Improve Your Small Business Financial Awareness Today

As a small business owner or entrepreneur, the past two years may have seemed like an exercise in survival. With the promise of a new year, paying extra attention to the financial wellness of your business endeavor is a wise move. Yet financial management can appear a complex, never-ending process not in the typical small business owner’s toolbox. Fortunately, there are several excellent financial management resources available for local entrepreneurs, whether that comes in the form of expert consultants or industry-proven technology resources.

The City of Shoreview can help by directing you to the experts and programs that will make financial management an advantage in your business success. They include: 

• The Shoreview Business Peer Advisory Group is an excellent resource for business owners to assist each other through their shared experiences. 
• The Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers’ Open to Business program provides free direct technical assistance. An advisor can help with financial management techniques such as cash flow forecasting, financing projections and more. 
• MN Deed has a Small Business Assistance Office in St. Paul with consultants available to answer the complex questions surrounding mall business financial management. 
• We also recommend working with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) - Twin Cities Region, a business management consultant entity that can provide financial expertise and link to assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration. 

Financial experts with each organization can assist entrepreneurs and small businesses with business essentials, such as how to create an initial budget, develop financial projects and learn how to manage cash flow.

Technology Assistance

After getting a start on managing your finances, it becomes important to maintain that dedication on a daily and monthly basis - something that is not always easy for business owners. As a company grows, it can become possible to hire a full-time accountant, controller or CFO. Technological applications have made it easier than ever for entrepreneurs and small business owners to manage their finances. The following tools offer many advantages for solopreneurs and small business owners to manage company finances on their own:

Expensify

Keeping track of business expenses is not always easy, especially for incredibly busy business owners or on the road a lot. Expensify allows for integration between the app and credit cards and debit cards. This way, expenses can be uploaded and managed without manual data entry.

FreshBooks

Service-based businesses will find the customizable invoicing features of FreshBooks to offer significant advantages. Beyond invoice management, the cloud-based bookkeeping and integrations with many other financial software programs make FreshBooks a program small business owners should investigate to help streamline their daily operations.

Gusto

This app allows companies to manage their payroll, tax and benefits. The app reports any new hires to the government, ensuring that nothing is accidentally missed during the onboarding process. Plus, they handle state and federal taxes and even email digital pay stubs to employees. This means that a business owner can manage everything from their phone late at night or on the road. There is no need to print out paystubs or worry about tax filings. 

QuickBooks

QuickBooks is still a popular tool for small business accounting. It can sink with your bank accounts to make it easier to reconcile the books at the end of the month, manage invoices, keep track of vendor payments and more. Most businesses can benefit from using this software daily, or at least monthly. Since QuickBooks is full accounting software, it can take time to learn how to use it. Fortunately, we have resources who can help. 

Square

Accepting payments is easier than ever thanks to Square. It is possible to order a card reader that plugs into any smartphone. This means that business owners, salespeople, and employees can all take payments on the spot. Doing so can improve cash flow by providing quick access to capital, rather than waiting for invoices to be mailed and paid at a later date. 

Wave

Small businesses looking for free accounting software should investigate the features offered by Wave. Accounting, invoicing and receipt scanning is made simple with its mobile app, which seamlessly incorporates multiple businesses into one account.

Xero

Micro-businesses are defined as those small businesses with only a few employees, who often wear multiple hats to keep their operations running smoothly. These individuals will find the accounting software Xero to be extremely appealing. Its cloud-based platform offers flexibility with a mobile app, along with payroll integration with Gusto and inventory management, all at a subscription rate that makes sense for small businesses. 

In-person help is available

Whether you prefer an in-person discussion or a do-it-yourself approach, assistance is available. While technology is changing the business landscape by making it possible for business owners to do more with less time, it cannot replace the benefit of sitting down with an expert knowledgeable in your region. The City of Shoreview can help put you in touch with the professionals ready to help with your business health and plan for financial success!