5 Great Investments for Your Small Business
Small business owners are used to seeing money go out the door. Rent. Internet service. Materials. All the necessities.
You can’t run a business without any of those things, of course. But none of them help you grow. So at some point, your small business is going to have to dedicate funds for the sole purpose of becoming a bigger business.
But like with many problems, the solution isn’t just aimlessly throwing money at the problem. You need to know what kind of investments for your small business deliver the highest ROI, and every bit as important — when to make those investments to maximize their effect.
Today, we’ll talk about not just the what of re-investing in your business, but the when.
5 Great Investments for Your Small Business
Technology
Technology is perhaps one of the greatest equalizers for small businesses. Low-cost and even free software can quickly put you on fairer footing with larger competitors. For instance, you can immediately upgrade your recordkeeping with accounting apps, or become a more reliable partner with vendors and customers with bill pay programs.
Of course, all of this assumes that they’re used right, and at the correct time.
Used haphazardly, a handful of apps and software suites can actually overcomplicate your processes and give your employees more to do, not less. New technology solutions should only be implemented after careful research showing they’ll improve current workflows. And when possible, they should be implemented one at a time to allow employees the room to become comfortable with each one.
In general, there are few wrong times to implement cheaper tech solutions. However, we’d warn against rolling out new technology in the midst of a traditionally busy season — if something goes wrong, it’s best to risk as little customer disruption as possible.
Used Equipment
We’re not saying to never buy new equipment, but there’s something to be said about well-cared-for used equipment. Small businesses aren’t exactly flush with cash, so it’s vital to find meaningful value wherever you can. And typically, you’ll be able to find everything from point-of-sale (POS) systems to construction equipment on secondhand markets — dedicated websites, liquidation sales and more.
When does it make sense to buy used equipment? Well, anytime, if that’s all you can afford. But from a reliability standpoint, you might consider new equipment for anything that is mission-critical, and used equipment for when you’re making a growth push. It’s one thing to for a growth initiative to be hobbled by faulty equipment — it’s another thing for all company operations to grind to a halt.
Marketing
Word of mouth, while in its own way a powerful marketing strategy, can really only get you so far. At some point, you’re going to have to graduate to a concerted marketing effort.
The good news is, everyone wouldn’t market if it didn’t work. Getting your name out there – on the internet, on TV, on billboards, you name it – has worked for millions of businesses, and it can work for you.
But don’t think of marketing as a lever you suddenly pull hard. Instead, it’s like gradually applying a gas pedal. You can start marketing with virtually no outlay by setting up a few social media accounts. Over time, you can slowly grow your investments with a few paid social ads or a couple of mailers. Eventually, it might be worth building your own marketing department or hiring an agency to spread the word.
Employees
Think about every Fortune 500 company you can name. How many of them have just one employee?
Yes, most small businesses start with a lonely workforce, but it’s rare for a growing company to remain a one-man band for long. New employees allow you to produce more, sell to more people, and benefit from increasingly specialized skills.
That said, small business owners have a hard time determining when it’s time for their first hire. That’s because a full-time employee requires a lot of resources (money, benefits, training time, office space, etc.), and you can only really make the most of a new employee once there’s actually enough work to warrant hiring them.
But …
Outsourced Employees
A great investment in your own small business that’s easy to scale up as your company does is outsourced employees.
Here’s an example. You’ve been in business for six months, revenues are gradually improving, and you could use someone to help pick up a few extra hours of sales calls each week. You couldn’t possibly justify a full-time hire for that amount of work. But you could outsource that particular task to a contractor until your business is large enough to need a 40-hour-per-week salesperson.
You can apply this mentality to virtually every position in a workplace – even the accounting department. And that’s where McManamon & Co. can be extra useful.
McManamon & Co. is an accounting, tax, fraud, forensic and consulting firm, and its outsourced CFO services provide small and midsize businesses with a way to handle a growing accounting load without the expenditure of a full-time employee. It’s a great solution for both very small businesses that are scaling up, as well as rapidly growing businesses with existing accounting departments that need a few extra hours of weekly work but aren’t ready to add another position.
Learn more about how McManamon could be one of the best investments your small business ever makes. Call us at 440.892.8900 or contact us online today.
Tags: McManamon, McManamon & Co., outsourced CFO, outsourcing your accounting, small business | Posted in McManamon & Co., outsourced CFO, small business