Australians have been very altruistic in recent weeks, donating millions of dollars to various organisations to assist those impacted by the bushfires. Unfortunately, there have been stories of scammers setting up bogus websites and donation points. For this reason, it’s important to check the veracity of the organization.  One way of doing so is to search the register on the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission website www.acnc.gov.au If an organization is on the register, it will be legitimate. However, if you

A great office space is about keeping your people happy, productive and working towards the key goals of your business. An office is more than a place to put your desks, it is the heart of your business and the space where your people will spend most of their working day. Your office needs to create the right atmosphere for your people and inspire productivity. A great workspace motivates your team Engaged employees make their organizations 17% more productive and 21% more profitable,

If you’re going to grow your company in the right way, pinning down your goals and having a clear vision for the business from the outset is vital. You may want to increase profits and create an income that supports your lifestyle, or you are looking to increase market share and aim for hypergrowth. You may even be aiming to increase the overall value of the company to get the best return when exiting the business. So, how do you define the

Get outside for a walk! Owning and working in a small business can eat up all your spare time. Exercise or time for yourself is often the first thing that is abandoned to fit in the many other things you have to do in a day. And while many of us finish the year with lofty goals for exercise in the new year, these lofty goals can be hard to achieve. Is this you? Here’s an idea… Instead of setting goals that are

Salary sacrificing to super allows an employee to forego part of their salary or wages and have the employer contribute this amount to their superannuation fund instead of paying it as cash. It reduces the taxable value of salary or wages, and is therefore beneficial to the employee in both reducing tax payable and increasing superannuation. Up until now, employers were allowed to calculate superannuation guarantee contributions (SGC) on the reduced amount of salary or wages. What’s Changed? From 1 January 2020, SGC

ATO auditors have recently completed over 300 audits on rental property claims and “found errors in almost 9 out of 10 tax returns reviewed”. He said the most common errors the ATO is seeing are:   incorrect interest claims for the entire investment loan where it has been refinanced for private purposes incorrect classification of capital works as repairs and maintenance, and taxpayers not apportioning deductions for holiday homes when they are not genuinely available for rent.   Regarding the first category of incorrect

Seasonal dips in income can be highly challenging when you’re a small business. But there are proactive ways to predict, plan for and overcome these dips in revenue. The key to dealing with seasonal dips is to know when they’re most likely to occur, and to have measures in place to spread your income and revenue pipeline over the course of the year. Understanding seasonality in your sector If your business is seasonal such as pool supplies, or a ski gear specialist, you’ll

Prepare now for your quarterly superannuation guarantee (SG) contribution lodgement and payment. Things to review before finalising the quarterly superannuation lodgement: Have you allocated all payroll related bank transactions to the correct accounts? Have you checked for errors such as duplicate pay runs? Have you checked that all payroll categories used this quarter have had super correctly applied or excluded? Have you checked superannuation accrual reports for accuracy? Do you have any salary sacrifice amounts to include? Have you had to make any termination payments this quarter?

The most simple and cost-effective way to grow your business is so often overlooked; happy customers become your strongest advocates. They talk to their friends, family, and associates and refer business to you. Here are 10 ways to delight your customers: Meet with your customers more often and take a genuine interest in how they’re doing. Run customer events. Put on a few drinks, get in a relevant speaker, and invite your customers along. Acknowledge your customers when they refer new customers to you.

When we set out on a fishing trip or hike, we always check the weather forecast. It’s no different in business. The forecast tells us if there’s bad weather (poor cashflow) in store based on the direction we’re heading. Your forecast will tell you: Whether you have enough sales in the pipeline to give you the desired level of profit you want for the year. Whether your margins are appropriate. If you need to review your pricing or production processes. If your business is running as