5 Reasons You’re Not Having a Profitable Business

5 Reasons You’re Not Having a Profitable Business

Business Tips, For SMEs
Connected Women, headed by Ms. Gina Romero and co-founder Ms. Ruth Yu-Owen, in partnership with Facebook, through Prof. Aries Patawaran, conducted a one-day seminar about starting up a business and marketing it. One of our team members was present at the event; thus, we are sharing the things to avoid so you, too, can have a profitable business in the Philippines. Note that the following items are not listed according to how they were discussed in the seminar. Also, this is a mash-up of the two topics mentioned above. Reasons Why You Don’t Have a Profitable Business You don’t understand the market. Understanding your market, through market research, is crucial for any business. The University of British Columbia says accurate data about your market is critical. The video below explains…
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How To Increase Profitability  In the Modern World: Experts Reveal 3 Tips

How To Increase Profitability In the Modern World: Experts Reveal 3 Tips

Business Tips, For SMEs
Let’s face it.   In today’s ever-changing environment, the ever-growing consumer demands and expectations and technological advances, competition in business is fierce. Which means to be profitable, your business has to come up with a long list of strategies. But who has time for all these? So we scoured the internet for the fastest tips on how to increase profitability, and almost all them point to one thing: Productivity. The thing is… What productivity workshops have been telling us does not apply any longer. The modern business setting calls for modern productivity techniques. Relying on time management alone no longer works. What should be done instead? We gathered information from different sources, and here are the top tips from the experts. How to be productive in the modern world Have time…
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Is Knowledge Really Power?

Is Knowledge Really Power?

Business Tips, For Accountants, For SMEs
If you had a television in the 1990s until the early 2000s, you might have heard Mr. Ernie Baron say, “Knowledge is power” right before ending his segment on TV. And if you believe in this statement, we feel you. We've upheld this declaration from the moment we heard it until we came across another statement that’s taking quite a different route: Knowledge is not (enough) power. Before you raise your eyebrows up so high your hairline has to take a step back, let us define what knowledge and power are first. According to the dictionary, “knowledge” is a noun that means “facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; [it is] the theoretical or practical understanding [emphasis added] of a subject.” “Power,” on the other…
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What Challenges Do Accountants In The Philippines Face?

What Challenges Do Accountants In The Philippines Face?

For Accountants, For SMEs
Accounting remains one of the top choices for students for several reasons. We discussed this before, but here’s the summary. One, there’s a high demand--be it overseas or local. This probably gives the impression that it is a stable profession. Two, there’s a variety of environments. Accountants are needed in every industry; hence, they can pick whichever suits their taste. Three, it is a high-paying job. Nonetheless, this profession is not without challenges. We asked random accountants before and their sentiments seem to be the same. Here is an excerpt of what they said, copied verbatim: Kuripot at ayaw magbayad ng tamang tax na taxpayerF.E.U. Handling clientsJ.B. That you was hired as an accountant but at the end may others pala ( secretary, lawyer, collector, adviser)…hehehe ?L.D.C. Yung GM. kala…
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What is smishing and what can you do about it?

What is smishing and what can you do about it?

For Accountants, For SMEs
As the song goes, Christmas “is the most wonderful time of the year.” Unfortunately, it’s also the time when our security--offline or online--are at a higher risk.While we can’t tell you exactly how you can protect yourself from offline thieves and scammers, we can share what we know about the latest modus the digital crooks have and what you can do about it.Let’s start off with smishing.What is smishing?Cute as it may sound, smishing is a risky tool online thieves have been using for some time. In fact, the Philippine National Police (PNP) has an article dedicated to it warning us of its possible consequences.Smishing is a combination of phishing and SMS.So if you know phishing, smishing is the same thing except that it’s done via text messages. It may…
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3 Benefits of Subscription-based Software

3 Benefits of Subscription-based Software

For SMEs
Consumer habits have changed recently from the one time trip to the grocery getting everything that’s needed for the entire month to the buying of goods on a weekly or daily basis. This comes as no surprise as the latter seems to be simpler and more hassle-free. It means you don’t have to take home a truckload of groceries you may not even be consuming for the rest of your life.Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies have seen this trend and started to cash in on it (for a good reason). In fact, reports say that these companies such as Dropbox and Salesforce have valuations on the rise because of this business model.But as a consumer, what benefits can you get from a subscription-based software?Benefits of Subscription-based softwareFaster ROIOPEX and CAPEX are two…
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New Withholding Tax Rates 2018

New Withholding Tax Rates 2018

For Accountants, For SMEs
Upon the approval of the tax reform bill, the BIR released the new withholding tax rates as seen on its website and the image below. As previously mentioned, those with compensation not exceeding 250,000 annually will be exempt from withholding tax while others will have to pay a staggered rate starting January 1. In other words, for the first salary of the year, usually January 15, Filipinos should expect bigger take-home pays compared to the previous month’s. However, you’re reminded that old tax rates still apply to your 2017 ITR, particularly the income you earned in that year. “The salary and earnings of us taxpayers in the previous year will still be taxed according to the old rates when we file our income tax returns (ITR) before the April 16…
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Accountant vs. Bookkeeper: Which One Should You Hire?

Accountant vs. Bookkeeper: Which One Should You Hire?

For SMEs
All businesses have financial records and transactions to keep track of, whether you’re flying solo or have a few individuals working for you. While you, as the owner, may do all the record keeping, we all know that it takes a lot of time and effort to do so.What you can do then is to hire someone—either an accountant or a bookkeeper—to help you with these endeavors. But which of them will fit the bill better?These descriptions of their responsibilities may help you select the better person. BookkeeperContrary to the beliefs of some, the tasks of an accountant and a bookkeeper are actually different. And hiring either one of them depends on your needs.A bookkeeper is a person who records your financial transactions daily. He or she ensures all transactions…
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4 Simple Ways To Avoid Fake Invoice Scam

4 Simple Ways To Avoid Fake Invoice Scam

Business Tips, For SMEs
In case you haven’t heard about it, there is a fake invoice scam that has been circulating targeting business owners. These scams may be an attempt to fool you or your employees to pay for products or services you haven’t really availed or may not even exist at all. It's similar to smishing, but the fake invoice scam is usually sent via email.Other times, these scams require you to download and install a file that contains malware. This malware is created to steal your private information, usually related to banking.How does the fake invoice scam work?There are different versions of this scam but, by and large, you’re sent a legit-looking invoice that has a subject looking like this:[caption id="attachment_28124" align="aligncenter" width="620"] Credit: Telegraph UK[/caption]Sometimes, it may be labeled “past due”…
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Technology In Small Businesses: 4 Tools You Could Be Using Wrong

Technology In Small Businesses: 4 Tools You Could Be Using Wrong

For SMEs
Let’s take a step back and check just how much technology has changed the lives of regular people. From ride-hailing to instant messaging, a whole lot of work can be done through countless apps available on the web and mobile. In today’s evolving world, the importance of technology in small businesses is being emphasized more and more each day. Keeping up to date with the digital world is required for any business, especially those that are just starting to take off. Technology is a powerful tool that can propel a team to greatness; any company would do well to use this knowledge.  However, we have seen countless businesses that use tools in the wrong way. Here are some of them. 4 Misused Technology in Small Businesses Instant Communication Tools They…
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