Summer has finally arrived which means, for a lot of small businesses a slowdown in business and revenues. Staff members typically schedule their long overdue summer vacations and often times need to rearrange work schedules to accommodate their children’s school breaks which can certainly put a damper on production and cash flow. On the flip side of that summertime can also be a busy season for a variety of other small businesses that offer specialized services that are used often during the summer season. Whether busy time or slowdown time, the team here at Tax Alternatives have some important tips we can offer you to prepare your business for the summer months ahead.
- One of the simplest tips for summertime business challenges is to be aware of your employees scheduled PTO and vacation time off. Knowing in advance the time off schedules of your employees allows you to put a proper plan in place with proper coverage so business continues to run efficiently and smoothly while valued employees are out. Advance notification of scheduled time off also helps those in the payroll department ensure that employees are paid while away and that proper accounts that are affected by PTO time have sufficient funds to accommodate vacationing employee paychecks. When employees provide advance time off schedules, you, the boss is able to move deadlines if need be, shift work responsibilities for necessary time periods, and oversee certain protocols to ensure that business goes on as usual even with a shortage of regular employees on staff.
Another important yet overlooked tip for preparing your small business and workplace for the summer season is to have employees declutter their work stations. Going paperless is a very common practice these days and is not only efficient and eco-friendly but cost-effective as well. Shred items that are no longer needed, clear up the mess on your desk and the floor around it, and enhance your overall company presence and your brand messaging on social media sites as well, since many people tend to do a whole lot more shopping and traveling during the summer months. If you are a ‘seasonal company’ offering summer activities and products, hotel summer specials, restaurant promos to get the summer crowd in, or offer all types of specialized discounts for lawn care services or air conditioning maintenance and repair, then improving your marketing and advertising on social media sites will be a true benefit to you and your small business during the summer months.
- Going right along with acquiring time off requests in advance, you should evaluate your current staffing needs and determine if you need to make adjustments during the summer months to allow for a consistent work flow during other employee vacation time away. There are many small business owners who find it necessary to add on staff members for the summer months to meet with the specific demands of their valued customers. Restaurants, hotels, landscaping services, HVAC companies, and pool maintenance and supply companies are among some of the types of businesses that typically find it necessary to move around and add on staffing during the summer months.
- Being proactive is always a good thing. At the start of this summer season be sure to check out the cooling system in your small business, ensuring that ductwork, systems, filters and the likes are all in proper working order. Performing routine maintenance and having your system inspected before the long hot summer months, costs a whole lot less than having the system stop working or even breakdown in the middle of the summer and having to invest a good deal of money in costly repairs or a system replacement.
- Finally, choosing to outsource some of your small business functions can be a surefire way of minimizing payroll and insurance benefit costs and ensuring accurate accounting of all your business transactions. Some small businesses haven’t the ongoing resources to pay weekly salaries and may find it beneficial to outsource admin responsibilities and pay a flat monthly fee for services rendered. By doing so you not only avoid paying salaries and benefits that may fluctuate, but instead allocate consistent monies each month for outsourcing services provided. This can certainly help with your company cash flow in the summer months and throughout the year.
The team here at Tax Alternatives takes tremendous pride in our top of the line bookkeeping, accounting and payroll services, and are on hand to answer all your questions and help with important decision making. Our team of professionals stands ready to meet your business needs and look forward to our every opportunity to help your small business succeed whether summer, winter, spring or fall. Contact the professionals here at Tax Alternatives today and schedule a free consultation. Don’t delay. We can help save you time and money this summer with our premier outsourcing services!
