and smelling great.
Property Repairs and Maintenance
Property repairs and maintenance may not be a regular expense that recurs each month. In fact, several months may elapse between when your company is burdened by these expenses. However, such expenses can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars when they arise, and they must be properly incorporated into your budget. Make a list of all major repair projects you have in mind, such as kitchen cabinet refacing for the break room. In addition, allocate some funds to cover periodic equipment breakdowns. When you take these steps, you can ensure that you have funds available to keep your property maintained in great condition.
Taking steps to improve your budgeting efforts can go a long way toward improving your cash flow and preventing you from running in the red. You may feel that many expenses are unexpected and cannot be planned for. However, you know that appliances will break down, that carpets need cleaning and that networking opportunities cost money, for example. By allocating some of your funds to each of these areas, you can create a more realistic budget that covers all of your expenses. These should be included in your initial business plan before you launch a startup, and they should continue to be included in your regular budget.
If you enjoy the content at iBankCoin, please follow us on Twitter
