| |
| |
|
Management Information |
|
|
|
Small Business Checking Accounts
ACCOUNTING AND BILLING CHECK BOOKS We recommend that you maintain a business checking account in addition to a small business credit card merchant account so that you can take credit cards from purchasers. This way you will know exactly how much is going into your merchant account and how much of your volume percentage is being done through credit card usage. You should shoot for 50-60% credit card sales and debit cards. If you are an owner/operator, you may not be as concerned with this number. However, if you are an owner of many locations or units, this percentage is relatively important. One reason is because these transactions are the most traceable. There is no way for employees to steal this money. Between ten and twenty percent of your volume will be in checks if you have a local business and decide to take checks. The rest will be in cash or credit card sales. If you are worried about five to thirty percent of your money being stolen, don't be. You can keep track of that even if you are on not on the premises with a good procedural policy for employees who ring up sales. If you are not good with check books (i.e. balancing, bouncing, reconciliation or writing check amounts and numbers down) hire a bookkeeper/accountant to pay your monthly expenses. Simply keep a stack of deposit slips in your store and deposit the day's take at the end of each day in the business bank account. The accountant can do the rest and then write you a check for the net proceeds at the end of each month or every two weeks if you prefer. If you hire an accountant, combining the merchant account with your regular business checking account isn't as big a deal because your accountant, if requested, can break down the amounts of deposits into cash, check or credit card for you. If you do your bookkeeping yourself, you will have to keep track of each type of deposit. It is not wise to have a business checking account at a savings bank because they will not credit your deposits with the total amount from your deposited checks until those checks have cleared. Usually there is a standard period of three to five business days to wait even though most checks clear in one to two days, although recently the Federal Reserve is changing this which will tend to help businesses but also cause more consumers to bounce more checks, so be alert to this issue and perhaps if a customer seems uneasy ask them if they would like you to hold the check one or two additional days since the float is no longer going to be in their favor and thus it could effect you as well. Therefore, you do not have complete use of your money yet, but you have still made the sale, which is your primary objective and that way the check will not bounce in your account causing a further conflict. Business is hard enough without a bank holding your funds, making interest on your money and inevitably controlling your cash flow. No matter what you do, we recommend that you use the accounting software such as QuickBooks to help you with your business accounting and your checkbook. At the end of the year you will be glad you did. "Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Collections Management How long does it take your customers, clients or patients to pay you for the products or services you have provided?Have you developed a consistent collection management program?Your answer to the above questions is a leading indicator as to how well you collection management is. Sending an invoice doesn't always result in payment. Keys to Feeling Powerfull In An Uncertain World Life has always been full of uncertainties. Over the last several years with downsizing, bankruptcies, scandals, crime, the economic environment, and the threat of war, people are feeling power-less, fearful, and stressed about their present and future lives. Building Shareholder Value Through Your People Increasing shareholder value is the most important driver for organisations in the modern business world. Shareholder value is built through growing profit and building confidence in the organisation, which moves share prices upwards. Loyalty, Motivation And Work-Life Balance Managers who aren't loyal to their people can't expect loyalty in return. Companies that complain about employee loyalty have usually done nothing to earn loyalty, often routinely lying to employees, demanding sacrifices that are never rewarded, shunting them aside and casting them off in the name of good business. What Makes A Good Media Story? Media relations can be difficult, but also rewarding. And the lessons we learn from working with newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and online publications should increase the effectiveness of all our communication initiatives. Effective Multi Cultural International Business Meetings Of the many areas in international business where cultural differences manifest is in the corporate meeting room. International meetings are an area where differences in cultural values, etiquette, interpretations of professional conduct and corporate rules are at their most visible and challenging to control. Innovation Management - idea selection, development and commercialisation, what are the differences? Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation. Is this A Good Time To Sell Your Body Shop Business? Have you ever asked yourself the question? "Is this a good time to sell my business?" That is a question every business owner asks himself, everytime he has a bad day. I once received e-mail from the editor of the Auto Body News, asking me that key question. Your Appraisal System Can Be Better - Overcome These Nine Serious Failings This article is directed at senior managers. As a senior colleague you have the authority to make tremendous improvements. Managing Dickheads "We are so different and individualistic that we can't work together." Subroto Bag chi, a senior executive in wipro technologies and Indian Technology MNC, said to his chairman in a straight talk. Shrinkage Control What has been your store's shrinkage experience for the last two years? What will it be this year? If it has not been as good as it should have been, now is the time to analyze the possible causes and take steps to keep shrinkage in line this year.WHAT IS SHRINKAGE?The difference between the perpetual book inventory and the physical inventory count is called shrinkage. The Silent Assassin - What to Do When They Visit You? IntroductionThere are a group of people in the community that will some time in their career visit your business; the silent assassin.The silent assassin displays all the qualities of a serial killer as they silently wreck havoc in your business through unrest, sabotage, bullying and non-productivity. Allan Kempert Discovers That Truly All You Gotta Do Is Ask A year or so ago, I met Allan Kempert. Allan was the Quality Assurance Supervisor for a metal stamping company in Ontario, and just completed Norman Bodek's book, The Idea Generator, Quick and Easy Kaizen. Influencing the Organisation There is a saying about management that suggests some managers are so focussed on the details of a business, that when the Titanic was sinking those particular managers were still straightening chairs in the dining room. Whether we love 'em or hate 'em, managers are here to stay, and their job is fundamentally to manage the resources within an organisation for optimum efficiency and effectiveness, and by doing so to achieve the organisation's goals. Setting Clearer Performance Expectations The annual performance review.Stating this phrase guarantees some reaction for anyone who has ever had one, or had to give one as a supervisor or manager. 3 Tests To Hire The Best Question: What's the easiest, cheapest and quickest way to have profitable, productive, and honest employees?Answer: Hire profitable, productive, honest people! Unfortunately, managers often hire underachievers or losers. Fortunately, pre-employment tests give managers a simple-to-use, quick, customizable way to hire the best. Success at Work : People Skills : Dealing with New Ideas Re-organizing, re-engineering, re-training, down-sizing, outsourcing, changing-changing-changing. Organizations today think they need to be constantly changing or they will perish. 5 Questions Great Managers Ask (and they arent hard!) However hard we try, we seem to make life more difficult for ourselves; more challenging; more complex. Yet it needn't be so. How to Create a Trusting Manager-Employee Relationship BUILDING TRUST AS A MANAGER: 1. Be reliable. Think Before You Talk What you say to other people can make or break you and it can happen without you even knowing about it. That old saying "loose lips sink ships" is oh so true in business.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
