As a business owner, you may assume you do not need professional financial advice until you hit certain milestones such as $1 million in sales, having ten employees, or some other tangible measure. However, financial professionals may benefit small-business owners no matter what the stage of their business. The earlier you seek financial advice, the more this advice might help your business as it grows. Here are five ways a financial professional could be your ally as a small-business owner.

Saving You Time and Energy

Having a financial professional to help you plan the economic future of your business might allow you to concentrate on more immediate needs. It may be tough to make long-term projections when just trying to get through each day. Delegating these tasks to a financial professional might help you lower stress. You are able to spend your time managing your operations while your financial professional works on items such as tax-saving strategies, expansion, cash flow projections, and anything else your business may need to manage finances.

Saving You Money

It might be tough to get a comprehensive overview of your business as an owner. Your financial professional might find ways to save you money by taking such a view, tracking your budget expenditures, and seeing where you might be overspending. Cutting out this extra spending might free up capital that you may use to hire more employees, do more marketing, stock more products, or provide your workers with raises.

Evaluating Market Trends

Many small businesses operate in competitive markets, so having a finger on the pulse of relevant trends may be the difference between a booming business and a struggling one. Some financial professionals offer marketing assistance, which may include evaluating market trends. Such an evaluation helps decide how to advertise your business in ways that make sense for your area.

Helping With Investment and Retirement Planning

Every business owner's investment and retirement needs are different. There's no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to saving for retirement. Your financial professional may run through the available options, such as a simple individual retirement account (Simple IRA), a Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRA, a traditional or Roth IRA, or even a business 401 (k) plan. Having savings outside your business should be considered part of any business owner's retirement plan.

As your business expands and begins earning more income, your financial professional may help you determine some ways to invest this extra cash flow to keep your business running well.

Helping With Succession Planning

Finally, a financial professional could help you create a succession plan for your business. A succession plan determines what happens to your business when you are not available to run it. Thinking about this plan may not be a pleasant thing to do; however, it might be crucial to maintaining the value of your business. With your financial professional's assistance, you could draft a succession plan that provides clear instructions on keeping your business thriving even in your absence.

Important Disclosures

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual or business owner, nor is it intended to provide a recommendation for any individual security. To determine which investment(s) may be appropriate for you, consult your financial professional prior to investing.

This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax or legal advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific situation with a qualified tax or legal advisor.

This article was prepared by WriterAccess.

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