business

If you own a business, you are likely looking for ways to be more efficient and save money every day. Whether it’s in how you operate, creating efficiencies, removing obstacles, settling deals, or in how you power your facilities, there are savings to be found. Especially when you consider switching to solar energy.

Rooftop solar for homes has been around for decades, and likewise, there are many businesses that have adopted this clean, affordable, reliable way of powering the things they do each day. But solar for business isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. There are several options to consider based on your available space, and what’s best for your needs and budget. No matter what form your solar panels take, you can save energy and money every month.

Solar panels and solar energy systems usually come with a 25-year lifespan, and warranty, because solar panels rarely break.

Here are 10 reasons why you should give solar the green light for your business. 

1. You have more control over your energy bill with solar.

While the cost of energy from your local electric company can go up and up without warning, the price you pay for energy with solar is fixed to your financing terms. And once it’s paid off, you own your energy free and clear. Going solar offers your business the chance to be free from the electric grid, and its problems, so that your business can continue every day, rain or shine, like clockwork.

2. Federal Tax Credits

There are special incentives for businesses to go solar that can significantly reduce the cost of going solar for your business. This year, the federal solar investment tax credit (ITC) is set at 26% for solar installed in the next two years and will decline over the coming years until it settles at a permanent 10% for businesses. Get your solar installation done this year or next to make sure you maximize the amount of tax credits available for taking this step towards renewable energy.

3. Set, meet and exceed corporate sustainability goals

Companies like Google, Apple, and Target all have added solar, and while these corporate giants have ample opportunity for solar panels on parking garages, distribution centers, and more, don’t let that deter your smaller business from going green. There are so many different ways that a business can incorporate solar into its energy plan. Don’t let the tech giants get all the solar rewards!

4. See solar as an investment in your business with a great return

Your return on investment (ROI) for solar starts the moment you turn on your system. That’s because the rate you pay for energy with solar will be much less than what the electric company is charging you. Once your system is paid off, your energy bill can even be eliminated entirely. Solar panels are maintenance-free for the most part.

5. Lower your operating costs

When your solar energy system is paid off, which can be sooner rather than later if you take full advantage of incentives and tax credits, your business will reduce its overall operating costs. Most find that installing solar pays for itself within five to seven years, while the system itself generally has a lifespan of 25 years. That’s potentially decades of savings for your bottom line.

6. See property values rise

Solar energy is a bonus for those looking to purchase commercial real estate, especially in today’s climate. Customers love a forward-looking business that is aware of its impact on the environment, and business owners love saving money on energy AND having the freedom of having a suitable backup if the electric grid fails due to equipment failure or a natural disaster or storm.

7. Going solar today is more affordable than it’s ever been

While solar has been around for a few decades now, today is a great time to benefit from all of the development and technological advancement that has happened in that time. Today the price of solar panels has come down 70% compared to what it was just 10 years ago. Add tax incentives to that and your costs are reduced even further.

8. Be cash-flow positive

Spending less money on your energy bill each month means more money in your pocket, or on your books, to help improve your business however you see fit. And once the panels are paid off, that cash flow only goes up. There are also programs like net metering that can help you sell your excess solar energy back to the grid and actually earn credits on your bill each month.

9. Boost your brand and your corporate image

An often-overlooked benefit of going solar is the optics! Yes, savings are great, and those are a given, but did you know that sustainability is becoming a bigger and more important selling point to a lot of consumers? They like to know that the goods and services they are buying are supporting the environment and that the businesses behind them are committed to protecting the planet as best we can for future generations.

10. Contribute to the local economy

Many business owners we talk to are a part of the community where they deliver goods and services, and when you go solar, you are likely employing a local company to come and complete the install. It’s important to do your research on the company you choose because they will become your touchpoint for questions/concerns and even maintenance as the years go on.

Commercial solar is a great way to include clean energy and generate savings that can help your business thrive. It’s easy to maintain, as solar panels are built to withstand the elements of wind and rain and even high-powered storms.

Here are some ways businesses can incorporate solar.

Ground Mounted Solar

Ground-mounted solar is also a great way to use solar panels for a business that has extra unused land. Often Agribusiness—farms are a great place for ground mounted solar, and the energy produced can help to power other facilities on-site to reduce one of the largest monthly expenses—their energy bill.

