Category: Finance

It is never an easy task deciding how much you should be paying your employees, even more so if it something you have never done before. It is important to find a good balance between paying enough to get the best possible staff, whilst not overpaying. You never want to pay more than the job is worth to the business, a salary is an investment like anything else and you should be able to see a return. Obviously, it is also vital to ensure you are complying with all wage laws and properly managing your payroll requirements.

Do your research

One great place to start is to research what other comparable businesses are paying for similar roles. You can often find this information on job advertisements and job boards. Spend some time looking online at similar roles, make note of things such as the duties and responsibilities of the position. Also looking in the same geographical area as your business will give you a good basis for comparison and give you an insight into what your competitor are willing to pay. Not all job adverts will state exact salaries, but many will at least offer a salary range to give you some indication of where to start. Check out this guide on researching salaries.

Look at salary surveys

Tools such as salary surveys can be used to determine the average salary for a specific job and industry. They are compiled from data collected from several employers, which is then analysed to determine a median salary. Salary surveys can focus on more than one job title, location and industry and are often conducted by specialists within the HR industry. When looking for a salary survey, be sure to find a reputable source that is proactive at keeping their information up to date. Salary surveys can quickly become outdated because of the time-sensitive information.

Do your maths

As mentioned earlier, a salary is an investment and therefore should have a return. For some positions, this is easy to work out. For example, for employees who are directly bringing money into the business, such as sale staff, you can easily work out if their salary is covering the profits they make; if they bring is £100,000 in profit then it is most likely worth paying them £20,000. For administrative and support staff this can be harder to work out as they aren’t directly bringing money in. The best way to look at their value is to look at the money they are saving your business, as opposed to the money they make. A good way to determine this is to look into how much it would cost to hire virtual assistance to complete their work instead but be sure to carefully think about whether virtual staff would realistically work for your business. Find out more about virtual assistants here.

It is also good to remember that some people value more than just money when it comes to their jobs. As a business there are plenty of additional benefits you can offer your staff to enhance their full package, such as flexible working hours, casual dress, extra holidays and telecommuting. All of these things can help enhance the appeal of your business to potential employees, and a lot of them won’t cost you a penny.

 

Image: FotografieLink

There are a lot of established companies out there that are willing to sell their businesses online. They have varied reasons for doing so. You might think that the company is already going down in flames and so the owners have decided to just sell it. However, there are others who decide to sell a business while it is still on top. This shows that they are willing to take the risk even though the profits are much bigger.

If you are clever enough, you might take a second look at these companies. Whether or not they are doing well, you can infuse your own techniques to ensure they will end up on top under your leadership. Who knows? You can turn a failing company around or move a company that is already doing well to an even better position? Here are some more reasons why you should consider buying a business.

You can gain control

The good thing about buying an established business is that you already have an idea of what works and what doesn’t. This gives you the opportunity to redirect it in such a way that it can produce positive results. It can grow really fast if you have prior knowledge of how it has performed in the past.

You can infuse your personal ideas

You might have set your eyes on this business for quite some time and you have a lot of ideas in mind about how to make it better. This is your chance to make it happen. You have spent enough time seeing how the current owner handled the business. If it is in line with what you really want in life, your ideas could take the business in a better direction.

You have worldwide access

Now that you are buying a new business that already has an established presence, you are guaranteed to have a bigger market. They have already worked on certain strategies to make the business more popular. You just have to build on this. There are already followers who are loyal to the brand. You just need to keep them and make sure you can encourage more people to buy. There are effective strategies that have worked before in expanding the market and you can also do the same thing.

It is a challenge

Although it is also a challenge to start the business from scratch, it is even more challenging to redirect an already existing business especially if it is not doing well. If you are the type of person who wants some challenges, this could be the right path for you. It is never easy picking the pieces up, but if you enjoy doing it, you will surely make the most of it.

Take a look at the businesses that are up for sale online and speak with the owner for potential deals. Be careful who you deal with and make sure to negotiate before signing the contract. Once you have gone through all the details, you will be ready to get the business going.

You may have great business ideas but you are unsure how you can make them into reality. You are worried you don’t have enough money to keep the business running. Lots of business owners have the same worries when starting their businesses.

A lot of businesses start up in debt. However, those who did borrow money, were confident that the business would be a success and that they would eventually be able to repay their debt.

Start with bootstrapping

The moment you decide to start a business, you must be willing to come up with various personal funds. You should have saved up for this moment. Check your savings account, credit cards, and home equity. It would be ideal if you can find enough money to start your business without borrowing. However, if you have not saved enough, you might end up taking out a loan.

Consider getting a loan

Consider applying for one of the many UK business loans available for startups. There are a lot of businesses that started deep in debt. However, those who borrowed the money were confident that the business would soar and eventually repay their debt.

