The Secret To Running A Successful Small Business

Isn’t it great to be a small business owner? I know of no other job that is more challenging or rewarding than being the director and owner of Neville & Rowe (http://www.profitmanager.co.uk/).

But if we are all so passionate about running our businesses, why do so many businesses fail?

Apart from the obvious reason that there was never any demand for the product or service in the first place, I believe there is a very simple reason that boils down to the lack of funds, that is, they ran out of money.

Have you ever heard the phrase “It’s not what you earn, it’s what you keep”?

If the sales figures are phenomenal but the direct expenses and overheads are equally large then the profit just evaporates. Equally so, if cash is going out faster than cash is coming in, then funds will eventually run out. Hardly rocket science, but this is what happens to most failing businesses. Nobody took the time to keep an eye on the profitability and cash flow in the business and eventually they ran out cash.

So why would nobody keep an eye on such a crucial area? Are people just lazy or do they just not want to know?

I don’t think so. I’m a small business owner and I know what happens to my day. From selling our products and services, to tending to our customers, to administrative tasks, to tending to staff, etc, etc, etc. There is never enough time in the day to cram everything in, let alone time for trying to dissect an income statement and a balance sheet!

I need to know now what’s going on in my business. Are we on target compared to budget and do our cash flow projections hold?

I literally spend 5 minutes a month answering these questions and I don’t have a team of financial experts around me. I have one bookkeeper on a monthly basis and a software package called Profit Manager that retails at around £130.

I know months in advance whether I should start negotiating with my bank for a new loan. I know exactly where we are overspending and where we should be cost cutting. I know exactly what products and services we as a business should be focusing on.

Profit Manager works in conjunction with Sage 50 Accounts and Sage Instant Accounts to view the status of the business and forecast future trends using a combination of budgets, cash flow figures and what-if scenarios.

Visit http://www.profitmanager.co.uk/ for free download, full details, screen shots and video tour of Profit Manager.

Don’t let your business fail just because you didn’t have access to the right tools. Work smarter with Profit Manager. Download Profit Manager.

Andrew Neville
Business owner
Neville & Rowe Ltd
http://www.nevilleandrowe.co.uk/

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