Parking Canopies

Parking canopies are custom built solutions that cover the area where your employees or customers park their cars. Businesses appreciate this option because not only does it offer the benefits of affordable clean energy, it also offers shade and rain protection for cars and people.

Parking Garages and Large Buildings

Large building structures are also a great place to install solar panels. Places like parking garages, distribution centers and warehouses—these locations offer ample rooftop space just waiting for solar panels to help offset energy costs.

Commercial Shops

Commercial Buildings—as long as you own your location, you can add solar panels to your building and offer your customers and employees the satisfaction of knowing you are a sustainably-minded business.

Let’s talk about how your business can benefit from solar panels. There are many options and ways to install clean, affordable solar for commercial use and with the right incentives and tax credits, you could be the owner of your energy for decades to come.

Cost segregation study is the most lucrative tax-saving strategy for all commercial property owners. You can claim faster deductions from the IRS of nearly 75,000 for every 1 million of the building cost.  Unfortunately, it is an under-utilized tax benefit because most CPAs do not have in-house expertise in this, even though there are experts who not only do this study for a fraction of your savings, they even work with your CPA and even provide a tax-audit defense.

You may have heard of cost segregation studies as a property owner’s way to tax benefits, but while the overall idea is appealing, the complex process and the prospect of involving the IRS to a greater extent than auto-approving your yearly business tax filing might scare you off and cause you to miss out on the advantage and gains these studies offer.

The benefits of cost segregation studies and their reports consist primarily of accelerated tax deductions for depreciable property, refunds, deferred taxes, and catch-up tax deductions for properties placed in service years ago. In other words, deductions that you normally think you will only be eligible for later might be available much sooner. Aside from their obvious income and property tax advantages, such studies are useful for financial accounting, in general, and also for insurance purposes. It’s preferable that such a study be performed as soon as a property is ready to be placed-in-service so it’s easier to keep accurate records, to find records you may have misplaced, and, of course, to enjoy early deductions.

Start Saving – Get a Free Preliminary Assessment! Your Name (required) Your Email (required) Your Phone (required) Notes (Optional: But a little information about your property will be helpful)

 

What is Cost Segregation Study? A Cost Segregation Study will identify all property-related costs that can be depreciated over 5, 7, and 15 years, instead of a typical 39-year-old period. Nearly 30% of all interior and exterior components can be written off faster than the core building structure. Who can qualify for Cost Segregation? In short, if you are a commercial building owner, there is no harm to get a free preliminary assessment if you can benefit from cost segregation. Owners of commercial buildings, shopping malls, apartments, casinos, gas stations, hotels,  warehouses, golf courses, restaurants, manufacturing/factories, IT & biotech companies or people who own at least a few residential houses/units are likely to qualify. What are the benefits? A cost segregation study will help in reducing your taxes, increase cash flow, tell you those items which qualify for accelerated depreciation but you have not claimed the benefit so far, “catch-up” tax benefit for older buildings How much does the Cost Segregation study cost? If found that you qualify ( or can benefit from) for cost segregation, only then your detailed cost segregation report is prepared by a team of civil engineers, structural & financial evaluators, accountants and other industry experts. They will work with your CPA and even assist if there is a question raised by IRS about a deduction. The typical cost of a detailed cost segregation report is about $3,000. This report can be anywhere between 100 to 200 pages. Each study has its own fee-based on purchase amount, location, building type, time in service if it’s a 1031 exchange building. In addition, there are studies done strictly on the renovations and if the renovations meet a minimum amount. And the renovations could be owner renovations or Tenant Improvements (TI’s). Fee’s can also be dictated by the type of study being done meaning – is it a one-off, a portfolio of properties. Types of buildings within the portfolio. Any previous client and what deduction they have taken in the past. The average study fee is around $3000 but they can be as high as a few hundred thousand dollars and as low as $1500. Why has your CPA never spoken about Cost Segregation ever? Cost segregation is a different ball game altogether. It requires a different set of experts. Cost segregation experts will work with your CPA to ensure that you are fully tax-compliant and the report content is in the comfort zone of your CPA.

Businesses that thrive are the ones who go after every opportunity and advantage they can acquire in order to improve their cash flow and secure their working capital. “Fortune favors the bold”, and in business, you’ve got to explore beyond your comfort zone in order to hunt bigger rewards and add them to your bottom line.

The IRS itself details the benefits of submitting properly executed cost segregation studies, while also warning against non-compliant and inaccurate reporting of assets and their costs. While considering the study you submit for their approval, the IRS can deny the entire study or at least some of its deductions or require more time for further examination, which would delay a determination on the deductions.

