Ah, there’s nothing like the prospect of a 12-month stint ahead to realign and reshape your business for the upcoming year. However, advising employees to give their desks a tidy and desktops a sort, isn’t going to reshape your firm in the way that perhaps you’d like.

Step into the New Year with new goals and aspirations; seek to take control of your finances, increase work productivity, prepare for new digital developments and create new opportunities.

Make 2019 your year; develop and grow your business with simple, affordable and effective measures, see below.

Remove cash flow problems – employ an affordable accountant

One of the main reasons for the collapse of small businesses is insolvency and for start-ups, employing an accountant can seem entirely unfeasible. However The Accountancy Partnership provides competitive, cost-effective financial services, so that SME’s are able to employ an accountant to effectively manage their costs.

The Accountancy Partnership is able to provide one of the most competitive cost-effective accounting services on the market, due to operating predominantly online, where they are also able to offer 24/7 support.

Employing an accountant to take care of your financial services will ensure that your business doesn’t spend beyond its means, accumulates profit and submits accurate, timely tax reports.

Struggling to balance your books? Find out more about The Accountancy Partnership and the services that they can provide for your business, here.

Take control of your finances, get organised with Pandle

It’s often when your business’ services are stretched that manual errors, such as transactional miscalculations, occur. This in turn can cause your tax submissions to be inaccurate – incurring delays, penalties and overspend.

Prevent errors, boost efficiency and take control of your finances, with cloud-accounting software, Pandle.

The software employs automation to streamline time-consuming bookkeeping tasks, and to ensure accuracy. Pandle has various features that effectively collate and organise your financial information, storing your receipts, invoices, quotations and transactions all in one place.

Users can also set payment reminders, so that they can remember to pay contractors, or freelancers on time.

Pandle’s mission is to give SMEs control of their finances with jargon-free, simple software, for if they don’t have the space, resources or finance to do so.

Pandle is also available via the mobile app, Pandle Mobile, so that owners or employees can keep on top of bookkeeping tasks whilst on the go, whenever, wherever.

By adopting affordable bookkeeping software, you can ensure your business no longer spends beyond its means, accumulates profit, and submits timely, accurate tax reports.

Prepare for Making Tax Digital with Pandle

Ensure you’re prepared for the Making Tax Digital initiative, of which is due to affect all applicable (VAT registered) businesses this April. Now if this isn’t you, there’s still no time like the present. As come 2020, all businesses that declare income tax and corporation tax, will have to submit their reports digitally too.

So put your mind at ease and start your switch over ASAP, as the quicker your business changes over, the easier it will be to adapt for when the time comes.

For if the majority of your transactions are being digitally recorded, then the less you’ll have to wade through piles of documentation, hunting for missing financial records relevant to the tax year.

Additionally, if you give yourself time to test out a few types of cloud software – click here to see all MTD eligible accounting software –  such as Pandle, then you’ll be able to discover the best software to suit your business’ needs.

Don’t leave switching over to digital accounting software to the last minute, try out Pandle for free, to experience cloud-based bookkeeping software at its simplest.

Send employees to events, to build rapport, up-skill and network

Permit employees to leave the office and attend worthwhile seminars, where they can learn new skills, fuel their passion and network with industry contacts.

Not only do out-of-office events build rapport between yourself and your colleagues – as they employees gain job satisfaction from your support and trust – but they boost work productivity, keep your business on everyone’s radar, and also serve as great marketing material – push out content from cutting-edge business conferences, to capture attention online and to depict your firm as one that is always out-and-about, hard at work.

You can also bring events in-house too. Invite clients and customers to your brick-and-mortar (or if not applicable, an event space) where you can network, build loyalty and potentially open up new opportunities.

Incorporate free digital apps to rejuvenate your business

Entrepreneurs can now enhance their businesses at their fingertips, with innovative apps. Increase time-management, restore order, problem-solve and even monitor procrastination all from your smartphone.

The top five rated business apps are:

• RescueTime – an app that tracks the time you spend on eCommerce and social media sites, whilst monitoring your set goals. This lets you visualise your productivity in relation to the goals you’ve set. You’re also able to block certain distracting websites through the app.
• Proven – a handy tool for HR recruiters. The app categorises applicants’ resumes via qualifications and experiences, and enables app users to post job listings via online boards in just a click.
• Evernote – an effective content-focused app, that is great for marketers, social media managers and copywriters. The app allows users to collate, and tag articles they’ve saved from the web, where they can edit them by attaching notes, images, audio, video and the like.
• TRIPIT – a travel organiser, where users can list all of their transportation in one place. The app stores all airline, train, cruise tickets, reservations and everything else, of which is useful for employees who’re constantly back-and-forth on business. Huting through endless emails for airline transfers and ticket receipts is now a thing of the past for workers.
• Oracle NetSuite – keep you and your business on track, with an enterprise resource planning app. Effectively manage your business on the go, as you keep on top of resources, expenses and your workday.

Are you looking to implement new software or strategies to help boost your business model this year? Comment below with what changes you’ve got in store for 2019.