In running a business, a difficult time will surely arise, where the problem is related to cash flow problems. There is some evidence that many business owners often encounter very serious cash flow problems in their businesses. These problems will surely threaten the continuity of the business. Here are seven tips that can help your business survive when funding is tight and times are difficult.
1. Reduce Your Working Capital
When times are hard, the most logical thing to do is to start cost cutting here and there. You can cut your working capital if you freeze your increase in inventory. That’s because inventory usually binds the cash you need freeing it to be used elsewhere in your business. In addition to reducing your inventory, you can also be more diligent in collecting your debt. Which helps to increase your cash inflow.
2. Postpone the Expenditures of Capital Goods
In many businesses, spending on capital goods is always a long-term investment. When your business is struggling to pay salaries and meet other important overhead, starting capital expenditure is not a very smart thing to do.
3. Cutting operational costs
In difficult times it makes sense to cut operating costs. Maintaining and observing these costs allows you to know what to cut and what to keep. Whatever you cut, make sure it doesn’t really cripple your business.
4. Manage Your Inventory Control
Make sure you have a good record and update regarding your inventory. Use due diligence to verify all claims from creditors and pay only for short business items.
5. Negotiate Your Main Concession
When your business is in a difficult time, you can ask for a new business concession or you negotiate better terms on an existing concession. For example, you can ask for waivers on interest costs, fees, rates that your business has assessed or you ask for extended terms to pay. This action can provide temporary respite if you have cash flow problems. Bankruptcy is not in your interests or the interests of your creditors. That’s why your creditors need real flexibility to help you stay in your business even in difficult times.
6. Do everything you can to increase your sales
One way to get through this difficult time is to increase sales. When customers order goods in large quantities to you, ask for advance in advance to him.
7. Explore Decent Ways to Finance a Business
In difficult times, be ready to negotiate anything and everything that can help your business to ride out the storm. For example, if you can negotiate and restructure your debt, it will be able to reduce what you pay regularly for debt services. Refinancing usually frees up cash to be used elsewhere in the business.
From the description above, it is clear that when your business is facing hard times, it is best to focus on all your managerial decisions on limiting cash out of your business and increasing cash inflow. That’s the best way you can get out of difficult times.