The IRS is an institution that does not shy away from applying penalties whenever the rules are not followed or there are egregious attempts to overestimate costs.

There are three minimum essential requirements to a cost segregation study:

1) It classifies assets into property classes (e.g., land, land improvements, building, equipment, furniture and fixtures);

2) It explains the rationale (including legal citations) for classifying assets as either § 1245 or § 1250 property (sections which will be covered later in this article); and,

3) It substantiates the cost basis of each asset and reconciles total allocated costs with total actual costs.

You may think: ‘It’s only three, how hard can it be?’ While the IRS does provide pages and pages of instructions and explanations, the filing rules are complex and the preparation can take days, if not weeks.  Some commercial real estate developers and other stakeholders have a hard time preparing correct and exhaustive studies for the IRS due to the daunting documentation, format requirements and evidence that needs to accompany them. The perception is that you have to become highly-versed in tax and accounting matters to do it, and for some small-scale entrepreneurs the whole process is too time-consuming and risky. That belief might have been a very rational, risk-based choice 20 years ago, but these days you can find knowledgeable and experienced specialists who will prepare the study accurately, so you can secure IRS approval to accelerate the recovery-cost of your real-estate investments.

At the heart of cost segregation studies lies the classification or reclassification of certain assets as depreciable over a shorter or longer period of time. This achieves recovery of some initial investments and costs earlier than the longest depreciable property. For instance, if the original total cost of a building is $10 million and that cost’s recovery normally occurs 39 years after the building was first placed in service, then the owner of the building can order a cost segregation analysis to allow him or her to recover the cost of certain components much sooner: in 5, 7 or 15 years. The IRS reviews such studies and then determines whether the assets listed are eligible for Section 1245 depreciation recapture or Section 1250 depreciation recapture, where the former identifies depreciable personal and real property that performs specific functions and the latter refers to buildings and more general structural components.

One of the best ways to prepare for depreciation calculations is to keep a record of all of the costs expended for these assets, individually, and as a lump sum, from the very beginning of the real property construction. Allocating the correct costs to each individual component of the structure or property and complying with the rest of the requirements, regardless of the calculation method or the study length, will shorten the review period by the IRS examiner by facilitating a precise overlap with IRS audit techniques.

There’s an additional depreciation category for components of real property which can be converted into personal property with shorter depreciation periods. That category applies to any qualifying property that can benefit from a first-year ‘bonus’ depreciation, as identified by the IRS in this list:

1) MACRS (Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System) property with a recovery period of 20 years or less,

2) Depreciable computer software,

3) Water utility property, or

4) Qualified leasehold improvement property.

The bonus first-year deduction ranges from 30% to 100% for the year the property is first placed into service.

Before embarking on the preparation of the study itself, certain questions need to be answered about the property, and the IRS lays out the most important ones:

1) Is it the property you own?

2) Is it used in your business or income-producing activity? (You cannot depreciate property used solely for personal activities.)

3) Does it have a determinable useful life, i.e. it decays, becomes obsolete or wears out due to natural causes?

4) Does it last more than a year?

If the answer is ‘yes’ to all of these, then the owner can claim depreciation. If the property cannot be used for more than a year or is not used in your business, then it cannot be depreciated. An example would be any kind of magazine or journal whose useful life is only the time needed for one read-through. If purchased for a business, that publication becomes a business expense, but it cannot be used in a cost segregation study due to its short duration. Likewise, the inventory you hold in your warehouse has been purchased by the business, but it’s there only temporarily until it makes its way into the hands of the buyer. The IRS doesn’t see that inventory as something you’d use in the course of the business, but rather as something you hold onto for a while as part of your business activities. There are some exceptions to this, depending on the nature of your inventory and how you treat it in the course of your business.

In general, there are exceptions to most or all categories of assets. Some are less obvious, and some are really surprising, notably when personal property turns into business property through a change in its use, which starts the depreciation clock.

By now it’s clear that once the asset is placed in service, depreciation is triggered, but what happens when the asset is no longer in service? Depreciation stops because the business has stopped using the asset and, as a result, it is now playing no role in its income-producing activities, whether it is now obsolete, was destroyed or is affected by other applicable conditions.

