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What makes you a good entrepreneur?

Do you dream about starting our own business? And, can anyone become an entrepreneur? When you look at the research, there are certain aptitudes, personality traits and business skills that tend to make you a more successful entrepreneur. But can you learn these skills? Or are these innate abilities that some entrepreneurial people are just born with? Let's take a look at what makes a good entrepreneur.What drives someone to become an entrepreneur?There are upwards of 582 million entrepreneurs i...

It's tough at the top (and that's why you need a business coach)

Being a business owner can be immensely rewarding. But it's also a highly pressurised and stressful vocation to choose. The business journey can be full of pitfalls and challenges that make it more difficult to meet your goals and turn your enterprise into a success. The good news is that you don't have to travel this road alone. A business coach is your companion on the journey. A coach will help to shoulder some of the load, so you can get where you're going faster and with all the personal an...

Knowing the tax impact of using a company car

Having the use of a company car is a great perk. But are you aware of the tax impact of a company car and how having this vehicle may affect your company benefits?Two of the key tax considerations related to company cars are the benefits in kind (BIK) tax charges incurred by the driver, and the tax deductions which benefit the company. At present, it’s also worth understanding the benefits of running an electric or low-emission vehicle.Understanding the BIK charges on your company carThe BIK a...

Can ChatGPT replace your marketing team?

Unless you've been living under a rock, you'll have heard about the ascendant rise of Open AI's ChatGPT and GPT-4 (plus other similar tools). These natural language processing tools have brought AI content writing to the masses – but does this mean that your content marketing team is now defunct?The short is no. For a start, great marketing has always been much more than just promotion. The traditional 4 P’s include Promotion but also, Product, Price, and Place. When these three work togethe...

Charging interest on a Directors' Loan Account

When you’re the director of a business, it’s likely that there will be occasions where you borrow money directly from your company, or inject your own capital into the business.A Directors' Loan Account (DLA) keeps track of this money owed between the company and its directors. In many companies, the account is in credit – i.e. the company owes money to the director. This can be due to directors injecting startup capital into the company, not drawing dividends they are owed, or other expen...

Are loans to directors and employees tax free?

If you’re a director then taking out a director's loan against the cash in your limited company might seem like a sensible thing to do. But the reality is that overdrawn loans to directors can lead to unintended tax consequences if they’re not properly managed.There are three main impacts: The loan may result in a taxable benefit-in-kind, if it’s interest-free and greater than £10k – affecting your personal tax payable. The company may suffer a Section 455 charge if the loan isn’...

What's the difference between statutory and management accounts?

As a business owner, you know you need to produce accounts – that’s a given. But do you know the difference between statutory accounts and management accounts?Your statutory and management accounts have two very separate purposes, and producing both kinds is good practice for any business that wants a handle on its numbers.Let’s take a look at the key differences and why you need these specific kinds of accounting.1. What are statutory accounts?Statutory accounts are a legal requirement f...

When should I register my company for VAT?

Sorting out your tax registrations is one of the first things to tick off your to-do list as a new business owner. But knowing when (and how) to register for things like value-added tax (VAT) can be a confusing process for new entrepreneurs. Here’s a straightforward breakdown of the VAT registration process.Why does my business need to collect and pay VAT?Value-added tax (VAT) is a consumption tax. It’s imposed on the value added at each stage of production and distribution of goods and ser...

4 key areas to think about when purchasing a buy-to-let property

Purchasing a buy-to-let property is an increasingly popular way to invest in your future and to give you and your dependents some financial security. But starting a property portfolio and becoming a landlord is something that requires plenty of thought before you dive in. We’ve highlighted five important areas to consider when purchasing a buy-to-let property1. What are the benefits of buying a rental property?With property seen as a relatively low-risk investment, you may well have thought ab...

3 cloud accounting tips to save your business time and money

Keeping on top of your accounts is a big part of running a successful and profitable business. But you don’t want to spend ALL your time dealing with accounting tasks, especially when that time could be spent building customer relationships, or developing new products etc.So, how do you keep your finances in check, while also spending less time on your accounts?1. Bringing your accounting into the digital ageSwitching to cloud accounting can be a revolutionary step for many business owners, es...

Strategic business partnerships: the benefits of working together

Your business may compete head-to-head with a number of other companies, but this doesn’t mean you have to treat ALL other businesses as if they are the competition. In fact, there are real benefits in creating strategic alliances with other like-minded organisations.When you look at the wider marketplace, you’ll see that there are businesses out there that may well compliment your offering. And by working together (rather than against each other) it’s possible to become valued strategic p...

Why your accountant is the ideal mentor

A business mentor can provide guidance and support, so you make the right decisions and stay focused on the end goal as a business owner. They can also help you move forward in your career by providing advice and feedback on what steps to take to reach the pinnacle of success.But have you ever thought of your accountant as a mentor?Why your accountant is the ideal mentorHaving someone who understands your business journey is incredibly important. You might see an accountant as someone who files ...

