Financial year '24 means it’s time to implement new and fresh strategies that take your small business to the next level. This includes checking your cash flow, reflecting on your business growth, and otherwise preparing yourself for better operational management.

Get ready for what could be the most successful year yet. Explore these powerful growth strategies for FY24 that will inspire you to go for the gold.

A great business strategy is more than just a commercial obligation. These critical action plans lay out the tactics and methods used to continuously grow your business, regardless of its industry.

The importance of having a good business strategy cannot and should not be underestimated. Its significance is more than just ritualistic; it offers a chance to truly reflect on and measure the success of an SMB. Executed correctly, it may even allow you to acquire new leads, find new opportunities, and sustainably grow your business.

There are many benefits to strategising a plan for each financial year:

1. It allows you to take a step back and evaluate your business objectively.
2. You can make well-informed decisions about where to allocate your resources.
3. You can better understand and manage upcoming weaknesses, opportunities, or risks.
4. You can track your progress and keep tabs on whether you’re hitting your milestones.
5. You can keep your team focused and aligned with a shared vision of the future.

Keep in mind that there's a big difference between a good business strategy and a great business strategy. The best plans are defined and refined over time, then improved upon in the future. The more you develop your plans today, the better your outcomes may be tomorrow.

This financial year, it's time to take your SMB to the next level.

Here are some actionable strategies you can adopt today to improve efficiency, save on costs, and ultimately grow your small Australian business.

Technology is always changing — and so too are its opportunities.

FY24 is a great time to reconsider your technology options and potential to create process improvements. This includes anything from integrations to platforms to third-party plugins, especially with the tools you're already using.

There are some platforms that are beneficial to brands across all industries, for example:

• Xero — New Zealand based cloud accounting company.
• Shopify — a Canadian e-commerce platform.
• Canva — an Australian design and publishing tool.

These platforms are powerful, affordable, and easy to use, making them the perfect addition to any company.

Software is not the only way your brand can tap into new potential. Cutting-edge marketing trends, development avenues, and growth tactics also fall under this category.

For example, you may want to try out nascent social media, like TikTok. This is a highly sought-after advertising location with thousands of influencer partnerships available.

Another potential development may be found in SMS marketing. This tool is fast becoming a must-have in the business world, and extremely beneficial to customers and employees alike.

Finally, you may want to upgrade your current tools to ones that support newer trends. This includes swapping your business phone for VoIP, switching to AI-based chat platforms, or automating your email marketing campaigns.

There could be an extraordinary amount of process improvement trapped in your current workflows. By taking the time to invest in new technologies, you can make your business more efficient and productive — giving you a real strategic lead over other competitors.

The more money your business commands, the faster and more sustainably you can grow. Boosting your income is not always a sure bet, but cutting costs and saving money can always be accomplished to some degree.

Below are some of the best cost saving ideas for small businesses:

1. Automate your finances

Automating your finances can help save time and money. In fact, more than half (57%) of IT leaders say that automation technology helps departments save between 10% to 50% on costs related to manual processing.

Look for accounting software that can perform repetitive tasks at scale, specifically with features such as automatic bill payments, invoicing, and GST reporting.

2. Consider outsourced work

There may be areas of your business that can be outsourced to professionals for a fraction of the cost. A recent survey of 7,500 public organisations found that outsourcing reduced labour costs by 46%. This includes bookkeeping, copywriting, social media marketing, and even website design. There are many free or low-cost business tools that can help in this area as well.

3. Go paperless

One of the easiest ways to save money as a small business is to go paperless. Ditch the printer, stop using physical storage, and switch to digital documents to send and retrieve messages. Statistics show that companies who take a paperless route save up to $750,000 per year.

4. Negotiate better deals with suppliers

You may be able to get a better deal on the products and services you use by renegotiating with your current suppliers. This is a great way to save on costs without compromising on quality. If you are a B2C or ecommerce company, this tactic may save you thousands of dollars in the long run.

It’s worth noting that in some cases when negotiating payment terms, you may be asked to increase your previous order or pay upfront, which requires extra cash. Marmalade can help you do this by providing you with easy access to funds from unpaid invoices.

5. Manage your cash flow

One of the most important things you could do for your business is keep track of your commercial cash flow. This will help you make smarter decisions about your money, your resources, and your financial future. We will discuss this in greater detail later on.

To recap: there are a variety of ways in which businesses can cut costs and save more money. Truthfully, any of these changes can have a big impact on your business efficiency and growth. Start small with one or two ideas, then branch out and adopt new ideas over time.

For SMB cost savings, the sky's the limit.

There is no one-size-fits-all strategy for managing time as a business owner. This largely depends on your position, your business type, and your team size. However, there are a few key tips that can help you make the most of the time you have to spend.

