3 More Ways to Beat the Small Business Cash Flow Crunch

In my last blog post I talked about three simple ways to improve your small business’ cash flow, including prompt billing, avoiding slow and no-pay customers, and asking for your cash sooner.

Now I have three more ways you can increase the cash flow. More specifically, these methods help you turn accounts receivables into cold hard cash that your small business can use today.

3 More Ways to Increase Cash Flow Into Your Small Business

Some of these cash flow strategies may take a little time to set up, but you’ll find that the resulting positive cash flow will be worth the effort. By implementing these strategies, you’ll be joining the thousands are small business owners who are looking at resourceful ways to get paid sooner.

1. Make It Easy for Your Clients to Pay
It’s only logical that your clients will pay you sooner if you make it easy for them. Here’s how. First, when you establish a relationship with a client, state your payment terms and options up front. Let your clients know whether you accept cash, checks, credit cards, and online payments.

Second, start accepting credit cards. As your clients begin experiencing their own cash flow crunches, they will want to manage their cash flow by using credit cards to pay for services. By accepting credit cards, you will increase your chances of being paid in a timely fashion. These days, small businesses ranging from plumbers to accountants are accepting credit cards–and seeing an upsurge of cash flow as a result. Although you will have to pay 1-3% to a credit card processor, the increase in your small business cash flow make the fees worth paying. Remember that 90% of business failures are due to cash flow.

Third, consider accepting online payments through services such as PayPal, Verisign, Quickbooks, or Authorize.net. Your clients are every bit as busy as you, and by allowing them to pay online, you allow them to handle payment at a convenient time, which may not be during regular business hours.

2. Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Your Money
Studies show that friendly reminders, along the lines of, “Did you get my bill and when can I expect payment?” can significantly increase payment rates. Before you start asking for payment, be sure that you have made your payment terms clear at the outset of your relationships with your clients. Next, use software to track the age of various accounts receivables so that you can easily list late-paying clients, and start calling with friendly reminders. Finally, if necessary, consider using an outside collection agency for extremely delinquent accounts. Use this option with caution, as you may negatively impact your business relationship with your late-paying clients, or others who know those clients.

3. Balance Your Client Base for Steady Cash Flow
Depending on how you typically bill for products or services in your business, you can create a steadier cash flow by using different payment structures for different clients. For instance, if your business is seasonal or experiences fluctuations in cash flow, consider switching some clients over to a retainer-basis so that the monthly cash flow is steadier. With a retainer, you offer your client a certain amount of products or services for a fixed fee per month. To encourage clients to switch over to this method, consider throwing some bonus products or services into the mix or offering a slight discount. While this might cut into your profit margin a bit, you will get the benefit of steadier cash flow every month.

It can take some time to implement these strategies. For instance, if you decide to accept credit card payments, you will need to set your business up with a merchant services company. Similarly, if you choose to move some of your clients to a retainer basis, you’ll need to spend some quality time with those clients to persuade them that a retainer is a win-win solution. However, you’ll find that if you invest this time and effort up front, your bank balance will reflect a much healthier cash flow, which is crucial in today’s tough economic times.

Have you got some resourceful methods for increasing the cash flow into your small business? Care to share?

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Tags: billing, business failure, increasing cash flow, payment terms, small business

3 Ways to Beat the Small Business Cash Flow Crunch

What do 90% of business failures have in common?

Lack of cash.

Cash is king. According to Dun and Bradstreet, 90% of business failures happen because of poor cash flow. In today’s fragile economy, maintaining a strong positive cash flow for your small business is more important than ever.

Cash Flow Basics for Small Business

Well, duh, right? Any high school economics student can tell you positive cash flow is important to a small business. But knowing about cash flow and keeping a positive cash flow for your business are two different things. So what do you need to consider when it comes to your business’ cash flow? Three factors affect cash flow:

- Accounts Receivable (cash flowing into your business)
- Accounts Payable (cash flowing out of your business)
- Overhead Expenses (a subset of accounts payable)

In this article I give you three ways to increase the cash flow into your business.

3 Ways to Increase Cash Flow into Your Business

If you accounts receivable records look good, your business cash flow should be good, right? Wrong. A positive accounts receivable column only helps your business if you can convert your receivables to cash. Your business’ accounts receivable is a listing of money owed to your company. But being owed and having cash in hand are two different things. So how do you turn accounts receivable into cash faster for your small business?

1. Bill Promptly and Accurately
Another “Duh!” suggestion, but you might be surprised at how many small business owners are guilty of neglecting regular and prompt billing, viewing it as another paperwork hassle that goes on the back burner. If your small business doesn’t bill promptly, start now. Assign an employee to handle this task if necessary. When working on long-term projects, arrange to bill monthly for work-in-progress and ask for a deposit before you start the project. Also, be very careful and detailed in your billing. Nothing strains a good business relationship like billing errors. Review your bills for errors and omissions before sending them out.

2. Avoid Slow or No-Pay Clients
You might be amazed at the kinds of clients who are slow to pay, or totally delinquent. According to Dun and Bradstreet, the worst slow-pay offenders are large businesses, those with 500 employees or more. On average, these businesses take 62.7 days to pay up, more than 4 weeks past normal 30-day terms. Here’s the other shocker: the most common no-pay offenders are clients who owe $500 or less. Apparently, these clients feel that this amount of cash is insignificant, and don’t feel guilty about not paying up.

Before you take on a new client or extend credit to a client, do your homework. You can do a credit check on all new clients using an outside agency, or request credit references and do your own checking. Another option is to call other businesses that do business with your client to learn whether the client pays on time. If the potential client turns out to be the slow/no pay type, don’t take them on. In lean economic times it may seem crazy not to accept all the business you can get, but clients who don’t pay up can seriously and negatively affect your cash flow. Not only will you wait endlessly to get paid for goods and services already delivered, but you will also spend a lot of internal resources tracking delinquent accounts and chasing your cash. The best policy is: “Just say no!”

3. Plan for Fast Cash
There are two ways to get your clients to pay up sooner. First, you can negotiate short payment terms when you contract with a client. These days, many small businesses are asking for and getting “net 15″ terms. See which if your clients might be open to these terms. Second, if you’re not comfortable asking for “net 15″ terms, you can offer clients a discount for early payment. Offer a one to two percent discount for paying within 10 days. While you’ll be losing a little cash to the discount, you’re overall cash balance will be a lot healthier.

These three simple strategies for cash flow management can be the difference between your small business operating in the black or becoming one of the business in the 90% failure bracket.

Do you have your own unique ways of preserving or increasing the cash flow into your business?

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Tags: billing, business failure, increasing cash flow, payment terms, small business