Making Small Businesses More Efficient
The recent global financial crash and subsequent recession have undoubtedly had an impact on many small businesses. Typically with fewer cash reserves than larger corporations, a lot of small companies felt the pressure of the recession and many of them did not survive it. This means that, during the recovery, it’s more important than ever that small businesses work hard to make their operations more efficient so they’ll be able to better withstand any future financial shock waves. With over 99% of companies in the UK classing as small enterprises, this is clearly a major issue.
One thing small businesses often struggle with is streamlining their processes. With fewer staff and resources, it can be hard to fit everything into a working week, but one tool that could help is payroll software. For small companies, it is more efficient that outsourcing the payroll or trying to do it manually and there are good payroll courses available if you are interested in finding out more.
Simply put, payroll software can take over manual tasks that could be automated, which frees up your finance staff to focus on other things. The software can deal with tax and NI calculations, generating reports, monitoring holiday and sick pay, creating payslips and more. It can be a good idea to get some payroll training in order to get the most out of the software, but it is straightforward to use and can make a massive difference.
Another way of making your small business more efficient is to delegate where necessary. Everyone has different skills and it is important that you make the most of that, so work out who would be best at doing certain tasks and don’t be afraid of
asking them to do it. Other small changes such as introducing form letters can help as they save you having to write something new every time. Combining all of these things can really help to make a big difference to your business.
How to crank up your credit score
More often than not, we never think of our credit score until it’s time to buy a car or apply for a mortgage.
Since it’s not at the forefront of people’s minds on any given day, it may come as a shock to learn you have a lower credit score than you may have previously estimated.
In a tough economy good credit is essential, so how can you bump up that score to stand a chance with lenders?
First of all, take account of your current situation. Are you paying your bills on time or have you found yourself living paycheck-to-paycheck? If you have struggled to make minimum payments each month, fixing your credit will be more difficult, but not impossible.
Obtain a copy of your credit report and dispute any inaccurate information. If unpaid accounts are present, pay them. You may find a quick call to the company can produce a better resolution.
Some people who have experience financial woes in the past, such as foreclosures or bankruptcy, may consider living a cash-only lifestyle. This will never boost your scores and it will only take longer to recover.
Apply for a low-balance credit card if you don’t already have one, make modest purchases and double up on those minimum payments. It’s even a good idea to use any savings you may have to completely pay off the card’s balance every month.
If you already have one or two credit cards, don’t apply for anymore. You may be tempted to improve your credit score by maintaining low balances on multiple cards, but there’s always the temptation to max out every card. Getting into that situation with several cards will only put more strain on your financial situation.
Create healthier habits. Online bill-pay may be more convenient, but some people lose sight of the amount of money they’re spending in auto-drafted bills. Switch back to mail-in bills and write those checks personally.
On that same note, keep better track of your savings by keeping debit card purchases to a minimum. Swiping plastic is a cinch, but it distracts us as to the amount of money we’re really spending. Write checks when vendors accept them or withdraw cash from the ATM for store purchases.
Never close unused credit card accounts. If you’re trying to improve your credit score, closing accounts always hurts and can even make your score drop.
A better alternative is to cut up unused credit cards or hide them so you won’t be tempted to use them.
It’s especially important to keep old accounts open. The older the account, the more you’ll come across as an established, responsible consumer.
Use savings to pay down high balances. Perhaps you’ve built up savings for a house but still need to apply for a mortgage. Using the savings to pay down credit card balances will make you look better to potential mortgage lenders because your debt-to-income ratio will be much better.
If you’re at a loss as to how to improve your credit, don’t turn to credit repair companies. Many people find they end up spending hundreds of dollars on credit repair services only to end up disheartened, with fewer savings.
When you do need extra help, seek out local non-profit counselling services or schedule a free legal consultation. You can clean up your credit by yourself; it just takes a little extra time and effort.
Ignoring the Fine Print Can Cost You (Big Time)
Thanks to the Credit CARD Act, consumers are supposed to be more protected when using their credit cards. Part of the legislation included provisions for more disclosure, and therefore notification, of any changes. Since the bill was approved, you’ve probably seen a lot more letters in the mail from your credit card companies.
