• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

PlanningShop

Plan. Start. Grow.

  • Our Products
  • Instructors
  • Entrepreneurs
  • BizGear
  • Rhonda’s Blog
  • Book Rhonda
  • About PlanningShop
  • Search
  • Our Products
  • Instructors
  • Entrepreneurs
  • BizGear
  • Rhonda’s Blog
  • Book Rhonda
  • About PlanningShop
  • Search
two hands exchanging a small stack of US twenty dollar bills

10 Tips to Ring In More Holiday Cash

November 3, 2021 //  by Rhonda Abrams

If “location, location, location” are the first three rules of real estate, the first three rules of small business money management are “cash, cash, cash.” And if managing cash flow is important any time of year, it’s even more challenging during the critical holiday season.

In every business, there’s a lag between money going out of a business and money coming in, between expenses and income. The holidays intensify that problem since you may have to order holiday merchandise in August and September and might not get paid ’til December. This year, with supply chain problems, it’s harder to figure out when customers will be shopping and what they’ll be buying.

Even those in professional service industries may see a cash flow problem at the end of the year. Business often picks up in the last quarter—meaning more costs in staffing and expenses—but you might not get paid til January.

How can you improve your end-of-year cash flow? With two important steps: increasing the amount of money coming in and reducing the amount of cash going out. If you’ve got more money in your bank—longer—you’ll have more flexibility to respond to this year’s unpredictable holiday conditions.

Get More Money Coming In

1. Encourage and make “pre-sales”

Wouldn’t you like to have your hotel fully paid for the holidays well in advance? Your salon’s staff time paid by November 1 for services in late December? Well, find ways to encourage customers to buy, book, and pay early. Offer discounts for pre-paid services or products when purchased early in the season—such as $100 worth of goods or services for $80 when paid before November 15. You may have lower profit margins, but you’ll have cash sooner.

2. Offer early season deals

Why wait to offer deals ’til Black Friday or Small Business Saturday? Offer special deals and hold special events before the height of the holiday rush. If you can get customers to buy from you early, you’ll turn over merchandise faster, reduce stress during your busiest periods, and improve cash flow.

3. Push gift cards and gift certificates

If you’re not offering gift cards or gift certificates, start now. After all, gift cards are, in essence, pre-sales. You get the money in your account long before a customer purchases the actual product or service. Gift certificates aren’t limited to merchandise or personal services, such as salons or spas. Even a business service could offer a gift certificate. While it may seem like a strange gift, your law firm could offer a gift certificate for drawing up a will.

4. Reduce or eliminate billing

If you typically bill your clients for goods or services, you’re not going to see that money for 30 or 60 days or more. Billing is fairly typical in business services and in construction, but you tie up your funds like that. Instead, request pre-payment or require payment on delivery. You’ll have your money faster and less paperwork to fill out too.

5. Accept credit cards

When you accept credit cards, you enable more customers to pay you immediately, and you get the money in your bank fast—often the day after processing. Yes, you pay a small transaction fee for this benefit, but you don’t have to worry about checks bouncing or invoices not getting paid. If you don’t already accept credit cards, you can easily sign up as a merchant with a service like Square or Quickbooks GoPayment.

Reduce Money Going Out

1. Purchase carefully

What do you realistically need this season: products for your retail or ecommerce store, supplies and staff for your service business, vehicles for your catering company? Examine past sales records, do your research and forecast sales. Be conservative.

2. Negotiate payment terms

Ask your vendor to extend the amount of time you have to pay your bills, ideally to Net 60 or Net 90. Or for large bills, ask for installment payments. This may not be typical, but it doesn’t hurt to ask, especially if you’re a good customer.

3. Pay by credit card

This automatically provides you with longer payment terms, keeping more money in your bank account during the holidays. If you’re deciding between vendors, look for ones that accept credit card payments or ask if they’ll take a credit card.