In some cases, the asset is still part of the business, but it has become ‘idle’ or unused, due to various problems, specific to its industry. Malfunctioning machinery or delays in a supply chain can affect the level of utilization of an asset to the point where it becomes idle. In that case, depreciation continues until the asset has fully-depreciated or it has been offered for sale. Note that a hotel that is only open during the summer months continues to depreciate during the winter months when it has very little or no activity. The frequency of use here has no impact on its depreciation.

There are many moving pieces during the preparation of a cost-segregation study and report, but the benefits are worth the trouble. Another advantage of ordering a study is the acquisition of practice and knowledge which can be used to prepare future studies, bearing in mind that the rules may change slightly over time. Recovery periods may increase or decrease due to technological advances, climate changes or the replacement of traditional construction materials and equipment with newer, different ones. These are just a few of the reasons why it’s important to have a qualified professional prepare your cost segregation study.

Specialists commit their time to study the IRS guidelines and to constantly learning from previous IRS study reviews, always keeping in mind what reviewers look for in a cost segregation study. They look at the study and report through the examiner’s eye and identify inconsistencies, higher or lower prices than the actual costs, incorrect classification of assets, and any omissions in the explanations that support your classifications.

The work going into the study and the end product is fascinating, as building components are broken down and given a life within the guidelines of the six methodologies used by the IRS. When done properly and the deductions or refunds are approved, this early return of some investment to the property owner can infuse their business with new life and a healthier margin.

One of the indicators of a business’ financial health is its working capital. Having no working capital means you may not be able to pay your bills on time, which, in turn, may incur interest or penalties.  In the long-term, insufficient working capital can harm business relationships and gradually run the company into the ground.

Working capital is not just cash, which may be easily and quickly used for investments, but rather a more complex web of cash, receivables, inventory and accounts payable that measure a company’s short-term, net financial health and performance.

There are many reasons why a company might have a low level of working capital, but those can all be reduced to the four components mentioned above.

Consider a scenario where a company is low on cash and accounts payable show an uptick; in that case, the company would quickly turn to its receivables and attempts to recover money from its debtors. With a somewhat liberal credit policy toward its customers that offers long payment terms, a company may find itself low on liquidity. When there are too many high-amount, past-due receivables, a company might have to make a choice between staying solvent and facing a downward-spiraling situation. Check out one of our past articles on accounts receivable for a more in-depth view of how to Prevent Non-Payment of Bills for B2B Transactions.

Inventory management is another essential part of controlling the company’s working capital. Reconciling the need to maintain an inventory with an efficient, customer-oriented production process flow takes not only a comprehensive set of steps and product stock analysis but also a deeper understanding of how overstocking and understocking impact the company’s operating liquidity.

Next, we’ll take a closer look at several specific behaviors that may threaten the working capital of a business and at alternative choices that can lead to a better outcome.

The Problem: Paying Bills the Moment They Arrive

 When it comes to paying bills, your instinct might be to pay them as soon as they arrive. This avoids costly late fees, bad credit scores, and prevents you from accidentally spending money meant for your accounts payable.

Paying bills the moment they arrive, however, may end up reducing your working capital until you suddenly find yourself with negative liquidity.

The Solution: Create an Invoice Calendar

When you receive an invoice from a supplier, check the due date. Many suppliers give customers 30-60 days to settle their bill.

Create a calendar of your invoice due dates. Be sure to set reminders at least 24 hours and up to a week in advance so that no due dates sneak up on you.

Having this calendar of invoice dates will help you see which invoices have to be paid right away, and which can wait. This allows you to manage your working capital better by spending only the money you need to pay out right now and saving the rest until you gain more income.

The Problem: Delaying Customer Payments

As a business owner, you might allow your customers to delay payment or pay in installments. This is not only an attractive option for your customer base, but it can also make you more competitive with similar businesses.

If you delay customer payments for too long, this could have a negative impact on your working capital. If your income is still pending while you have bills coming due, you could suddenly find yourself without capital with which to pay the ever-mounting debts.

 The Solution: Collect Deposits

To avoid this scenario, require deposits upfront. The deposit should be somewhere between 10-50% of the selling price.

When calculating the percentage to ask for, make sure you will generate enough income to cover your bills.

Create a customer payment plan that is less than the time you have left to settle your own payables (for example, if a retailer gives you 60 days to pay an invoice, you should give your customers 30 days). Our article, How Data Analytics Can Help Your AR, offers some useful information on how to use data analysis to optimize collections.

