Having a strong relationship with your partners is extremely important, but sometimes it isn’t enough. Having a document which covers all aspects of running the business, both those which are liable to disputes and those which are not is essential. 

If you haven’t done so already, the following are some reasons why you should create a written agreement now:

• You and your business partners have a clear understanding of the rules and regulations which will apply to the business and to your business relationship.
• If there is no agreement in place, then all the partners share equal profits and cover losses equally. This will be regardless of how much time and effort each partner contributes to the business. Creating an agreement will allow partners to tweak these aspects and create a unique division which represents the partner contributions more accurately.
• If there is no agreement in place, then the terms of the partnership will be covered by the legislation of your state or territory. These have a one-size-fits-all approach which might not suit your business. Creating an agreement specific to your partnerships will mean it is tailored to the specific circumstances and relationships within your business. 
• Minor disagreements can lead to bigger problems if there is no set method to resolve them. A written agreement will allow you to create clear and unambiguous procedures to deal with those sorts of matters and allocate roles to each partner so that there are no confusions about decisions-making. 
• Creating an agreement will allow you to focus on the business end of things as opposed to spending time on dealing with specifics of the partnerships. 

A written partnership will help streamline the nitpicky processes so that you can focus on the growth of the business. 

The term SEO gets thrown around a lot, but what does it mean? Search Engine Optimisation is the process of increasing the quality and quantity of your traffic through organic search engine results. Quality pertains to the types of people that visit your website and how relevant they are to your service and product. Quantity pertains to the amount of traffic your website receives. 

But what does that mean for your business?

Save money on ads: 

A significant advantage of SEOs is that you don’t have to pay for your website to come first on a search engine. If a website is well-crafted, then it will appear in the highest spots when a relevant search is made on google – without paying a price for it. Being one of the earlier results on a search engine also increases the perceived reliability of your business. 

Find your target audience

SEO can help you target the audience that is most relevant to your services. If your page responds to the needs a customer expresses on a search engine, the likelihood that they will visit your website and use your services is a lot higher if your website is shown early. For this, having SEO is extremely important. 

Stay ahead of competitors

Using SEO helps you improve your rankings on a search engine, and also helps you move above your competitors. Data shows that the first result on a page gets 20.5% of clicks, and by the fourth one, this drops to less than 9%! Moving up in search results make a big difference, and it also pushes your competitors lower.

Easy to measure

When you make changes to your SEO, you will be able to see how it impacts your website visits straight away! You can use tools such as Google Analytics which help monitor your traffic,

Feel like your business is stuck in a rut? Are you unable to solve a problem that you know will cost you in the long run? Struggling to navigate your way through a difficult time?

It might not be financially tanking, and it might not be that your revenue stream is down; however, if you’re not sure what direction to take with your business, you might need a fresh set of eyes and a bit of extra guidance.

A fresh pair of eyes to take a look at particular issues that your business is facing to deal with them doesn’t have to come from within the business. Sometimes, an outsider’s viewpoint or perspective can be even more informative.

Business advisers can be engaged across many fields with specially focused advice or strategies to a specific area (such as accountants, business bankers or commercial lawyers) or be a business adviser who is dedicated to considering the overall goals and long-term ramifications of your business’s strategies.

A business adviser can be hired on either a one-time basis (to deal with any one-off problems your business is set to face) or on an ongoing basis to provide continued support.

If you are only looking for a particular solution to a particular problem, one-time advice from a business adviser can be an easy and cost-effective solution.

However, if you’re looking for long-term ongoing support that’s backed by years of experience and a perspective that’s looking to preempt these issues, ongoing advice may be more appropriate for your needs.

Engaging a business adviser can provide your business with fresh ideas based on an objective analysis of your business’s current performance and situation.

Experts within their relevant fields are also able to provide you with specialised advice, based on the ongoing consultations you may have had with them previously or plan to have in the future.

As an example, contracting an accountant in a business adviser role means that you are looking for strategic and financial advice like profitability improvement, tax planning and advice regarding business performance. These can be critical to ensuring your business’s longevity and preparing for whatever the future may throw at you.

For example – if you were looking to sell your business, your contracted accountant should be able to map out the tax liabilities involved in doing so, the assets that would entail as part of the sale or even if you may be eligible for certain concessions.

