Salt Lake City Bookkeeping Blog

As a business owner, your company is probably one of - if not the - most valuable assets you own. But figuring out its true worth can be tricky. Whatever your reason for wanting to assess your company’s financial value, a formal business valuation is the best way to go. Let’s take a look at some valuation basics.

Money moves in and out of every small business, so managing cash flow is essential. You may not be able to avoid the expense side of the cash flow equation, but following a solid accounts payable process will keep business costs under control and may even save you some money. Let’s look at a few proven ways to plug potential holes in your accounts payable practices.

Nothing fuels a bottom line better than a revenue stream that’s solid and growing. But to hang onto existing customers, you need to inspire their loyalty. Consumers are always on the lookout for better value. And research suggests that, regardless of the industry, passive or indifferent clients will often switch product or service providers - even when they’re relatively satisfied.

Entrepreneurs often cringe at the idea of coming to terms with the language of finance. After all, isn’t that what accounting professionals are for? But getting up close and personal with key terminology not only helps keep you agile as a business owner, it can improve your understanding of financial strategy and increase your income potential.

Whether starting or expanding a business, capital is key. If you’re planning to approach a bank or similar institution for funds to back your idea or finance your growth, you’ll need a solid loan application in hand – one that can weather a thorough review.

From yoga studios to hospitality services, many small businesses rely on multiple income streams to support their revenue goals. If your business activity lends itself to recurring sales, the Rule of 78 could be just the tool you need to take your company to the next level.  

When you extend credit to a customer who fails to make good on their obligation to pay you, that loss of income becomes a bad debt. Most bad debt happens because a client has run into financial trouble. But regardless of the reason for it, a certain amount of loss is to be expected when you run a small business. So let’s take a look at how to deal with bad debt from a bookkeeping perspective.

How much is your time really worth as an entrepreneur? Getting a business off the ground and growing it to the point where it becomes profitable takes a significant investment of hours. But you can’t realize anything close to a realistic return on that investment if you consistently undervalue your time.

Every business owner needs a budget to help keep their spending on track. Forecasting revenue is the ideal way to get an educated estimate of how much money your company is likely to earn, versus how much you can reasonably expect to spend over the coming year.

As one of the most common exit strategies, there are many reasons why successful business owners sell their companies: to retire, to pursue new opportunities, to avoid burnout – even to dodge tax changes. With a recently booming sales market, if you’ve been thinking about selling, now may be the time to get the most from your exit.