There are a lot of options when it comes to business loans. Check the interest rates first so you can determine if you will be able to repay the loan. You also need to see if you are comfortable with the repayment scheme. If you think you can pay the debt without having a difficult time with the terms and conditions, nothing should stop you.

You might also consider microfinancing. There are financial institutions that are willing to extend help to those who wish to start their own business. They offer lower rates and they also target those who have financial problems but are willing to do everything to survive.

 Ask for help from friends and family

It might seem like a scary thing to ask your family and friends to help you out. They might judge you if your business does not succeed. You also don’t want this to affect your personal relationships especially if you are unable to repay the loans. Start with those who are closest to you. Let them know what your plans are, when you are planning to repay the loan and when the business is going to take off. Just give them the assurance that they will be repaid and they will most likely be willing to extend help.

Crowdfunding is another option

This is another popular method. You can put out your ideas for many people to see. Those who are interested in funding your business will contact you and you can work on certain terms. This is a good thing since it can become a potential partnership. You just need to work hard to send your message clearly and attract potential investors. There are other people using the same strategy so you need to find a way to stand out.

Regardless of your choice to fund the business, make sure that it will help propel you to success.

Image: Nappiness

Anyone who’s recently launched a new business will need to keep a close eye on their accounts. You have to spend a lot of money to get your concept off the ground, and so it’s vital that you cut back wherever possible. With that in mind, this post will offer some tips you might like to consider. Use this advice wisely!

Think twice about every purchase

Lots of new business owners overspend and buy things their company’s don’t need. For that reason, you should think twice every time you plan to use the firm’s credit cards. Impulse spending is a problem for many people as the infographic at the bottom of this page explains.

Know when to outsource

Sometimes you have to spend money to save money, and that is why you always need to think about the concept of outsourcing. It’s usually cheaper than employing someone in-house, and the idea leaves you free to focus on the growth of your enterprise.

Focus on the digital world

When it comes to advertising and marketing, it doesn’t make sense to spend money on TV and radio promotion these days. You’ll save a fortune if you focus your efforts online and market your brand using social media and Google Adwords.

That advice should ensure you manage to reduce spending and keep more cash in your business accounts this year. Now you just need to create a plan so you can determine your budget for 2018. Whatever happens, you just need to remain focused and committed to your goals. Good luck!

Graphic by Sunny.co.uk

There are numerous ways in which you can invest your money in 2017, with the Fintech revolution having created brand new opportunities for individuals during the last decade. Remember, the value of global Fintech investments is set to more than double between 2015 and 2020, eventually peaking at $46 billion.

Aside from underpinning accessible, online trading platforms like Oanda, the great thing about Fintech is that it has raised awareness about the investment options that are available in the modern age. This has made it far easier for people to open their minds and appraise their options in greater detail.

The key, of course, is to choose which one is right for you? Here are some of the key considerations that you should keep in mind:

1. Your Personality Traits

Before you even begin to consider the conditions of a particular market, you should appraise your own unique personality traits. This is because every marketplace and asset class is truly unique, meaning that each has a distinct risk profile and typical rate of return.

Now, if you’re a cautious individual who is a little risk averse, you’ll probably prefer investment options that provide you with a secure store of wealth (such as gold and company shares). Not only do these markets boast relatively low levels of volatility, but they also offer tangible assets that can be held for as long as is necessary to generate a profit.

Conversely, those with a greater appetite for risk will favour trading derivatives such as currency. Assets of this type are typically traded in volatile markets with high liquidity, while the fact that they enable traders to operate without the burden of ownership creates the potential to profit even in a depreciating marketplace.

1. Your Lifestyle

Lifestyle is also an important consideration, even in an age where it’s possible to trade multiple assets through your mobile phone. After all, each market has its own unique trading hours, while many also have an optimal set of times for executing orders.

Depending on your working hours, personal life and sleeping cycle, this means that some investment options may be unsuitable. This does not apply to entities such as the forex market, of course, as this is open for 24 hours, six days a week and enables traders to operate over three distinct sessions.

Most other markets are far less accessible, however, so you’ll need to ensure that can create an effective trading schedule that affords you the time to analyse the market and execute orders without compromising on your everyday lifestyle.

1. Your Unique Skill-sets and Expertise

Finally, you also need to pay attention to your unique skill-sets and areas of expertise, as these may naturally lend themselves to specific investment vehicles and assets outside of traditional financial markets.

If you understand the housing market or have previously worked in this sector, for example, buying and selling property could represent an excellent investment opportunity.

Similarly, those with existing financial or economic knowledge and numerical ability may want to consider investing in stocks, shares or currencies.