The Problem: Unforeseen Shutdowns

 Unforeseen circumstances can cause businesses to shutter operations and lose days, weeks, or months of revenue. These circumstances range from natural disasters to a global pandemic; still, even a family illness can halt all operations or significantly impair them.

If you have poor working capital management, even one day of lost revenue could have long-lasting consequences.

 The Solution: Start a Rainy Day Fund

A Rainy Day fund is a cash reserve set aside in case regular forms of income suddenly stop.

While there are many ways to create your fund, the best way is to open a savings account, preferably one that accrues interest over time. This account should be separate from any business accounts, and few people should have access to it (you don’t want a rogue actor inside your business to wipe it out).

The amount of your Rainy Day fund is up to you, but after seeing the longevity of the effects of COVID-19, having a reserve of at least one month of expenses is wise (meaning you have enough cash to pay your bills and your employees without any revenue).

Add to this fund every month or quarter, to ensure its growth and provide yourself with a greater financial cushion should the worst happen.

The Problem: Ageing inventory

In instances where companies overstock because of an upward trend in the market, faulty analysis or out of sheer optimism, there are several downsides that should make any business owner and inventory manager pause: the costs of storage, inventory tracking, long-term maintenance, increasing irrelevance of the current stock to the market, inability to bring new inventory that meets the demand of the moment, and stagnant customer engagement.

The Solution: Inventory Segmentation and Customer Re-engagement

An inventory is only as good as its shelf-life, and that means that the sooner it is loaded onto a pallet and leaves the warehouse, the better off the company is.

Supply and demand are two simple words given to what are actually complex market forces. Inside that market of constant exchanges, estimating and controlling inventories efficiently are vital to survival.

There are various ways to segment products based on a business’ profile and organization: obsolete, updated/refurbished or totally new; slow, moderate, or fast-moving; high- or low-priced items, or by level of cost per unit, etc.

For an aging inventory, the best way to segment is by product life cycle: obsolete vs. in-demand products.

One strategy to use obsolete products so they’re not a total loss is to repurpose or upcycle them. Another is finding niche customers or organizations that cling to an outdated way of doing things and who might still be in need of the product. A third one is renewing relationships with customers who bought the product in the past and assess their current need for your inventory.

Working capital doesn’t have to be a complicated part of doing business. With accurate data entry and just a few calculations programmed into a spreadsheet or software program, a company can be proactive and efficient at managing its capital. As long as it doesn’t spend too much of that capital to manage it!

Credit Unions must (seriously) reinvent their brand for millennials to compete for account deposits and financial services

Millennials are such a vital generation for financial service providers to address, not only because many of them are now coming into sizable personal income and surpluses through jobs and inheritance, but millennials are distinctive in their fluent use of technology and their outlook on finances, economy, family life and careers.

This is the start-up generation that is making a living out of entrepreneurship that can be deeply- personal, ventures such as ad- and donation-funded YouTube video channels, blogging, ‘Instagramming’, creating and playing computer games, inventing new drinks in a makeshift home brewery or using urban art for social and political activism.

Credit Unions have been traditionally less-visible and less-known than big national banks, not because they offer less-advantageous banking services but mostly because they are limited by their membership (members of a community or employees of the same company) and by their low marketing budget.

Quite often you drive on the highway and see billboards displaying a variety of ads, including some for services of commercial banks. It may be no surprise, then, that when you want to open an account, you immediately think of these banks. While older generations might be more aware of smaller financial institutions, younger people seem to prefer convenient and ostentatious banks. Or do they?

Are they making an informed personal choice or one that stems from innocent ignorance of available options? Do credit unions really not have what young people want, or are they just not focusing their sales and marketing on what is actually a very natural fit?

Examining the values of younger generations, including millennials uncovers several shortcomings inherent to credit unions, but also reveals solutions for attracting new deposits and business.

Each generation is not always easy to understand by those outside it, but they have some defining characteristics. Millennials are considered to be individuals born between roughly 1980 and 1997.

Some general observations on their behavior and values were synthesized into 10 characteristics by this Indeed article. By considering those, we can clearly see where credit unions need to step it up, if they are going to attract the attention of the millennial generation which is already making bold financial decisions and lifestyle choices that lock in their commitments, personal connections, and their growing balances with financial service providers.

They value meaningful motivation, are free-thinking and creative.