4. Get a line of credit

A line of credit from your bank acts like a credit card, but typically with much lower interest rates. If you have good credit and a good relationship with your bank, ask now for a credit line.

5. Arrange for a vendor to directly fulfill your customer orders

Why buy and hold inventory, especially if yours is an ecommerce business? Instead, see if you can find vendors who ship products once the order has been placed. You hold little or no inventory, and receive cash before you make the expenditure. You’ll likely have a smaller profit margin—vendors may charge more for the product as well as the fulfillment service—but you tie up far less money and reduce risk.


Copyright Rhonda Abrams, 2021

This article originally ran in USA Today on November 3, 2021

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Email

Category: Rhonda's Blog, USA TodayTag: cash flow, credit cards, gift certificates, holidays, line of credit, money management, payment terms, pre-sales, supply chain problems

Previous Post: «carpenter wearing a mask sitting at a worktable in his woodshop, looking up information on his laptop Nine Tips for Small Biz Holiday Success
Next Post: 7 Things You Can Do to Support Small Business Right Now Portrait of happy young woman holding Christmas presents in store»

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Rhonda's Blog via Email

Instagram @rhondaabrams

Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tip Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tips and the latest info. sent straight to your inbox! Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #newsletter #smallbizguru
What’s old is new again! How to stay in front of What’s old is new again! How to stay in front of your smallbiz customers, in my latest @usatoday column. Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #customer #digitalmarketing #smallbizguru
National Doughnut Day on Friday?? Great way to sta National Doughnut Day on Friday?? Great way to start the weekend!! Enjoy, and go find yourself some doughnuts 😋 🍩 
.
.
#smallbusiness #fridayfeeling #nationaldoughnutday
#smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #entrepreneur #ins #smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #entrepreneur #inspirationalquotes
“And I’m proud to be an American, where at lea “And I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free. And I won’t forget the men who died, who gave that right to me.” - Lee Greenwood -
.
.
#memorialday #neverforget
We're heading into a long weekend! Here's to some We're heading into a long weekend! Here's to some R&R, productivity . . . whatever your small business needs~
.
.
#smallbusiness #weekend #entrepreneur #fridayfeeling
Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tip Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tips and the latest info. sent straight to your inbox! Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #tips #entrepreneur #newsletter #smallbizguru
#smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #inspirationalquot #smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #inspirationalquotes
Here's to a great week, small business owners! . . Here's to a great week, small business owners!
.
.
#smallbusiness #smallbusinessowner #mondaymotivation
My Tweets
  • Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tip Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tips and the latest info. sent straight to your inbox! Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #newsletter #smallbizguru
    What’s old is new again! How to stay in front of What’s old is new again! How to stay in front of your smallbiz customers, in my latest @usatoday column. Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #customer #digitalmarketing #smallbizguru
    National Doughnut Day on Friday?? Great way to sta National Doughnut Day on Friday?? Great way to start the weekend!! Enjoy, and go find yourself some doughnuts 😋 🍩 
.
.
#smallbusiness #fridayfeeling #nationaldoughnutday
    #smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #entrepreneur #ins #smallbusiness #tuesdaythoughts #entrepreneur #inspirationalquotes
    “And I’m proud to be an American, where at lea “And I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free. And I won’t forget the men who died, who gave that right to me.” - Lee Greenwood -
.
.
#memorialday #neverforget
    We're heading into a long weekend! Here's to some We're heading into a long weekend! Here's to some R&R, productivity . . . whatever your small business needs~
.
.
#smallbusiness #weekend #entrepreneur #fridayfeeling
    Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tip Sign up for my newsletter - get small business tips and the latest info. sent straight to your inbox! Link in profile~
.
.
#smallbusiness #tips #entrepreneur #newsletter #smallbizguru
  • Footer

    Our Products
    Instructor Central

    Privacy Policy
    Contact Us

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter

    Copyright © 2023 PlanningShop · All Rights Reserved · Site design by paulinaart

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. ACCEPT Read More
    Privacy & Cookies Policy

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT