Small business owners often feel that they have to do something to stand out from the crowd and attract an audience. If that’s how you feel, you’re definitely not alone. Many business owners try to stand out by creating fancy websites that grab attention. Those may work in the short term, but it’s worth considering other ways to market yourself as an industry leader and build relationships with your ideal customers.

Whether your small business is business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C), you likely deal with some level of customer churn, especially given the COVID-19 pandemic. Even customers who love your business and your products may have lapsed for a variety of reasons.

Traditionally, employers have relied on giving employees raises as a way to retain their staff and reward them for being hard-working and loyal. Raises can get expensive, and there is often an upper limit for what you can offer when it comes to increasing salaries and wages.

Keeping your employees happy makes business sense. You want to keep your good employees, and it costs money to find, hire and train new staff. Beyond that, employees that are satisfied and feel valued are more motivated and productive.

When you run your own business, it’s tempting to take on every responsibility. There are many reasons for doing so: because you want something done a specific way, because you don’t have the time to explain how to do it, or because you’re not sure someone else can handle the task.

Owning your business requires many skills, and among the most important might be the ability to manage negotiations. As a business owner, you could find yourself negotiating in many circumstances, such as:

• Salary and job expectations with a potential employee
• Financing terms with a lender
• Payment terms with a supplier
• Lease or property agreements
• Equipment agreements.

When it comes to managing your finances, there are two professions that can help you understand your numbers, and ensure you have a plan to get to where you want to be. Accountants and financial planners can both play an important role in your financial success, but there are some important differences between the two.

For any successful business, it’s advisable to have both an accountant and a financial planner because their skills are so complementary and they can work together to help you better meet your financial goals.

Financial security, whether that’s for a business or an individual, requires planning. You need to know where you want to be, where you are now, and how to cross the gap between the two places. Having goals and a plan makes it more likely that you’ll achieve financial security–whatever that means to you.

When a business first starts out, it’s natural for the owner to be a jack-of-all-trades. You may not have the capital to hire specialists or access to the technology that can help you. As your business grows–or as you look to take a smaller role in your company–you may find the business has become over-reliant on you, which makes it difficult for you to take a step back.

Your business needs cash. Cash is what keeps your company in operation and enables it to grow, so you should know how much cash your business needs to survive. Although many people think the answer is linked solely to operating expenses, this isn’t the case.

There is no single factor that determines how much cash every business needs to have on hand. Somewhere between 3-6 months of operating expenses is a good baseline to start from, but there’s more to it than that.

Solid cash flow management is vital to ensuring your business survives, but not everyone understands what cash flow is or how to manage it. That’s likely what makes it a leading cause of stress for small business owners. In fact, a Capital One study found that 42% of small business owners say cash flow management is a major concern for them.

Cash flow refers to the movement of money into and out of your business. It’s based on the amount of money you bring in minus the amount you spend. A positive cash flow means you’re bringing in more than you’re spending. A negative cash flow means you aren’t bringing in enough to cover your expenses. Your company can run into problems by not charging enough for goods or services, having clients who are chronically late to pay, growing too quickly or simply spending too much money.

Cash flow can vary throughout the year, depending on sales cycles or whether you’ve made a large purchase. Here are three strategies you can use to gain control over your cash flow.

These days, businesses have plenty of options when it comes to choosing software. There are hundreds of developers creating and perfecting new products designed to help you more effectively and efficiently run your business. With so many options available, it’s important to focus so you know where to start looking and how to make the best decision.

Covid has resulted in many business transformations. While some small businesses found themselves shifting their offerings, others moved online or found new niches. If you’re wondering how to continue moving your business forward following Covid, you’re probably not alone.

More companies are exploring their options when it comes to employees working remotely. There are numerous reasons for doing so:

• Increased worker morale
• More flexibility in work schedules
• Enhanced cost savings by not paying for office space.

With all the benefits, it makes sense that employers are considering whether or not working from home can work for their team.

While Canada and New Zealand have much in common, the tax systems are very different. Any time you move countries you should plan before you leave and ensure that you fully understand the issues as assumptions from one country may not be valid in the other. Once you have moved there is little that can be done.  Here is a summary of the tax issues when you migrate from New Zealand to Canada.

These days, many people are doing their Christmas shopping online, which means there’s a fantastic opportunity for you to get your business noticed by new customers. People who first find your business online at Christmas become loyal, long-term customers when you give them outstanding customer service and value.

The start of a business is an exciting time. You’ve got a great idea for a business and are enthusiastic to get started. It’s important to plan ahead to give your business the best chances for success. Planning ahead means anticipating challenges and developing ways to successfully address them, so they don’t upend your start-up.

Running a business in a smaller city may mean you have a more limited talent pool to draw employees from, but it doesn’t mean you won’t have access to top-notch workers. You may need to alter your recruiting strategy to show those skilled employees why they should consider working for your smaller business instead of going to a large corporation in a big city.

Here are some ways you can attract highly skilled employees to your company.

1. Focus on benefits

Large corporations in big markets can offer huge salaries and a glamorous lifestyle. A small business in a small city may not have that same ability. Instead of worrying about salary, offer amazing benefits.

If you’re looking for people to invest in your business, be prepared to answer some important questions. Investors look for smart investment opportunities

that means they want to find out as much as they can about you and your business before they make a decision about whether or not to invest with you.

It’s vital to have well thought-out answers to investors’ questions. Give them evidence you’ve thoroughly examined your business to make them feel comfortable investing with you.

Balancing customer experience against your budget is a difficult task. You need the right amount of staff working to keep customers happy, but not so many people that workers are standing around looking for things to do.

While Canada and New Zealand have much in common, the tax systems are very different. Any time you move countries you should plan before you leave and ensure that you fully understand the issues as assumptions from one country may not be valid in the other. Once you have moved there is little that can be done.  Here is a summary of the tax issues when you migrate from Canada to New Zealand.