Five tips to make sure your business enjoys a successful 2021

Jan 15 2021

Here’s how to give you and your business the very best chance of a prosperous year and knock off the low hanging fruit.

1. Press the reset button

2020 threw a whole load of challenges our way – the vast majority of which we simply weren’t expecting. We did many things in our businesses to react to those changes. We did things to survive. We did things to just get by. Now’s the time to step back and reassess. What worked and what didn’t? What are the far-from-ideal things that have crept into our businesses out of need, and what’s a better way of achieving the same thing?

2. Make mental health a priority

For you and your employees, last year was mentally tough – and the bad news is that the arrival of 2021 didn’t magically revert everything back to ‘normal’. Things are going to be difficult for quite a while yet, and your business needs to react. However, it can only respond effectively if you understand the mental health of yourself, your team and your customers. There’s no silver bullet to this, but it’s all about having regular conversations and being prepared as a business to do things differently. After all, if your staff are in a good place mentally, they’ll be more productive for your business – that’s a win-win. And don’t forget your mental health – steering your own ship can be challenging at the best of times, so make sure you’ve got someone you can check in with too. The team at Bizcap are big fans of the Headspace app.

3. Revisit your business plan

Most business plans for 2020 were out of the window by the end of March – and weren’t too useful for the rest of the year either. Yes, it’s a ‘fluid’ world in which we’re ‘pivoting’ and ‘adapting’ – but that’s no excuse for winging it. Redo your business plan with today’s challenges firmly front and centre. Set targets. Pinpoint opportunities for growth and investment. Assign responsibility for achieving those things, and review it regularly with your trusted team. If you’re struggling where to start, the guys at Xero have a great free business plan template that you can download here.

4. Use the instant asset tax write-off scheme

If the investment is on your business plan, this could be very useful indeed. To get the economy going again, the instant asset tax write-off threshold for businesses was scrapped in the last budget until 30 June 2021. That means a company can invest in an asset of any value this tax year and write the whole thing off against 2020-21 income. There’d previously been a $150,000 threshold introduced, and before that the threshold was $30,000. So, if you need to purchase something for your business – for example, a vehicle or software, chairs and tables or a new oven for your restaurant – now could be a good time to do so (it has to be installed and in use by the end of the tax year). Of course, speak with your accountant first.

5. Ensure you have a backup plan

The best-laid plans can be thrown into disarray, so it’s smart to have a backup plan. Whether you’ve got a cash reserve sitting there or want to get a quick fallback option in place to ensure you get through the next few weeks, Bizcap can help. Our cashflow capital ensures you can keep on track – and funds can be in your bank account on the same day. You can use our loans to help with a range of cash flow solutions such as, paying wages, marketing your business, purchasing stock, updating your tech stack or just to pay general bills.

Should you need access to cash flow capital, give our team a call on 1300 922 223 or complete the simple application found here.