{"id":11912,"date":"2018-10-16T11:49:18","date_gmt":"2018-10-16T09:49:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.invoiceberry.com\/blog\/?p=11912"},"modified":"2018-10-18T11:16:36","modified_gmt":"2018-10-18T09:16:36","slug":"important-financial-questions-for-smbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.invoiceberry.com\/blog\/important-financial-questions-for-smbs\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Important Financial Questions For SMBs to Keep in Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you ever want to make it far as an SMB owner and eventually scale up, finances are an essential part of your business you need to pay extra care to. At the end of the day, the fundamental reason for business grow or fail has to do with finance, the money, and how the <\/span>cash flows<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

For SMBs, finance is something that can make or break your future.<\/b><\/p>\n

And as a small business owner, you can never lose track of the direction your company is going in terms of finance.<\/span><\/p>\n

Finance for SMBs<\/span><\/a> is a pretty broad topic, of course. <\/span><\/p>\n

So, in this guide, we\u2019ll be looking at some of the questions you can ask yourself to make sure you\u2019re on the right track as small or a midsized business, how to improve your day-to-day operations and how to get funded.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you want to grow as a business, you need to start asking the right questions. <\/b><\/p>\n

More specifically, questions regarding your finances and operational activities.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the bright side, regardless of your niche and business industry, the finance part usually stays the same. And the internet is always full of <\/span>resources<\/span><\/a> to help you along your journey. <\/span><\/p>\n

Today, we\u2019ll be looking at some of the important financial questions you can ask yourself as an SMB owner to make sure you\u2019re on the right track.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tObstacles That Small Business Owners Face<\/span><\/a>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tObstacles that small business owners face are plentyful. Find out what these hurdles are and how to overcome them in order to build a thriving venture.<\/span>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tREAD MORE<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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1. What\u2019s my value proposition as an SMB?<\/h2>\n

At the end of the day, it\u2019s all about value. <\/span><\/p>\n

Before you even talk about finance, it\u2019s important to take a step back and take a good hard look at your business. Make sure you\u2019re not short-sighted and instead, focus on the <\/span>long-term goals<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Long-term goals stretch across 3-5 years, while short-term goals may include plans you want to accomplish within the year (provided they\u2019re inside your <\/span>budget<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n

What value are you offering? What is your core purpose? In what industry?<\/b><\/p>\n

These are all questions you need to ask yourself to make sure you\u2019re in the right niche.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Marketing Myopia<\/span><\/a> – \u201cthe history of every dead and dying \u2018growth\u2019 industry shows a self-deceiving cycle of bountiful expansion and undetected decay.\u201d<\/div><\/span><\/p>\n

So, what exactly does this mean?<\/span><\/p>\n

Essentially, it\u2019s a way to make sure you\u2019re not short-sighted (myopic) as a business. <\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, according to Theodore Levitt, the railroad industry is an example of an industry that was short-sighted. They assumed they were in the railroad business, and not the business of transportation. This is why they fell behind as the need for cars and airplanes increased. People wanted better forms of transportation, meanwhile, they just focused on the railroads.<\/span><\/p>\n

For companies to grow, they must take a look at the industry they are in from a broader picture and take advantage of growth opportunities within the niche they are.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once you figure out your industry and what value you\u2019re in, you can move on to the next questions.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Am I differentiating efficiency and effectiveness in my operational activities?<\/h2>\n

As an SMB, you should always be looking for ways to cut costs and improve your day-to-day operations. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is an essential part of the operational activities in your <\/span>cash flow<\/span><\/a> statement and has a direct impact on your finances. <\/span><\/p>\n

Learn to prioritize in terms of your expenditures and operations. And as good as having a detailed <\/span>budget<\/span><\/a> is, you should still try to reduce <\/span>costs<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>expenses<\/span><\/a> wherever possible.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Differentiating-Efficiency-Effectiveness\"
Be sure to plan what tasks you’re executing first, and then how<\/em> you’re going to execute it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Your operational activities (in your cash flow statement) indicate the amount of money coming in from ongoing and regular business activities (e.g. providing service, selling products, etc.)<\/span><\/p>\n

In each step of the way of your activities, you should be asking yourself: am I saving time (money) in each of my operations? And here\u2019s where efficiency and effectiveness come in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Being efficient is about doing things the right way.<\/b><\/p>\n

Being effective is about doing the right things.<\/b><\/p>\n

Ideally, you should be focusing on both, and not prioritizing one over the other. Try to always look for areas in which you can optimize your business <\/span>operations<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

By focusing on efficiency, you\u2019re focusing on getting to a certain outcome faster. Meanwhile, by focusing on effectiveness you\u2019re focusing on getting a certain task done – period.<\/b><\/p>\n

As an SMB you should be looking for a crossover between the two. I.e. getting the <\/span>right<\/span><\/i> things done <\/span>fast<\/span><\/i> without spending too many resources.<\/span><\/p>\n

Time is money.<\/b><\/p>\n

And as an SMB, you should always be looking for operational activities you can <\/span>automate<\/span><\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n

Work smart, not hard.<\/b><\/p>\n

Speaking of…<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHow Online Invoicing Saves Time and Improves Freelancing Income<\/span><\/a>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tUtilizing online invoicing opens up a lot of opportunities. You save time as a freelancer, and are able to receive your payments quicker with less hassle.<\/span>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tREAD MORE<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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3. What\u2019s the smartest way to fund my operations?<\/h2>\n

There are a lot of different ways to gain investments and <\/span>assets<\/span><\/a>. And a lot depends on what you\u2019re after and what you want to gain from your company.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Gaining-Funding-As-SMB\"
Money isn’t everything, but it can be for most starting SMBs.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The following are some of the most common ones for SMBs:<\/span><\/p>\n