This generation is greatly inspired by personal success stories. While seeking career advancement and ways to be recognized in the workplace, millennials are also interested in the personal touch. They value ideas of substance, personal growth, and non-traditional out-of-the-box achievements. They’d most likely be attracted to a credit union with an interesting history or one which shows unique initiatives that surprise but offer a meaningful connection with its members and the community.

Millennials challenge the hierarchy status-quo while placing importance on relationships with superiors and valuing social interactions in the workplace.

They are more interested in having fruitful and productive relationships even if it means breaking the norm rather than abiding by established rules which are safe but hinder their development and progress. Their attitude stems from confidence, ample education and a disillusionment with the society their parents helped create. They will not overhaul something just for the sake of it but will seek constructive means to make things better in a way that includes their own mentality.

Since they seem to be openly receptive to feedback and recognition, they will appreciate a supportive team-like environment, whether it’s at work or in the businesses they collaborate with.

Any policies, financial services or customer relationship strategies are worth exploring that can tackle these aspects of their behavior by tapping into the need for connection but also a rebellious streak that is still “chill” and kind. Credit unions need to come up with measures that change things that are not working and that adopt innovative techniques to deal with different financial problems and sore spots such as loans for housing, transportation, start-ups, and even offering financial education to protect millennials and their families from bad decisions.

With an intuitive knowledge of technology and constant exposure to rapidly evolving software and apps, millennials are open and adaptive to change.

They will seek out and adopt the services and products that fulfill their needs. There is an opportunity here for credit unions to figure out what needs these are and adjust their range of services. The first step, however, is to truly step into the 21^st century in terms of technology. It may not be possible for credit unions to have ATMs everywhere, but given the digital behavior of this generation, having easy-to-use, highly-performing apps can offset this disadvantage.  Many prefer to manage their investments, checking and savings accounts, all through mobile apps. Millennials want secure banking on-the-go in an attractive and easy user experience with motivating messages and indicators that nudge their personal finances in the right direction.

This generation places importance on tasks rather than time.

This may be true in the work environment but as far as their financial behavior, millennials are always looking for quick answers and solutions to their questions and problems. That is not to say that they’re superficial. They have a passion for learning and are definitely more inclined to be financially savvy than the previous generation. They are more informed about and more concerned with saving money, debts of any kind, budgeting and overspending, investments and money-making side-hustles.

A financial institution that doesn’t just treat them as a number in a ledger but makes them feel trust in their capacity to offer solutions and honest advice will likely earn not just their business but their loyalty, too.

A few other things that credit unions can do is look at this generation’s lifestyle choices and find a niche to expand their offerings of financial services. Since millennials are postponing the start of their family but are eager to adopt pets, can a credit union offer a package that includes pet insurance? Are there any rewards for the customer if they visit a doctor that the credit union recommended from its community, even from its pool of members? Are there opportunities for investment and retirement accounts? What kind of marketing campaign can a credit union develop to take advantage of geographical and economic diversification? Is there a way to acknowledge some of the behaviors and beliefs many millennials have exhibited such as anti-corporatism, joining cooperatives like urban gardens in their neighborhoods, shopping at farmers markets and supporting small producers’ associations, boutique grocery stores and eco-living communities?

Becoming millennial-friendly doesn’t necessarily mean completely-overhauling the way credit unions do their core business but rather adapting to the needs of potential customers by rethinking the outward-facing layers that customers experience directly to better market and facilitate what credit unions already do best. As not-for-profit financial institutions, credit unions benefit from a good reputation supported by their resilience through economic crises, but the old-fashioned, traditional way of doing business is a detriment to further development and survival.  Still, retro is cool, so old-fashioned can also be hip.

By starting to understand and service the millennial customers of today, credit unions can stay relevant, show their value, and broaden their reach to new customers now and into the coming future.

 

In a previous article, we discussed the importance of a SWOT analysis. One of the main functions of the SWOT analysis is to help formulate strategies to keep the business running and help it grow. Here, we will look at the most common reasons why some strategies have been successful while others have failed.

‘Strategy’ is a magic word that can have different meanings in different industries. Some businesses mention management and operations, others expanding their market share, while others focus on maintaining their customer base or constantly innovating.

Generally speaking, it is a set of principles used to achieve the company’s goals; and for that reason, it tends to be business-specific. Its success or failure also tends to be business- and industry-specific. There is no infallible strategy that can be applied to any and all businesses, in any field or economic cycle. It’s the result of a convergence of favorable factors with sound decisions, clear goals and dedicated involvement of all stakeholders.