Keeping up with the fine print can be tedious (and boring), but something that requires your attention. While expenses and fees have been curtailed in some regards, banks have been using creative means to make up those “losses” in other areas.
One of my credit cards recently sent a letter notifying me an annual fee was being introduced based on the average spending. If you balance exceeded $1K you’d only have to pay $35/year and if it was under – $55/year. Considering how I barely use this card because of the other reward credit cards, I was quite upset. Cancelling the card wasn’t an option since it’s my oldest account – so I decided to call customer service.
Explaining the situation, they generously offered to only charge me the $35 instead of the $55. Sorry, no thanks. After a brief hold, they came back and said they would waive the fee indefinitely as long as I kept the account opened. That was easy enough! The entire conversation took around 7 minutes and saved me $55.
What was so interesting was how easy and quickly it was resolved, seems like there’s been a shift in the customer service mentality. Gone are the days of yelling and threatening Better Business Bureau complaints (to an extent). Of course, if this conversation took more than an hour as I was transferred between managers maybe it wouldn’t have been worth the time. But $55 in 7 minutes equates to a billing rate of $385/hour – much more than I actually make.
So next time you think of trashing that credit card notice before reading it, take the time to review the details and see how it will affect you. A minor tweak could end up meaning big savings on your part!
5 reasons to consider bad credit credit cards
Credit cards have today become a ubiquitous financial tool that can prove to be very useful in certain circumstances. However, there are a number of possible reasons why an individual might face problems or difficulties getting credit from financial institutions that provide credit.
Amongst the main reasons why individuals might be refused credit is poor credit ratings due to bad credit in the past (ratings may be affected by previous failure to repay loans or bills). It may also be due to a lack of credit history as a result of self-employment, part time employment, unemployment, low income, no income, changes in address and even not being on the electoral register.
For anyone encountering credit issues, there are several bad credit credit cards available on offer that may be worth considering.
Designed for people with less than ideal credit scores or a lack of credit histories, these credit cards can prove to be a step in the right direction for those plagued by the lack of or poor credit ratings.
First and foremost, applying for bad credit credit cards can help an individual improve and better his or her credit rating. Every time an individual applies for credit, the credit provider makes checks of the financial history of the applicant, to determine the risk involved in the loan.
Late or missed payments show up on the history and may result in poorer credit rating. Those without established credit history may also be categorized by lenders as being more risky to lend to because of the lack of credit information of financial credibility.
However, establishing a history of diligent, responsible and prompt payments can result positively for an individual’s credit rating. Credit cards can thus help those with bad or no credit histories to get back on track, or to get on the track in the first place.
Following from the above, for those with bad or no credit, credit cards can be a fresh start to establish sound credit history, or to improve bad credit rating.
By using credit cards wisely and responsibly, making prompt payments and keeping within the given credit limit, poor credit ratings can be repaired in a relatively short span of time.
Even with poor or no credit ratings, credit cards can help individuals to make a head start in getting in control of their finances, managing their monies and planning for the future.
With the establishing or the rebuilding and improving of credit ratings through the responsible use of credit cards, individuals previously overwhelmed with bad credit issues can look forward to a better and brighter financial future.
This includes increased possibilities of better interest rates on credit and loans taken in the future, higher limits on credit cards over time and better terms and conditions for refinancing.
A good credit rating will open potential credit applicants up to easier and quicker approval for a wider variety of financial products. Not only does this put an individual in a stronger position to negotiate better terms with the credit provider, it also increases loan options for the individual.
As lender confidence increases with better credit ratings, more options for credit and loans will also be available to the individual. This will come with a higher chance of approval for credit or for taking out loans.
Bettering credit ratings or establishing credit histories notwithstanding, credit cards can be highly useful even for those with poor credit standing. These financial tools can prove to be lifesavers in the events of emergency, where there are expenses incurred that might go beyond what can be afforded just by using savings.
For these unfortunate events, such as repairing damaged property or financing medical procedures, credit cards can prove to be very helpful, as long as the credit is repaid as promptly as possible.
