Credit Matters Newsletter
In This Issue
- What's New At Credit Matters?
- Quote Of The Month
- Monthly Business Observation
- Monthly Business Conundrum
- This Month's Business Inconvenient Truth
- Latest Blogs & Readings
- Special Topic
What's New At Credit Matters?
Please note there will be no newsletter in January as we are taking a brief holiday and reducing our workload over this year’s Christmas and New Year holidays. We are taking this opportunity to recharge our batteries and create new ideas for the future.
It is equally important that you also try to recharge your batteries and friendships to start the New Year refreshed and ready for whatever the world offers.
After all, we have come to the end of another traumatic year, the third in a row. It is more important than ever to reflect on the world around us. After all, we all need to admit the future will not be the same for many of us at was once before.
This newsletter will try not to burden you with too much information, rather, we have put forward a number of basic ideas for you to mull over. Our hope is that by reflecting on these factors, it will help you end 2023 in a really good position mentally and financially.
Attached is a flyer from Barry Urghart, one of Australia's leading marketing professionals with information concerning the recent Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales.
On that note, I hope you, your family and friends all have a great Christmas and New Year break. May 2023 be really kind to all.
Quote Of The Month
“The man who has anticipated the coming of troubles takes away their power when they arrive.”
Seneca
Monthly Business Observation
As we constantly try to encourage our readers and partners in business, managing risk is not just a dollar and time-wasting expense with little benefit. Managing risk is also a vital function of business and practised properly, leads to many operational and benefits.
Therefore, in today’s business environment, proactive and assertive actions, increased due diligence and strong business disciplines, may reduce the negative outcomes of many known risks and lead to positive financial outcomes. These risks include:
- understanding today's real economic conditions and not just the picture of what those with vested interests are telling you,
- KNYC (know your customer) has never been so important,
- customer insolvency,
- the repayment of preferential payments,
- slow and reduced cashflow,
- increase in false claims to delay payments,
- reduction of any possible frauds etc.
By properly managing these risks to your business, which are likely to increase in these troubled times, many of the above and other future problems, may be eliminated and the resultant negative effects reduced.
Monthly Business Conundrum
Today, we note that many businesspeople are being tempted to enter debt today to buy that next machine, create a new product, to expand their business, or to take advantage of cheap interest rates, etc. On the other hand, saving up, or keeping cash within the business is often deemed a “poor business decision”, or saving for the future means missing out on profitable opportunities today.
Unfortunately, when you borrow, even for what is noted as “good credit” purposes, as you get what you want today, you are also potentially reducing your ability to support your business’s future needs and opportunities.
We also know, in these turbulent times, many great opportunities will become available in the future because you can pay in CASH. It would be a shame to miss these opportunities if your business’s cash has already been designated for the repayment of debt.
One major negative about borrowing has become obvious, especially during the period of cheap interest rates. Debt has become addictive. in other words, many businesspeople become addicted to borrowing because of the cheap interest rates. As a result, it was all too easy to keep rolling over old debt for new, or to continue to keep borrowing. As interest rates increase, the former cheap debt, will not be so cheap.
Every business is different, however many of the basics remain the same. Going into debt for a benefit today, means affecting your business's ability to survive unexpected negative factors and restricting buying opportunities for success in the future. It goes without saying, cash today brings immediate rewards on so many levels without hindering other opportunities which are likely to appear tomorrow.
This Month's Business Inconvenient Truth
Christmas is a time of good cheer and fellowship. Unfortunately, it is also a time when three major factors to your business’s financial viability continue unabated. On those days when your business is not operating because of holidays, these factors, in no particular order, will affect your business’s profitability will still be operating.
1 Scammers / fraudsters which never cease their operations just because your business is on holidays as they prey on the naïve, the busy and the distracted.
2 Interest on debt owed is still being charged for every day that the debt remains unpaid and doesn’t just stop because your business is not open for business.
3 Expenses such as rent / rates / electricity / security expenses etc., employees benefits etc., have to be paid every day of the year.
To ensure the financial viability of your business, the negative effect of these factors on your business cannot be underestimated. It is the responsibility of every business owner and manager to ensure their decision making understands how these factors impact on the financial viability of their business, even when it is not open for business.
Latest Blogs & Readings
Making your own business decisions is really essential for every business owner or manager. The recent Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales are a perfect example.
Credit Matters is a financial risk management resource centre for the Australian business community. If you are in business, Credit Matters is your ideal source of financial risk management solutions.
Future Opportunities & Possibilities
Credit Matters is continuing to grow and provide marketing and knowledge about financial risks to the Australia business community.
Futhermore, we invite marketing and knowledge ideas from our readers and contributors on how we can assist our respective firms grow. If you have any ideas, please contact me at info@creditmatters.com.au.
If you are interested in finding new ways to reach your marketplace, why not try Credit Matters. Our prices for advertising are very reasonable and advertising packages are on offer to make any cost, even more affordable. So if you are interested in reaching your customers at the right price, please contact Kim at info@creditmatters.com.au for options.