Managing your finances is a part of doing business. Without knowing how the cash is flowing in, you’re not going to accurately account for the cash flowing out. That’s why better records mean better management – when the books tell you what you need to know, you can plan your future growth right down to the minute details.
But have you forgotten about something? There are various dangers associated with business finance management and some owners forget about a few. And if you want to secure more funding in the future, whether through new customers or investments, these are the issues you need to get a handle on.
Interest Rates Can Vary a Lot
Interest is one of the most hotly contested elements of the financial world. That makes it a strange entry for a list of ‘unknown dangers’, but we believe it should be here for one reason and one reason alone: people often misunderstand it.
Indeed, a lot of people don’t take into account that interest rates can move up and down even while you’re in the middle of paying off a current balance. This could mean any money budgeted towards your debt could end up worthless, or only pay off a portion of what you owe.
Be careful whenever you sign up with a credit company. Always check the numbers carefully and make sure you read the terms and conditions over twice at the least. Then, get to know what other consumers think of the agreement. You don’t want to sign up on a whim, nor take out a loan just because you think you should.
Your Payment Processor May Investigate You
Whatever company you work with to take payment from customers, they have a duty to keep an eye on your financial trends. Unusual activity is always going to flag on a system, and as a business owner yourself, you need to be aware of the safety concerns a processor may raise.
Say a customer’s details are leaked and/or accessed by a third party. This could make you a TMF/MATCH list merchant account, TMF/MATCH payment processing, as you have a duty to safeguard customer data at all times. If it’s found you made no effort to protect your customers against cyber crimes, it could spell disaster for your ability to manage your finances.
Get to Know Liquidity Risk
Every business has their slow periods. However, a lot of businesses fail to account for these in advance. As such, their business has a high liquidity risk, as they have to deal with a cash flow issue from time to time that cannot be covered by their incomings.
Make sure you understand how this flow works before you go into business. Finance management is more than just creating a spreadsheet detailing your cash flow. It’s about anticipating it far into the future as well.
There are a lot of dangers in trying to manage your finances. Get to know the worst ASAP.