Getting Rid of Inventory When Closing a Small Business

Not all business ventures have a happy, successful ending. When the best thing to do is to just close up shop, what do you do with all of your business' physical assets? Getting rid of inventory after a business closure- things like left over products, equipment, and materials- should to be dealt with thoughtfully.

Cleaning House

Closing a business is a lot like moving: you don't realize how much stuff you own until you have to pack it all up. As you go through the process of winding down your operations and closing any loose ends, you should take stock of any valuable business assets that will need to be liquidated. Some commom items include:

• Products for sale
• Raw goods used for product production or the delivery of a service
• Tools, equipment, and appliances
• Office furniture
• Office supplies
• Computers and other electronic devices
• Company Vehicles

How to Get Rid of Unused Inventory When a Small Business Closes

You have several options when it comes to liquidating your company's physical assets:

Hold a “Going Out of Business” sale. Also called a “liquidation sale,” this is one of the most commonly used methods among retail operations for getting rid of unsold products. Typically, these sales are advertised several days in advance and heavy discounts are placed on all remaining items.

Hire a Liquidation Company. These companies, called “inventory liquidators,” will buy up unused inventory for resale. This method promises quick access to capital should it be needed. But, expect that your products will be purchased well below the sale price.

Sell the Items Online. If you want to auction off your inventory and equipment online, you can either do it yourself via sites such as Ebay or any of its alternatives, or you can use the services of an inventory auctioning company.

Return Unused Inventory to Vendors. You may also in some cases be able to return unused inventory to the vender who supplied it to your business.

Sell Inventory to the New Owner. If you are not really closing down the business, but are instead selling it to another individual, company, or organization, then you should consider including excess inventory and assets as part of the sale. Of course, make sure to check in with a qualified professional, such as a lawyer or accountant for advice on how to do this properly.

Give Inventory to Charity. Your last option may not help you to recover some of your losses, but it could leave you with a warm feeling in your heart. Some or all of your assets could be donated to a charity to either distribute among those in need, or to resell for money.

Which ever option you choose, with a little forethought those unwanted items can give you some much wanted value. 

Using Your Accounting Software for Effective In-house Debt Collection

Delinquent customer accounts can bring your small business' cash flow to a grinding halt. But before you hand over your bad debt to a collection agency you may want to revamp your own attempts to secure those overdue payments. Establishing a clear-cut system of debt collection that effectively uses all the tools at your disposal will greatly improve your chances of receiving your money.

As you begin to put together a system for recovering outstanding debt, you should first look at your accounting software. Several of the major accounting software vendors, such as Freshbooks, Wave, and Quickbooks Online offer a range of features that will help make your debt collection run more smoothly. Among other things, these applications can clearly organize and display all the information you may need regarding your customers and their outstanding invoices.

What to look for in Your Accounting Software...

There are four basic functions that will be the most helpful to your business when dealing with overdue accounts. Not all software packages offer these features so be sure to do some research as you work with your current program or switch to a new one:

1. The A/R account is easy to manage. Your accounts receivables, A/R, account holds all your information regarding the payment activities of your customers. Each time you extend credit to a customer it will be recorded in your A/R. It is thus very important that you review your A/R regularly so that you will be able to see at a glance who has paid and who hasn't and when the outstanding payments are due. Accounting software that makes it easy to create, review and manage your A/R will help you to stay in touch with your cash flow and give you the confidence to make decisions on overdue accounts.

2. Reporting the customer transaction history. The most powerful tool that your small business can have when it comes to debt collection is an accurate and detailed record of your customer's transaction history. Many accounting software packages will allow you to view the all the necessary information associated with an outstanding invoice, including customer's name and phone number, making it easier for you contact the customer and follow up on the outstanding payment.

3. Invoice tracking and management. With invoice tracking you will clearly see which of your invoices are paid in full, partially paid, past due or unpaid so you can clearly see who owes you money and when the payment is due.

4. Help with collection letters. A few software packages will help you compose professional-looking collection letters that can be sent out as payment reminders to your customers. The program can generate these letters with all the necessary details, such as the amount of outstanding debt and the date on which the amount was payable.

Tools to Help You Write an Effective Job Description for Your Small Business

As your small business begins to grow and develop, you’ll inevitably reach a point where taking on employees will be an essential next step to bring your operations to the next level. But hiring employees- whether on a full time, part time, or contractual basis- is a learning process. Your employees are often one of your business' most important assets.  If you want your employment efforts to be successful, then it starts with having well-written job description.

