Blog

Have you ever found yourself struggling to achieve your goals because you just don’t have enough time to commit to them? Chances are, you’re doing things back to front. Rocks, Pebbles and Sand is a simple, yet crucial, planning concept depicting that we’ll achieve more if we set our annual goals (or ‘rocks’) first, then […]

One of the best ways to increase sales is to use the Value Ladder to build a relationship with your customers. The higher the customer values their relationship with you, the more money they’re willing to spend. On the bottom rung of the Value Ladder, we have an initial offer of value. This should be […]

Plenty of Kiwi businesses buy utes as company vehicles. If you’re in the trades, for instance, a ute can be the perfect way to haul everything around and promote your brand at the same time. However, the recently announced EV feebate scheme is likely to hit ute buyers the hardest, since these vehicles tend to […]

Whenever we’re going on holiday or have plans for the weekend, we always check the weather forecast so we can plan accordingly.  It’s no different in business. The forecast tells us if there’s bad weather (poor cashflow) in store based on the direction we’re heading.  Your forecast will tell you:  If you have enough sales […]

Why does your business exist? Your purpose is three to seven words explaining why your business exists for your customers; it should be about them, not you. It is a small statement with immense power – your reason for being. EXAMPLES:Tesla: To accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.Netflix: To entertain the world.Zoom: To make […]

For any sort of planning, whether it’s your Strategic Plan, Business Plan, or Personal Development Plan, you must first know your starting point to plan your journey to where you want to go. The Now, Where, How mindset helps us recognise where we are now, then clarify where we want to be in the future, […]

Do you understand your ‘why’? Does your team understand it? How about your customers? Your ‘why’ is why your business exists for your customers (and it’s not to make a profit!). Your ‘why’ forms the centre of The Golden Circle – a concept developed by Simon Sinek in his book, Start With Why. The Golden Circle challenges us […]

You’re running a business, so you know the legal requirements around producing accounts and submitting tax returns. But do you truly know WHY you’ve engaged an accountant? And do you understand the value that a good accountant and business adviser can add to your company? As a business owner, managing director or CEO, there are […]

Are you undercharging for your services? It can be hard to tell, particularly if you’re in a niche industry or you’re a contractor. Costs have been rising, so it may be time to rethink your own pricing. Here are five signs that you might be undercharging: Nobody ever questions your quotes – Do all your new […]

When you’re self-employed, you’re the one in charge of your KiwiSaver contributions. Without an employer to make contributions on your behalf, you need to decide how much you want to commit to your retirement fund, if anything. If you’re self-employed, why contribute to KiwiSaver? There are two main selling points for KiwiSaver if you’re self-employed. […]

Thinking of buying or selling your business? A new tax rule comes into effect on 1 July 2021 that will have an impact on the way you negotiate. The new rule is designed to create more certainty in purchase price allocation, which is the way the purchase price is divided up between the various types […]

Budget 2021 was all about big spending on benefits, health and infrastructure. With some critics saying the Government was spending too little and others saying it was racking up too much debt, Finance Minister Grant Robertson aimed to find a balance between the two. Not much for businesses For most Kiwi business owners, there were […]

We often get questions about what business expenses are tax deductible, and one of the more confusing topics is clothing. Most jobs have some sort of dress code – whether you wear suits and heels or overalls and steel-toed boots. Work clothes can be a significant expense for any business owner or employee. You only […]

With the minimum wage having recently increased to $20, you might be thinking that it won’t go up again for a while. But in fact you should probably plan for the minimum wage to keep rising. In 2000, New Zealand’s minimum wage was $7.55. Since then it has increased every year, under both National and Labour […]

There’s a new superannuation rate for 2021: from April 1, it increases by at least $10 a week for everyone. Singles living alone will receive $437 a week, up from $423; couples where both partners qualify will receive $672 a week, up from $652. Will you need more? If you’re looking at that and thinking that it’s […]

Improvements can always be made at the margin. Small tweaks to your processes or systems can make a massive difference to the end result. It’s the same with your business margin – a 1% increase in your gross margin on $500,000 of sales is an extra $5,000 on your bottom line.  The best part about […]

The rules for property investors have changed, removing tax deductibility for rental loan payments and extending the bright line test to 10 years. How does this change property investing? The biggest impact of these recent changes is that investment properties are now more expensive to own, since you can no longer offset interest payments against […]

We’ve spent more than the past year responding to things outside of our control. Everyone has experienced huge change, a lot of it while in crisis mode. Upon reflection, some of the changes were inevitable. If we think about digital transformation and flexible working conditions, these were simply accelerated by Covid.  Now that the worst […]

Since 2020, measures to help support businesses adversely affected by COVID-19 have been introduced in several waves. Initially the intention was to boost confidence and help businesses get through the crisis. Subsequently it became clear that support through a recovery period would be needed, as well as ‘just in case’ measures for possible rapid response […]

Turning a profit is at the heart of running any successful company But should profits be the only financial focus if you’re looking to create a stable, long-term business?  Cashflow is the beating heart of your business. Without an even and predictable flow of cash into the company, you can’t cover your overheads, you can’t […]