Want to cut your business costs?

Incurring expenses is an unavoidable fact of running a business. But there are ways to reduce the impact of these expenses, by claiming the relevant costs against your tax bill.Here’s our lowdown of which common expenses are tax deductible, and the advantages of claiming these costs to cut down your operational and personal expenses.1. Expenses for staff parties and social eventsStaff events, like your end-of-year party or your summer barbecue, are tax-deductible for you, as the employer, and ...

Getting your bookkeeping ready for a digital future

Keeping up-to-date records of your business transactions isn't the most glamorous part of being an entrepreneur, that’s for sure. But, in reality, having accurate and up-to-date bookkeeping is actually one of the core ways to keep your finances (and your business) under controlDigital bookkeeping is the future of your financeThe digital age has revolutionised the way many business owners carry out their bookkeeping. From digital accounting to real-time data, the modern bookkeeper is now equipp...

5 signs you’re undercharging

Are you undercharging for your services? It can be hard to tell, particularly if you’re in a niche industry or you’re a contractor. Costs have been rising, so it may be time to rethink your own pricing.Here are five signs that you might be undercharging:Nobody ever questions your quotes - Do all your new clients accept your quotes or charges without asking any questions, requesting a breakdown or wanting a discount? It’s possible they’re delighted to be getting such a great deal.You run ...

How much stress is good for you?

Trying to get perfect the work/life balance can be a cause of stress in itself. If you are feeling the strain of building your business and maintaining your life the good news is that stress and a productive existence can go hand in hand. Be mindful and you can find the balance that’s best for you.How much stress is good for you?The Yerkes-Dodson law shows that an individual's performance increases with stress (arousal) until cortisol levels get too high and then decreases again just as sharpl...

Is your 2023 planning leading you down the right path?

As a business owner, CEO or managing director, it’s important to look forwards. Your job is to guide the course of the company and to provide the roadmap for a successful year.But navigating the hurdles and driving the business to success is never easy – especially when you’re confronted with a market and economy that’s still in a state of recovery.A business plan that’s tailored to your key 2023 challengesSo, what are the current and potential risks that you should be planning for in ...

Understanding Your Breakeven Point

Your breakeven point is the income, or sales, needed to cover all of your business costs. Any earnings above this point generate profit. So, in a nutshell, your breakeven point tells you the minimum sales needed to keep your business profitable and viable.Combining your understanding of the breakeven point with detailed financial reporting from your accounting software is invaluable. You’ll get valuable data to analyse your fixed and variable costs. You can also set meaningful sales targets fo...

5 ways to get in control of your business finances

Having proper control of your business finances is a big advantage. It helps you make well-informed business decisions and keeps your organisation profitable.With so many digital tools for managing your bookkeeping, accounting and management reporting, it's never been easier to manage, track and forecast your financial position.But what are the main tools you need? And how do you set up your financial systems, apps, processes and reporting to put yourself back in the finance driving seat?1. Brin...

Are you ready for the end of the tax year?

Even if we’d predicted the chaotic events of 2022, you wouldn’t have believed us. Tanks rolling into a European country. The world teetering on the brink of both world war and global recession.Russian oil fuelling rocketing inflation. And then in Britain alone, four chancellors and three prime ministers in twelve weeks. The ‘KamiKwazi budget’, was followed by its almost total reversal. Strikes and the most brutal tax squeeze since the dark days of the 1970s…But as business advisors, it...

Build long-term customer relationships: improve your financial stability

We know that building long-term relationships with your customers makes good sense for your customer experience. But good relationships are also a key factor in making your business more financially stable and improving your bottom line.The answer lies in nurturing the relationship, building a sense of trust and satisfaction that leads to regular sales and a boost to your revenue.Nurturing customer relationships that drive your profitsA business with no customers has no future. But a business wi...

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment - pushed to 2026

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5 goal-setting tips for 2023

Whether you want to grow your business or take more time for yourself, these goal-setting tips can help you achieve your long-term plans.Think big! - What do you want from your life – and how can your business help you achieve that? Think about next year and beyond; what does your business look like in five or 10 years? When you know what end point you’re aiming for, it’s easier to set goals that move you in the right direction.Pick something you can measure - Vague goals aren’t as helpf...

How to get the most out of your pension strategy

How much thought have you put into planning out your retirement years? Your employees will automatically be enrolled into a workplace pension scheme. But for directors, partners and sole traders, there’s no mandatory requirement for you to set up your own pension scheme. When it comes to planning your pension, the buck stops with you. Let’s take a look at some of the main questions you’re likely to have about your retirement planning, with some straightforward answers to get you moving i...

Keeping on top of small business cash flow

Money in, money out. Cash flow is one of the most important measures of your business's health. But how do you monitor it? It sounds simple to track sales on the one hand and expenses on the other – then compare the two. But a massive 65 percent of failed businesses say they closed down because of financial mismanagement, including issues such as lack of cash flow visibility. In other words, they didn’t know if they were making more than they were spending....