5 Top Tips For Increasing Your Cash Flow

Working for yourself has many pros and cons but one of the biggest cons has to be the feast or famine situation we seem to get ourselves into.  Both Daddy Moo and I have some clients that pay 30 days, others who are more random and some (we like these the most) pay on the day jobs are undertaken.  This can mean on occasions we have a healthy cash-flow and on others we are eating beans.  But it doesn’t have to be like this with better management of our finances.

5 Top Tips For Increasing Your Cash Flow : 

Keep on Top of Invoices :

DON’T have an invoice day. If you invoice on the same date once a month stop now! Spread regular clients through the month and invoice adhoc clients as soon as each task is completed. This way your income should be more consistent and less sporadic.

Develop a system to keep on top of payments. Having an organised system will stop unpaid invoices slipping through the cracks.  I’m a list kinda gal so I write invoice details; email address, amount owed and a due date, on my to do list something I look at on a daily basis.

If you are more techie then there are apps which you can track invoices and payments on such as WaveApps or Xero.

Sell Stuff You Don’t Need : 

You might remember how I Kon Marie my office. Once I cleared away stuff I didn’t need or want anymore and sold them online I soon had £70.  From notebooks, pencil cases to books I’d bought and not read but don’t underestimate the resale value in old, broken or faulty technology. Music Magpie for example now accepts anything from laptops and Go Pro’s to mobile phones. I don’t know about you but I’ve 3 faulty laptops that I’ve still not go rid of and that doesn’t include the old mobiles piling up in a drawer.

Trim The Fat : 

There are always ways to reduce your outgoings in your business if you take the time to look and research.

Reduce your outgoings : 

• Can you save money on your phone bills? When you work from home it can be easy to use the landline and forget completely to take business calls into consideration.  Consider either having a dedicated business line, mobile or keeping a detailed document.
• Internet? Are you getting the best deal for what you need?
• Printing costs? Take a look at my 11 ways to go paperless in your small business for inspiration. The rise in cloud based resources really does provide a super fast, efficient and cost effective alternative to paper records.
• Insurance? Do you auto renew or do you shop around for the latest offers?
• Back to back meetings. To reduce the time out of my home office and the extra costs incurred such as petrol, coffee, cake etc … I tend to block book meetings back to back in the same venue. Also remember lots of coffee shops have loyalty cards or reward apps.

Take Out a Business Loan : 

Ferratum Business offers fast small business loans online up to £50,000. This can be a handy investment if you need large pieces of equipment or out grow your home office and need to relocate and have a sporadic cash flow or no working capital.

Ensure you use a specialist provider and have undertaken full research to find a trusted option. The benefit of borrowing this way is a decision can be very quickly made with cash being deposited in your account the very next day. Be aware, interest rates are very high, the example loan states 17p for every £1 borrowed meaning the cost of a £10,000 loan is £1,700.  Ferratum Businesses pricing is simple and transparent. There are no hidden costs, the application process is free and you are under no obligation to take the short term loan.

Only consider taking out a short term loan if you are sure you can make the monthly repayments.

Have a Flash Sale : 

Flash sales are usually held for a limited time period (24-48 hours), whereby your products and/or services are heavily discounted. Flash sales can be easier and are most popular with service based businesses selling virtual stock ie. eBooks, online courses etc. However eCommerce can benefit too by limiting what stock is on offer (usually something you have excess off or that has a low trade price) this will help make the flash sale seem exclusive. Not only can you generate income quickly but flash sales help to create a buzz and new interest in your business.  The key to a flash sale is making the customer think the offer is too good to walk away from.




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