Introduction
Every business exists to make profit. Unfortunately, this might never be the case. It is not uncommon indeed for cash flow and IT-related problems to arise in the course of a business transaction. Owing to the benefits of IT support and the havoc it wreaks on businesses when things go south and the centrality of cash in normal business operations, the problem has to be dealt with effectively.
If you are a small business owner you may be wondering why you should incorporate managed services to streamline your business processes and offer value-added services to your customer. In this 21st century, there is no need to wonder about the benefits of incorporating managed services businesses. The good news is that if you do not have the resources to hire a competent in-house managed services team, you can outsource this function to an experienced company or brand created like Merit Technologies to help small businesses to gain traction in terms of maintaining their IT systems and computer infrastructure.
Of course, it is impossible to resolve any IT-related issue without first of all figuring it out. We are only too aware of this. That is why we have seen it necessary to come in and provide a feasible solution for you. Our discussion in this article will walk you through the benefits of outsourcing managed services to a competent company.
Benefits Of Outsourcing Managed Services
Below are the 5 reasons to outsource managed services to a reputable brand.
#1. Keep an eye on your growth and expansion
All businesses have the ambition of growing and expanding. This is good but it comes at a price. When businesses expand, they take in excess capital to fuel the expansion. In this way, they leave less money behind that may be used to serve and meet other obligations.
You should hence keep an eye on the expansions and the growth of your business. See to it that you keep the pace of the expansion at moderate levels to prevent overdrawing too much cash. This requires a lot of discipline and the ability to turn away clients when experiencing cash flow issues.
One way of achieving this end is to only expand when there is sufficient evidence that the customer base is large and solid enough to accommodate such expansions. The site has plenty of insights that may be looked upon by any serious prospective investor.
#2. Stretch out the payables
Every business has some obligations, called payables, to meet in the course of its operations. Whereas these obligations are a must, it is possible to moderate them and hence keep them within manageable limits. Stretching the payables is one sure way of managing this awesome end result.
“Stretching the payables” here means opting to pay up certain bills beyond their due dates. In this manner, the business is guaranteed some steady cash in the meantime. This strategy ought to be adopted for short-term obligations only. When implemented in the long run, it may spoil the relationships between the clients and the business concerned.
Since most payments are governed by the strongest terms of references, this may also demand that you alter the repayment periods to suit your new circumstances. Go back to the contract you signed and then look at the relevant clauses that may need to be repealed.
#3. Incentivize the clients to pay faster
Take an active approach to let your clients repay faster. This is a goal you may achieve through a combination of techniques. For one, you may think of putting in place auto billing. This debits the amounts due from the bank of the client and credits the same to that of the businessperson the same day.
Next, you may also deliberately encourage early payments while at the same time discourage late payments. Dangle a goodie to encourage your clients to pay early and confer a punishment for late payments. For instance, you may offer a discount for early payment and a surcharge for late payments.
Lastly, grant the clients the leeway to select their preferred modes of payment. Forcing all the clients to use a specific payment avenue will only serve to bring confusion and delay the remission of the dues altogether. For this to happen, you have to manage and support many payment options.
#4. Improve the invoicing process
IT systems and failure in network systems may often arise due to the bureaucracies involved in invoicing. To stem this tide, you may need to improve your invoicing process considerably. The use of automated accounting systems is by far the most reliable way of achieving this end. It automates the billing and invoicing procedures. Outsourcing managed can reduce the errors that may arise and the attendant loss of revenue that ensues.
Some automated systems also have alerts and other forms of reminders that serve to draw the attention of the clients towards some outstanding dues that may have to be repaid. Try also to integrate the systems such that any change in one parameter may be automatically reflected in the entry accounting system. That will also help with the retrieval of the data if and when the need be for the sake of more simplified auditing. This may also require that you hire trained staff as well.
#5. Renegotiate supplier contracts
In closing, you may also renegotiate the supplier contracts just like you do with your clients. The purpose of renegotiating the contract is to ease the burden off your shoulders so that you do not have to strain yourself when attempting to solve your IT problems or meet your financial obligations.
As part of renegotiating, kindly see to it that you lengthen the repayment period so that you do not have to struggle to pay up your obligations. Then, you also have to agitate for the reduction of the rates of interest and the waivers of any penalties that may be imposed on late payments or defaults.
Conclusion
We urge you to go beyond merely diagnosing your IT-related issues. How possible is it possible for you to ensure the smooth flow of cash in your business save for implementing the deep insights we have been labored above? Start by putting in place the necessary measures towards this end so that you can hire a reputable outsourcing company.
You are further asked to adopt a proactive rather than reactive approach when dealing with this issue. IT-related and cash flow problems are ordinarily too adverse to even think of suffering in the first place. Moreover, adopting a proactive approach also helps with minimizing any possible losses. Soldier on now with utmost confidence!
