9 reasons to switch to cloud computing
Don’t be left up in the air by traditional IT solutions. Check out the top 9 advantages for small businesses switching to cloud computing. Cloud computing is fast becoming the norm because storing information and using software hosted on the Internet has many advantages....
March 31, 2016Tax season tips for small business owners
Preparing for tax season is really a year-round endeavour. Tip number one for SMB owners is to update financials on a monthly basis, using a streamlined software or cloud-based system.This way, come tax time, everything you need is all in one place. And well organized SMBs are better positioned to minimize their tax bill while avoiding penalties associated with missing or inaccurate information.Here are four more ways to take the stress out of tax time, and get the most out of your return....
March 21, 2016Why cloud software is the future for trade services
When people think of industries revolutionised by cloud software, they might consider banking and finance, telecommunications, or online entertainment. But what about the trade and service industries? While hands-on trade services may seem a world away from office workers, the truth is that cloud computing — where software and data is stored in the internet ‘cloud’ instead of in a physical computer — is having a much bigger impact on the worldwide, multibillion-pound field servic...
March 21, 2016Spring 2016 budget news
Pitched as a “Budget that puts the next generation first”, George Osborne’s speech contained a number of announcements aimed at helping people save for the future. For businesses, measures included changes to business rates and the abolition of class 2 national insurance contributions for the self-employed. And, as we’ve come to expect from such occasions, there were a few surprises too. We’ve put together a report that summarises the announcements made by Chancellor George Osborne dur...
March 18, 2016Grow your email list through personal contact
When your email list is small or you’d just like to add more people and get higher open rates, it’s smart to grow your list through personal contacts. Begin with the obvious: ask friends, family and business contacts to sign up. Everyone has a pool of people who might be happy to hear about your business via email. All you have to do is remember to ask. Put a note by your phone or computer with a couple of sentences so you don’t have to think about asking each time. After you’ve worked t...
March 17, 20165 tips to improve the conversion rate on your site
If you want to increase sales on your e-commerce site, you should not only focus on traffic but also on your conversion rate. The higher your conversion rate, the more money you can make with the same number of visitors. Here are five tactics to help you increase your conversion rate....
January 26, 2016Your first sales hire – 4 tips before you start
A problem that many growing businesses face is how to know the right time to expand the sales operation and when you do, where to find the best fit for your business. If cashflow is inconsistent and you’re worried about the time and effort it will take to go through the recruitment process and get them up to speed, it’s a vital question to ask the right person. It will demand team resource as they bed in and worst case scenario, they may not be right after all and cost you a tonne. So, let m...
December 28, 2015Face it! It’s not possible to eliminate the risk of innovation
One of the most often cited reasons for not embracing innovation is that it is too risky. Prototyping or testing often comes with a high cost. Combined with the cost of the time spent, this can all be rather high for an unknown outcome. There is no way to eliminate the risk in innovation, but there are ways to reduce it. It’s easy to understand the dilemma. A business owner doesn’t want to put himself in a position to waste time or money, especially as the economy continues to climb out of t...
December 8, 2015How do you protect your business against foreign currency risk?
One of the biggest threats to the profit margins of any business that makes or receives international payments is the volatile nature of the currency markets. So here’s some quick, simple and easy to implement processes that you can put in place to increase your bottom line....
December 1, 2015Is now the right time to buy a home?
If you’ve frequently been asking yourself if it’s the right time to buy a home, there are several things to first consider. Three things to think about are the current market conditions, the interest rates, and the amount of available housing....
November 28, 2015Working out an effective marketing budget
“How much should I spend on marketing?” Most small business people ask me this question at some stage. Many small business people find working out how much to spend on marketing a tricky exercise to calculate....
November 15, 2015How do you value a business?
If you’re buying or selling a small business, it’s critical to know what the business is worth. The challenge is that what you think a business is worth, and what the person on the other side of the fence thinks it is worth, are usually two different figures....
November 9, 2015Delegates see real value in networking event
St. James’ Park in Newcastle upon Tyne has played host to a number of sporting events in recent weeks with the football and Rugby World Cup but North East business owners and entrepreneurs couldn’t fail to be impressed with the lineup of premiership speakers at a recent networking event....
October 21, 2015Should you lease or buy equipment?
Many small business people wonder whether it’s better for them to buy or lease capital equipment for their businesses. Your options regarding leasing or buying depend upon the nature of your particular business, but there are nevertheless a few guidelines you can follow to help you decide what you should do....
October 16, 2015New Receipt Bank feature ‘flexible columns’ is making client collaboration easier than ever
For years, here at Valued, we have been helping our clients save time by utilising the best in business technology. Using cloud business software such as Receipt Bank has transformed many of our clients’ businesses, creating an efficient and paperless office. If you read about how we use Receipt Bank in our last blog update you’ll know that Receipt Bank extracts the key information from bills, receipts and invoices, removing the need for manual data entry. Client collaboration is...
October 14, 20157 essential tips for managing managers effectively
Managing people is one thing, but anyone with experience of managing managers will know that’s a completely different ball game. A management team that works in complete harmony is a rare and beautiful thing, but it never comes easy.In fact, it’s paradoxical to think it should ever be that a group of people with strong leadership and management skills will operate without conflict for any length of time. The seven tips below highlight the most likely areas of contention and how to overcome t...
July 27, 2015The power of D – 4 steps to better time management
Time management skills are increasingly important in a world where people seem to rush headlong from one crisis to another. Add in the effect of social media and addictive computer games that can be accessed from anywhere at any time and it’s no wonder that some people struggle to fit everything into their days. So what can be done about it? How about invoking D to the Power of Four? This is a quick and simple way to make sure you use your time more effectively by sorting your tasks into four ...
July 7, 2015Valued in the spotlight
By Gayatri Wood, Spotlight Reporting. Until recently, Stephen Paul, the Managing Director of Valued Accountancy would have labeled himself as just an accountant. However now, being an accountant is more of a bi-product of who Valued Accountancy are. Listen to how their approach to accounting, value-add services and cloud technology has allowed for them to increase fees on average by 400%, with Spotlight Reporting the integral part of this....
July 7, 2015Valued strengthen it’s team to support growth plans
Valued Accountancy has welcomed Melanie Cant and Eileen Walker to the business, which now includes fourteen members of staff and two apprentices. ...
July 7, 2015Valued win Xero Partner of the year 2015
WOW, what a week it’s been Who would have though that a conference about cloud accounting would have been so life changing. Last Monday we started the whole week of #xero by attending the @spotlightrep (Spotlight Reporting partner lunch). It was great to catch up with like minded accountants who just want to help and collaborate with each other over a lovely meal special thanks to the team at Spotlight for organising such a informal session it was really productive and I can't recommend lookin...
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