Some of the best advice about business comes from those in business. If you have no seasoned tradesman to help devise a strategy, you can find many resources online. The three basic business strategies, according to Porter are: cost differentiation strategy, product differentiation strategy and growth strategy. These broad approaches have been analyzed extensively by economists, business owners and politicians alike, and to prevent redundant work, we will concentrate on actionable, specific strategies, stemming from these three.

We will analyze each and offer tips in each category so you can see how the advantages and the risks apply to you. The strategies often go hand-in-hand, where you can design a marketing plan combined with product placement.

Cost-cutting and optimization – do’s and don’ts

What do most companies begin with? They look at pricing. It makes immediate sense – I set prices based on costs plus a reasonable margin; I cover my costs, and make a profit. But the flaw in this strategy is that customers don’t think about business’ costs – their main consideration is value, i.e. what they think the product is worth. You can’t put out a product or service that costs the company $10 when the consumer thinks it’s not worth more than $8.

Another strategy widely used is setting prices to meet the market – either you make a profit when your product or service’s perceived value surpasses the costs or you are intentionally lowering your costs to compete with other players already established in the market. The risk here is that customer and competitor behaviors can be unpredictable. Your competitor may lower prices even more while you’ve been selling at a loss all along.

Don’t forget the importance of value in your pricing – if you cut costs to bring your prices to the lowest possible point, you will inevitably be sacrificing your product’s value.

Do place importance on the individual customer’s buying habits – and weigh up the risks of setting your prices solely on your product’s market value.

What must a business remember most of all in pricing? The variables used to calculate the products’ costs (raw material prices, energy costs, import/export and logistics tariffs, interest rates) are ultimately and inevitably uncontrollable and unpredictable.

Given that, it is best to be proactive and open to change, as you periodically examine the rise and fall of these various costs and how they impact your profits and pricing.

Product strategies – do’s and don’ts

Celebrity businessman Dave Ramsey inspired entrepreneurs worldwide with the quote: “A goal without a plan is just a dream.” In order to ensure success for your product, you must make sure that your strategy is solid.

A successful product strategy takes these three areas into careful consideration: business and/or financial goals, market and competition, product features and unique selling proposition. Careful planning and development of each key area will allow you to predict your product’s success and/or identify potential problems before they arise.

Do keep a close eye on your competition while ensuring your product offers value to potential users. Market research is an essential part of your product strategy and should never be neglected. Remember to keep an eye not just on your long-established direct competitors but also on potential talent, those up-and-coming start-ups that could topple the status-quo.

Don’t allow your product to get left behind before it’s even had a chance. Many products fail because businesses are unable to adapt quickly enough to our fast-paced and ever-changing market or the business takes too long to launch the product.

Make sure you launch your product right when you see the opportunity in the market, and don’t forget to stay armed with a good supply of risk and change management strategies.

Rethinking how your existing products are made might lead to ideas for structural changes that could make your business more nimble, so you can ramp production up or down profitably or reconfigure operations more flexibly, which allows you to modify or make new products in response to anticipated markets.  That improves your reaction time in the face of risks or opportunities.

Growth strategy – do’s and don’ts

Like with product strategies, planning is key in ensuring your product can grow and adapt to its market environment. Fail to plan, and you plan to fail.

So, what do you need to carefully consider your product’s market?

Is it an existing market, with a well-established competition? If you find yourself struggling to eke out a niche for your product in a sea of similarity, you need to consider market penetration as your main objective. Market penetration is the hardest growth strategy to tackle, and for good reasons. To increase your market share, you must take the time and resources to carefully evaluate how much your product or service is being used by customers compared to the total estimated market for that product or service. Once you have an idea of how far your foot is in the door, you can plan further strategies more effectively, such as differentiation and innovation.

Let’s consider that you are targeting a new market with an existing product. Market development is key here. You may need to consider targeting new geographic areas and launching your product or service internationally. Business trends point to global perspectives, supply, and sales. As a result, many tools have been developed in recent years to help businesses determine how to enter foreign markets.

But what about when your company already has a good market share in an existing market? You may need to consider introducing new products for expansion and will need a product development strategy. Many companies invest in research and development (R&D) to develop their strategy – Apple, for example, invest heavily in Technology R&D in order to ensure they can launch a new and improved version of the iPhone every few years.

