Hawkesbury Bookkeeping

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Education

Is your ABN up-to-date?

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Starting this month, the Australian Business Register (ABR) is contacting random ABN holders across all entity types. If selected, you will be asked to confirm your business information, and discuss:

  • your understanding of how your ABN works
  • what you use your ABN for
  • your entitlement to an ABN (if applicable)
  • your ABN registration experience and how it can be improved.

ABNs will not be cancelled unless requested by you.

Information gathered will be used to measure the data quality of the ABR, and help improve the experience when applying, maintaining and cancelling an ABN.

The ABR is focused on ensuring only the right people get an ABN and that the register can support business and government beyond initial registration.

Information sourced from the ATO Small Business Newsroom

NSW Small Business Month

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October is NSW Small Business Month – a month dedicated to promoting and celebrating the success of small businesses and recognising the important role they play in the NSW economy and their local communities.

The state’s small business sector employs an estimated 1.65 million people across NSW and makes up almost 44% of the private sector workforce. As the home to 765,000 small businesses, NSW is building an ecosystem to support growth.

Visit the businessmonth.nsw.gov.au website to see and take part in all of the events to assist small business. There are free forums, webinars and workshops to attend on a range of topics such as Business Basics, Starting a Business, Marketing and Social Media and more.

Information sourced from: https://www.businessmonth.nsw.gov.au/about-us/

HeadsUp for R U OK?

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As a small business owner there is much to enjoy about being your own boss such as the freedom to make the decisions and the autonomy to run the business your way. Following your passion can help you to feel good and be productive and can also contribute positively to your mental health.

But anyone who has run a small business knows that there are also a range of stressors or challenges too. Putting in long hours, feeling isolated, worrying about cash-flow and all that decision making can come with a sense of great responsibility. On top of that, there can be external factors outside your control that influence your business or the demands on your time too.

Today is R U OK Day and a good day to assess how mentally healthy your workplace is.

The mental wellbeing of people at work is good for everyone and enhances personal and organisational resilience, and success. Everyone has a role to play both in looking after their own mental health and creating a mentally healthy workplace.

The headsup.org.au website has some fantastic resources to help small businesses, business owners and their employees in achieving a mentally healthy workplace.

Download some of their resources:

If you think that someone may be struggling, start an R U OK? conversation by using these four steps:

  1. Ask R U OK?
  2. Listen
  3. Encourage Action
  4. Check in

Visit ruok.org.au for more information on learning the signs and finding help.

Want to know more about Superannuation Guarantee?

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Are you confused about Superannuation Guarantee or want to make sure you are getting it right for your employees?

The ATO website has loads of information plus the products and tools to help you understand what you need to do for super as an employer.

They have recently published a free online course on Super Guarantee Employer Obligations. It is designed to help employers understand their obligations to pay super for eligible employees.

The course is free and is available on the ATO website. The course takes around 2 hours to complete and will result in the following learning outcomes. You will understand:

  • the importance of paying super guarantee
  • the circumstances in which it is payable
  • the steps to setting up super for your employees
  • how to calculate super guarantee
  • how to lodge and pay super guarantee
  • what to do when a super guarantee payment is late or missing
  • your record-keeping requirements.

Click here to access the free ATO web course.

You can also find out more about Super for Employers by clicking here.

Big Business is costing Small Business Billions

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A recent report issued by Xero suggests that a staggering $115 billion is paid late each year by big business to small business and the average payment is 23 days late.

What can Small Businesses do to help themselves get paid faster?

Set shorter payment terms

The report by Xero also suggests that on average, customers pay invoices about a week late. Small business should factor this in when setting payment terms.

Use automated payment reminders

Something else to implement is the use of automated invoice reminders in Xero. Set friendly email reminders that are sent when a bill becomes a day late. Or even better, send an automated email a day or two before the invoice is due.

Add a payment service to your invoice

Add PayPal or Stripe to your customer invoices allowing them to make their payment online as soon as the invoice is received. Xero suggests that invoices with an attached payment service were paid an average 55% sooner than invoices without.

See the full report by Xero

Access the full report compiled by Xero by clicking here or by visiting Xero Small Business Insights.

How Xero can help your Small Business?

Hawkesbury Bookkeeping is a Xero Certified Advisor and can help you setup Xero and get paid faster. Book a Chat and get online with Xero today.

Xero Certified Advisor