The Importance of Keeping Your Existing Financier Happy—Ensuring You Get the Financial Support You Need
Financiers are one of the pillars of a successful business and it is important to be on the same page about your business goals. During the life cycle of a business, they can often require multiple cash injections, especially as they grow and develop. If you’re happy with your current financier then definitely stay where you are and keep the relationship strong. However, if things are changing in your business and finance is an issue, it pays to research the options.
These are some ways in which you can operate to ensure you keep your existing financier happy, giving your business an increased chance of future success:
- Report regularly:
- Regular updates will help in keeping the relationship with your financier healthy. We often hear from clients the overwhelmingly positive results of their business reporting to their financier regularly, as well as the catastrophic consequences of doing so sporadically or keeping them in the dark.
- Be honest:
- Financiers hate surprises – especially bad surprises. Be honest with them. The vast majority of financiers know and understand that very few companies develop according to plan. Don’t be afraid to let them know if something goes wrong and share with them your plan to deal with the issue.
- Report about change and decisions:
- The slightest change in any field of your business and the alteration of decisions can affect business performance, so it is necessary to tell your financier about the change that is happening in the business, and also the decisions you are going to make. It is not necessary to share every small change and decision, but be sure to share about the major changes and the decisions you are making for the future of the business.
- Ask for advice:
- When you start a business, you aim for success and financiers deal with businesses day in day out. They can share their knowledge of other businesses and give you some insights that may help you work towards your goals.
- Business is all about relationships:
- A good relationship with your financier can be invaluable to for your business, people assist people they like and work well with. Don’t ever underestimate this.
To ensure you can regularly report your business financials to your financier, it is important to have your finance up to date. By reporting regularly, honestly and fairly you will go a long way earning the support of your financier, both in good times and bad. Advivo uses the 3-way modelling method of financial modelling and it consists of projected Cash Flow, Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet. By implementing the 3-way modelling correctly, all three reports would be in sync, giving you a clear picture of your anticipated profit, the amount that should be in your bank and even your business’ overall net worth.
Advivo’s Monthly or Quarterly Service Programs (MSPs) offering can help you improve your business and remove the stress associated with end-of-year accounting and ongoing monthly obligations. Through our monthly servicing program, we provide effective management reporting, influence effective cashflow and ensure there are no year-end surprises. Our monthly account reviews weed out any bookkeeping oversights and miscoding BEFORE they become an issue, and puts the control firmly back in your hands.
Whilst all financiers want to see their clients succeed, until then what they really want to see is evidence that they are deserving of their financial support and are working hard at growing the business to the success we all hope it will become.