To get you started in the right direction, Growing Your Biz is offering a collection of free job description samples for some common positions among small and home-based businesses. All of these sample job descriptions have been thoroughly researched for accuracy and relevance. The files are also in MS Word so you can customize them however you want.

Here is the link:

http://growingyourbiz.co/job-descriptions-samples/

Free Sample Job Descriptions from Growing Your Biz

Wordpress SEO is Definitely the King of SEO Plugins!

If you have been using an SEO plugin for your Wordpress site, or you are looking for a new option, you should consider Wordpress SEO from Yoast.

I just stumbled on this gem of a plugin after using the popular All in One SEO Pack for years. Wordpress SEO blows this plugin out of the park. It's literally packed to the gills with up-to-date SEO features and customization capabilities. To get a sense of what this plugin can accomplish for you, check out the The Definitive Guide To Higher Rankings For WordPress Sites. Even if you don't make the switch, the article is worth a read as it goes over the current SEO best practices.

How to Write a Good Press Release

Sending out a press release is an excellent way to generate free publicity for your small business. Small businesses can send information to reporters and media people, who then write or report about the business.

How can you ensure that your press release is eye-catching enough for a reporter to open it, read it, and report about it?

1. Do your research. Before sending a press release, invest some time in

reviewing various writers' or producers' work. Find those who cover topics relevant to your business. That way, you can narrow down your audience to people who are interested in your line of business, thus increasing the likelihood of free P.R.

2. Choose the right style. Your research can also help you choose a writing style. Try to mirror the writer's typical style of presenting content (e.g., top ten lists, question and answers, or research-oriented). The writer will find your article more pertinent to his/her own work if it feels familiar.

3. Spice up your writing. Use action verbs, particularly in the headline, to attract more attention. The words you use should conjure up images of excitement and motion. Some examples: trigger, navigate, urge. Use your computer's thesaurus setting to inspire your writing.

4. Find an angle. Think of an interesting way to present your story. Instead of simply stating your business's focus, highlight something new. You can write about how people use your business, or how you've changed the way certain business is done.

5. Incorporate the five W's. Be clear about why your business is newsworthy. Answer the five basic questions: who, what, when, where, and why. This will tie in with your angle (see item #4).

6. Include important details. Write the date, and the city in which your business is located. Briefly describe your business, and add in your contact information.

7. Exclude blather. Keep your press release short. Don't use industry-specific jargon. Use short words and concise sentences. Above all, make it readable.

The media is always looking for new stories. Sending a good release can alert them to your business's story and give you the exposure you want.  

The Influence of Social Media on Business

According to a new book, "The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big Things in Motion," the old methods of doing business are no longer effective.

The book's authors emphasize how the "power of pull" is improved by social networking. They define that power as, "The ability to draw out people and resources as needed to address opportunities and challenges." With the improved access to people and resources afforded by social media, it's easier for workers to succeed.

How do social media affect business dealings?

- Change occurs quickly, so top-down planning is not as efficient. Managers have to be aware of information coming from all different sources, including competitors who work in the same field. They have to adjust strategy in accordance with the newly-acquired information.

- The internet allows people to create connections that were never before possible. People living on different continents can now collaborate on ventures even if they have never met in person.

- Meeting new people can provide workers with new information about their lines of business. Knowledge that used to come from stable sources, such as newspapers, now streams in via Twitter and other social sites. Business people can use social networking to acquire information that helps them to achieve.

5 Amazing Free Small Biz Resources on The Web

Any experienced business owner will tell you that successfully running a business takes not only a lot of time, skill, and effort, but a lot of resources as well.

Do a quick search online, and you'll typically find a ton of resources specifically for smaller businesses, and many of them are for free. But, as you go about growing and developing your business, you may not have the time to sift out the good resources for the bad ones. This site will help you get there.

To start you off, here is a collection of great, free resources for small and home-based business owners:

1. The IRS Small Business Tax Center- an assortment of guides and tutorials to teach you all you need to know about business taxes
2. Free Forms for Micro Business Owners- a collection of free business templates for self-employed professionals
3. SCORE- Get a free business consultant
4. My Own Business- a 16-part free online course on starting and growing a new business.
5. SBA Learning Center- A collection of free online courses and training for small business owners