Small business owners likely have many things to worry about at any given time when it comes to successfully keeping their companies afloat, but in general, some might loom a bit bigger than others.
A recent poll from PEX, a company that makes prepaid debit cards for businesses, found that when they asked entrepreneurs about what "keeps them up at night," they received nine different answers, which shows just how problematic and multi-faceted it can be to keep all the balls in the air when juggling the various issues that come with running a company, according to a report from Small Business Trends. Of these nine major issues, generating new sales came in at No. 1, with close to one in five respondents saying this is their largest concern. Slightly fewer said that expenses eating into their profits was the biggest issue, making it the No. 2 concern overall. Time management and the ability to properly manage employees also garnered more than 10 percent of votes each.
When it comes to keeping all these issues under control at the same time, the task may not seem easy, but as long as owners can come up with comprehensive plans for spending and keeping their costs down, they may be able to avoid all these issues simultaneously, the report said. Obviously one thing that may end up costing companies the most is the amount they're paying in employee salaries and benefits, and thus it's important for companies to ensure that they are doing all they can to make sure they have exactly as many workers as they can afford. Moreover, when those employees have to go out on business trips, whether it's for a day or a week, it's important for owners to let them know about potentially strict controls on spending. While it might be tempting for these people to charge a lavish lunch or two to a company-issued debit or credit card, owners will have to explain to them exactly how much they are allowed to spend on these accounts as a means of keeping costs down.
Can this help in other ways?
When employees know exactly what they can and cannot do when it comes to spending on company accounts, that can ease a lot of owner concerns in other areas, including worrying that someone will overcharge when they shouldn't, the report said. In addition, this might help to free up some time as well, because owners likely won't have to spend additional time trying to get their companies' finances sorted out in the event of charges they did not expect to see when the bills came. Of course, using debit cards, or unique employee credit cards that link to main company accounts but have smaller individual limits, can be a great way to guarantee that workers don't spend more than they've been allowed for any given trip.
As far as boosting sales goes, the time owners may save in not dealing with these other issues might allow them, instead, to focus on ways of growing their businesses going forward, so that they can take on more workers and potentially expand in the future.
Of course, another way owners can reduce their financial worries is by seeking out more affordable small business insurance policies. Those for workers' compensation insurance and general liability insurance alike can grow quite expensive, and therefore finding less expensive options could free up some money that might be better used elsewhere when it comes to having a healthy business.
