What Story Is Your Business Telling?
Hello All,
I love stories. A great story can communicate something that you might have felt, but have never been able to articulate. And that perspective can change how you see the world.
Financial reports also provide clues that help you understand what's really happening in a business. And while that story is probably not going to be Shakespearean (unless the compiler is exceptionally gifted), you do have a narrative.
I was recently reviewing a client's financial statements and noticed that their advertising expense had gone down compared to the previous year, yet their sales had increased.
This was the clue. There was a story here.
It turns out they had shifted a lot of their advertising budget away from print advertising and into Facebook ads. This meant that they were spending less overall, reaching a more targeted audience, and generating better results.
The financial statements didn't tell us the story. They gave us the information we needed to uncover it.
Fortunately, you don't have to be an accounting nerd like me to do this. But it does illustrate that, with a good accounting system, this data is accessible to anyone.
Your bookkeeping and financial reports aren't simply there to prepare a tax return. They're one of the best tools you have for understanding your business.
Now that we're halfway through the year, it can be a great time to find out:
What story is my business telling?
Are sales where you expected them to be?
Have certain expenses gone up or are no longer aligned with your business?
Is one product or service doing better or worse?
Are you setting aside enough for taxes?
Or perhaps everything is as you expected (which is just as valuable to know).
If you are interested in seeing what your reports have to tell you, I've created a Mid-Year Financial Check-In. It walks you through the key areas of your business from revenue and profitability to cash flow, bookkeeping, taxes, and planning for the rest of the year.
The data is already there. Asking the right questions helps you uncover the story and make better decisions because of it. This in turn will allow you to be more intentional about how you focus your time, energy, and resources.
I would love to hear your story and how your data might have led to insights. You can simply reply to this email.
Ronika