An adviser who can offer timely and relevant advice to your financial situation can make a huge difference to your business in the long run. They can also assist you in plotting out business goals, preparing for hardship, or even working out what to do in the event of bankruptcy.

Looking for assistance in plotting out the financial future of your business, or for a tax specialist who can?

We are more than ready for that conversation to be had with you. We’re well-equipped to assist you with mapping out your business’s plan for the future, so why not speak with us and see how we can help you?

What is the origin story of your business? Why did it begin?

Many people might say publicly that they went into business to make a better future. Others might say that they began the business to pursue a passion. You may have simply wanted to earn money on your own terms, and create a better world for yourself.

More money, more free time, and more control or flexibility around your own work are often the reasons that people go into business. In a perfect world, you would have that control over your own work, be working fewer hours and have more money while pursuing your dream job and career goal. This may sound perfect, but it is rarely the outcome that people get from their own business.

In most instances, people may find that their hours increase, their income drops and though they now possess control, may also find that their business now also has control over them. The amount of work that may need to be done as a business owner can be overwhelming, but it must be completed. Instead of having one boss to answer to, all your customers are now your boss.

Owning a business can grant you more control, but it also comes with these heavier responsibilities and obligations. Being prepared is why consulting with a trusted business adviser can allow you to take the fear out of ‘impossible situations’ for the business, and give you choices.

There are many tasks that now require your focus to keep your business in operation – but to everyone else, it probably seems like you are living the high life as a business owner, answering to no one (if only they knew).

Your business probably started with a dream – a dream that probably did not include becoming a slave to your business or earning less than what you did in your previous job. What was that dream? What was your motivation?

Take stock of the situation you have found yourself in with the business. Relax, reflect, and consider what direction you want it to move in. Where do you want to go? Once you have a general idea, you need to put a little bit of time into planning how you are going to get there. Determine where you want your business to be in five years, or even ten years’ time.

Benjamin Franklin is believed to have once said, “if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”

It does not matter what stage of the business you are at, revisiting the business planning stage, even midway through the business, can be a useful strategic tool. Every business needs regular planning. This cannot be stressed enough. The chances of achieving your business goals are improved dramatically if there is a formally noted business plan.

A good business plan outlines your strategy for the next couple of years. It may be used to help support an application for business finance or business grants. Or it could be just for your own use as a roadmap for the growth of your business.

The components of a business plan explain your objectives and the actions required to get your small business from where it is now, to where you want it to be.

The process of creating your business plan will help you focus, crystallise your ideas and identify priorities, saving both time and effort. Your business plan will give you a clear sense of direction and a benchmark enabling you to measure progress.

In the approach to the end of the financial year, the best time to prepare a plan to use for your business over the next twelve months is now. Developing your five- and ten-year plans is also highly recommended. For assistance in preparing or developing your business plans, you can come and speak with us as trusted business advisers.

Company culture has become an important part of how businesses are perceived. Businesses with a positive culture are more likely to attract clients and customers. Statistics also show that over 50% of executives believe that having a good culture can influence productivity, creativity, profitability, firm value and growth rates. 

However, while it can be easier to describe and quantify a company’s products and services, defining culture is a lot more difficult. It requires capturing the company environment, values and relationships. 

Identifying what your company culture is, or what you want it to be, will determine your work processes, hire new people into your team, and how you and your employees interact with clients. 

The first thing to do is to identify key traits that describe your culture. Bring together a diverse group of people from across your company and brainstorm words and qualities which describe the culture. Collate the words which you hear the most so that you end up with a list which is representative of the culture that employees most relate to. 

The next thing you need to do is distil this list down to the core values you can see in it. You can conduct surveys (if you have a large company) or talk to your employees (if the company is small) and ask them whether the values you have chosen resonate with them, and if not, which ones do. At this point, you should aim to have around 5 values, but this is a flexible number. 

Last of all, once the core values have been established, share them throughout the company. Employees should relate to these values and they should also feel motivated to embody them. Communicate with your employees about why these values may or may not be working/suitable. 

Remember that this is a process. You may not get it right the first time, which is why it is important to be receptive to feedback from all members of the company.