Time management strategies for small business owners include:

• Setting strong priorities — This means understanding what tasks are the most important and urgent and dealing with them accordingly. You may want to use productivity software, like Trello or Slack to keep you on-track and on-target.
• Investing in tools that automate tasks — This includes setting up auto-responders for email, using a chatbot on your website, or scheduling social media posts in advance.
• Creating a daily or weekly schedule — This will help you to stay on top of deadlines and make time for the tasks that matter. If you have a limited number of employees, this should be a priority task.
• Focusing on one task at a time — Multitasking may seem like an effective way to get more done, but it can actually lead to more problems in the future. Choose to pour your attention into the task at hand, then move on to other jobs only when ready.
• Taking breaks — It may seem counterintuitive, but taking regular breaks can actually help you be more productive. This is because it allows you to destress, recharge, and gear up for the day ahead.

If you're still finding it difficult to manage your time effectively, it may be time to consider alternative solutions. Consider temporarily stepping back or scaling down to preserve your business quality, then consider additional tactics such as automation or outsourcing.

Business development strategies are critical for success in the modern business market.

Put simply, a business development strategy is a tactical plan developed around generating new leads and converting them into paying customers. These are generally created as SMART goals — specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely.

There are a number of ways to approach business development, most of which are dependent on your business structure. We are going to evaluate some approaches for two of the most common business types: B2C and B2B.

If you are a traditional B2C (business to consumer) organisation, you may want to craft a development strategy that is focused on sustainable growth through traditional sales channels.

Some of the best business strategy templates include:

• Influencer marketing — This may include sponsoring a content creator to create authentic reviews of your product, or distributing a discount code for specific members of a community.
• PR and brand awareness campaigns — This is more common for service-based businesses, but can also work well for product-based companies.
• Maximising LTV — This involves using data and analytics to identify your most valuable customers, then crafting targeted marketing campaigns to keep them engaged with your brand.

For B2B (business to business) brands, development strategies may look a little different.

Here’s how to create a business strategy for 2023 and beyond:

• Encourage retention — Churn is problematic for any brand, but particularly impactful to B2B organisations. Identify potential breakdowns in your pipeline, then adjust and redeploy as necessary.
• Foster word-of-mouth — According to statistics, companies that rely on word-of-mouth for new customers see conversion rates that are five times higher than traditional media impressions. Lean on referral bonuses, testimonials, and case studies to really see results from this form of growth hacking.
• Cross-sell and upsell — Cross-selling refers to the sale of related products, while upselling is the sale of upgraded products or additional features. Take advantage of any opportunity to increase your value proposition to customers by creating solid cross-selling and upselling strategies.

These business strategy examples are just the beginning. Truthfully, there are endless possibilities when it comes to SMB development, with plenty of growth hacking opportunities available.

If you don't already have a growth strategy in place, now is the best time to get onboard.

Cash flow is by far the most impactful element of small business management. Doing it incorrectly has dire consequences — more than 80% of businesses fail due to poor cash flow management.

This is a sobering number. However, it is not an inevitability in every circumstance. Fixing cash flow struggles can be extremely simplistic when armed with the right software. This includes tools like Marmalade, a world’s first payments platform that allows you to access unpaid invoices within 24 hours or less. All you need to do is pay a one-time invoice fee to increase access to your cash flow in seconds.

Here's how to fix cash flow issues using Marmalade:

• Sign up for a free account by reaching out to our team.
• Get connected to Xero, our accounting partner of choice.
• Send out your invoices using Marmalade's supplied account details.
• Choose the unpaid invoices that you would like to receive early payment on.
• Review your one-off fee then access cash within 24 hours.
• Spend cash however you please.

Marmalade is not a lending platform or a subscription service. Instead, it is a tool designed to provide greater visibility into outstanding invoices and potential cash flow capacity.

By leveraging Marmalade for your Australian SMB, you can eliminate potential cash flow issues long before they affect your bottom line.

Managing your business better is a nebulous concept at best — but measuring your long-term success is anything but. Backed by a sustainable plan, better time management skills, strong strategies, and excellent cash flow skills, you will be well on your way to establishing a more successful brand.

If you're really looking to start FY24 right, investing in innovative tools, like Marmalade could be the perfect solution. With Marmalade, SMBs are empowered to take growth into their own hands, accessing hidden cash flow potential in more ways than one. Have the capital to take on new opportunities, scale up your team, and otherwise create opportunities to do work better — all with no strings attached.

Getting starting with Marmalade is simple, easy, and most importantly, free. Contact us today to learn more about our cash flow solutions for small businesses and beyond. Ready to get started? Feel free to sign up for an account today.