Don’t forget to roadmap your product’s trajectory – take the time to establish where you’ve been, where you are, and where you’re going next.

Anticipating trends in unpredictable markets as well as keeping on top of fluctuating data is a constant challenge, for sure.

Don’t forget to check in regularly with your team and quickly identify any signs that your company could be running into difficulties. Are your stakeholders satisfied, or have they been showing discontent? Have you been missing more and more deadlines and failing to reach deliverables recently? Do you feel that you are switching too erratically from one strategy to another, unable to find one that fits?

Many of these symptoms can be traced back to superficial SWOT analysis and faulty calculations.

Depending on the business owner’s appetite for risk, they can be shapers of their industry or adapters. Some of the most notorious trailblazers we know are Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, while others have chosen to follow their lead and adapt to changing industries across the board. That is not to say that merely adapting to market forces is a bad position to be in. Each entrepreneur chooses their style of doing business and measures success in their own way.

Do carefully evaluate your business strategy and make sure that it is working for you and your product or service. It may seem like a challenge, but it could just be your company’s biggest opportunity yet!

Risk is an unavoidable part of life. Uncertainty shrouds every action, threatening even the best-laid plans. Risk management practices help businesses predict and quantify dangers as precisely as possible to avoid them or minimize their impact.

Every organization should have a risk management plan in place, offering guidance to employees and executives on the proper procedures for qualifying and mitigating hazards at critical business touchpoints.

Below you’ll find strategies for formulating and improving your plan. If you haven’t given risk management a thought before, we hope this article opens your eyes to the value.

It Starts With Your Company Culture

Risk management is only useful if everyone in the company is committed to rooting out dangers wherever they’re hidden. If people fear they will be negatively-judged, or worse, blamed for revealing endemic threats, they’re likely to let them fester until it’s too late to avoid the worst effects.

To create a constructive culture that values risk management, make it clear that employee feedback about potential issues is welcomed and rewarded. Encouraging employees to take ownership of their projects will increase the chances that they’re analyzed for potential hazards. Couple ownership with unambiguous management processes and your culture will grow to embrace risk management as second nature.

Reward Prudent Behavior

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained” can be understood to mean that taking risks is always preferable to inaction. This leads organizations to reward those that take bold action, even if it puts the group at undue risk.

Responsible risk assessments must balance possible gains with potential losses. When a proper analysis is conducted, the conclusion may be that possible bad outcomes overshadow potential benefits. In this case, prudent behavior should be rewarded. The risk for its own sake should never be valued above measured consideration of every possible outcome.

Keep Company Goals in Mind When Assessing Risks

As stated earlier, every action contains an inherent risk. Many times, opportunities for growth are also risky endeavors. When performing a risk assessment, it’s essential to keep the organization overarching goals in mind.

Managers and employees should ask themselves how likely it is that a given action will benefit the company, and to what extent potential risks are trumped by greater upside potential. This can help prevent overzealous risk restrictions that deter employees from engaging risks that may help the company reach its objectives.

Identify Risks as Early as Possible and Monitor for Changes

Risk management is an attempt to foresee future events and prepare for them to mitigate bad outcomes. The sooner your staff engages in this process, the more time they’ll have to alter plans and timelines.

The irony is that the earlier this process is engaged, the less accurate it will be, simply because the events its predicting are further out in the future. More can change between prediction and resolution. Therefore it’s critical that risks are monitored and reevaluated periodically as situations unfold.

If a customer is delinquent on a bill for more than 90 days even after repeated follow-ups by your staff, transfer this account to a collection agency. The older an account gets, the harder it becomes to recover money from it. Too many accounts receivable is a red flag for any organization that can restrict the cash flow.

Expect Full Transparency About Risks From Every Level of the Company

Senior management may sometimes feel it’s prudent to withhold knowledge of potential risks in order to prevent panic. However, in the long run, this harms positive risk management cultures, because middle management and their direct reports will model behaviors exhibited by company leadership. Instead, engaging full transparency regarding risks at all levels helps promote that behavior company-wide.

Secondarily, when risks are withheld, employees are operating with incomplete information. They may take actions that they wouldn’t otherwise if they knew the true position of the company. As a result, cloaked risks breed other risks, a situation that must be avoided.

Risk management is only as strong as its weakest link. Effective policies require full compliance, from every participant, at all times. If you create a culture that values this basic premise, you’ll be well on your way to effective risk management.