Credit Matters Newsletter

 Back to Newsletters

Credit Matters
What's New At Credit Matters?

What's New At Credit Matters?

In case you missed it, our latest feature B2B Credit in 2020 is now available from our website www.creditmatters.com.au

Currently we are working on two more features which we hope will be available before the end of May.

This month we have attached the following brochures. The first is from Barry Urquart a marketing strategist with his view on economy, details from the Australian Small Business and Family Enterpris­­e Ombudsman on the recommendations for the new supplier code, a profile and list of services from CreditorWatch, details on Investigator's Upgrade courses, and our perspective on trying to identify fraudsters.

Don't forget, to promote your business services at an affordable rate, contact Kim at kim@creditmatters.com.au. You will be surprised at what we have to offer.

Quote Of The Month

Quote Of The Month

Many years ago my father said to me;

“If you owe the bank a million dollars, you are the worst customer. If you owe them 10 million dollars, you are their best customer”.

Monthly Business Observation

Monthly Business Observation

It seems at first, the question of identifying your best and worst customers is fairly easy to answer. In business however, nothing is ever as simple as it sounds.

On reviewing the question on what is your worst customer, it sounds easy. Fraudsters, slow payers and unscrupulous businesspeople would seem to stand out. Many business people, because they tend to think and act in black and white scenarios, might consider these are the worst type of customers.

These customers however are part of the business landscape. If you truly understand your own business and learn how these businesses operate, you may find they do offer a number of positive opportunities. For instance, until they show their hands completely for what they are:

  1. you may be to sell to them profitable,

  2. they provide valuable business lessons to remind you that these customer types exist, and

  3. it can be a good way to disrupt your competitor’s business by suggesting these customers go to your competitor.

A customer which can be equally dangerous for another reason is a corporate customer who believes they do not have to treat your business as a valuable resource for their business.

It is also worth observing what happens to many larger businesses. Many become smaller, swap suppliers on what seems to be a whim, or start demanding increased benefits whether the supplier can afford them or not.

Finally, if your business is principally relying on one or two major customers, then based on the principle of not having all your eggs in the one basket, this may make them the worst customer for your business.

The good customer comes equally with other different features. For instance, smaller dollar valued customers can be the most profitable on a sales per dollar basis. You may also find they are easier to deal with over the long run, especially if you show them a little appreciation from time to time.

In addition, they can also provide an opportunity to increasingly sell other products and services exponentially, once you have understood what sort of business they operate.

Smaller businesses can also grow into bigger customers and it is wise to not just categorise a business because they are a small dollar buying business today. It is worth remembering the old tactic of finding an honest jeweller. All you need to do is to ask them what is wrong with your watch when it only has a flat battery.

Business is never simple and finding which are your best and worst customers is a challenging and ongoing process. Beware therefore of labelling a customer with a black and white title of worst or best customers. History often shows the good customer of yesterday, is the worst customer today, and vice versa.

Monthly Business Conundrum

Is an invoice an asset or a liability?

Accounting classifies an invoice as an asset, therefore many business people cannot think anything other than an invoice is an asset. After all, an invoice does represent money owed to them, and technically, they are right.

An invoice is not always an asset however even though it represents money owed to the issuer. The fact is; once an invoice remains past due for payment, it becomes a liability. Not a potential liability, but a real liability.

When an invoice becomes past due for payment, your costs increase, which means it has now become a liability to the business until it is paid. You might argue that the costs are slight if the invoice is paid shortly after it becomes past due for payment. We all know however a multitude of small costs soon add up to a large cost.

Should the invoice not be paid within terms, these costs multiply the longer the invoice is outstanding and even if paid, there is no guarantee a profit was made.

One of the fascinating aspects of business is how an entrenched attitude or a convention from the past becomes the norm and blinkers our thinking. When management believes an invoice is an indisputable asset, they often fail to place enough importance on ensuring every invoice is raised correctly and paid within terms. Until management and business owners understand that not every invoice is an asset, many of them will continue to find, an invoice is not necessarily an asset.

Monthly Business Conundrum
This Month's Business Inconvenient Truth

This Month's Business Inconvenient Truth

Shotgun email marketing is often not a profitable exercise and neither are accounts receivable shotgun emails for the unpaid invoice.

There are some people who still believe in shotgun marketing because they focus on the old sales equation which goes something like; 100 contacts, perhaps 10 per cent recipients take an interest and two per cent buy. Whether this sales equation is still valid in the modern age where emails, particularly when so many unwanted emails are received, is debatable.

With the abuse of emails by marketers and fraudsters, coupled with the warnings of cybercrime experts, many emails are sent straight to the junk mail. Consequently, the marketing message is lost and perhaps their business’s reputation is also tarnished.

Once it becomes obvious that shotgun marketing is not the sole answer, the marketers and salespeople have to start picking up the telephone and visiting their clients again.

The same goes when sending endless emails about outstanding invoices. Many of the emails will end up in the spam folder, too hard basket, or remain unanswered because of the lack of time, or the recipient is overworked.

At the end of the day, just like the marketing and sales people, your accounts people will also find they too have to pick up the telephone to seek payment for the unpaid invoices.

 

Word Of The Month

Is the spelling debateable or debatable?

Now there’s something to debate about. There are many words ending in ‘able’ that are preceded by an ‘e’. How then do you know if the ‘e’ should be included or not?

If you’re using Microsoft Office products you’ll find both spelling variations are acceptable. Apart from Mount Debateable in Queensland, the spelling debatable without the ‘e’ is by far the most common. The Australian Oxford Dictionary only lists debatable, but the Macquarie Dictionary lists both, with debateable with the ‘e’ as an also, or secondary spelling.

Word Of The Month

theBankDoctor offers free banking and finance advice to help small business owners get the best business banking set-up.

Latest Blogs

Updates courtesy of www.asic.gov.au

Media Updates

Media Updates

Publications & Resources

Publications & Resources


Media Releases

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.

Read More



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.