One might be resulted in believe that profit may be the main objective in a small business but in reality it is the dollars flowing in and out of a small business which keeps the doors open. The concept of profit is fairly narrow and only looks at expenses and income at a certain point in time. Cash flow, however, is more dynamic in the sense that it’s concerned with the movement of money in and out of a business. It is concerned with the time at which the movement of the amount of money takes place. Profits do not necessarily coincide making use of their associated cash inflows and outflows. The net result is that money receipts often lag cash payments even though profits may be reported, the business enterprise may experience a short-term dollars shortage. For this reason, it is vital to forecast cash flows together with project likely earnings. In these terms, it is very important know how to convert your accrual earnings to your cash flow profit. You have to be able to maintain enough cash on hand to run the business, but not so much concerning forfeit possible earnings from various other uses.

Why accounting is needed

Help you to function better as a business owner

Make timely decisions
Know when to hire a team of employees
Learn how to price your products
Understand how to label your expense items
Allows you to determine whether to extend or not
Helps with operations projected costs
Stop Fraud and Theft
Control the biggest problem is internal theft
Reconcile your books and stock control of equipment
Raising Capital (enable you to explain financials to stakeholders)
Loans
Investors
What are the Best Practices in Accounting for Small Businesses to handle your common ‘pain points’?
Hire or consult with CPA or accountant
What is the simplest way and how often to get hold of
What experience are you experiencing in my industry?
Identify what is my break-even point?
Can the accountant assess the overall value of my business
Can you help me grow my business with profit planning techniques
How can you help me to prepare for tax season
What are some special factors for my particular industry?

To succeed, your company should be profitable. All of your business objectives boil right down to this one simple fact. But turning a profit is simpler said than done. In order to boost your bottom line, you have to know what’s going on financially all the time. You also have to be committed to tracking and understanding your KPIs.
What are the common Profitability Metrics to Track in Business — key performance indicators (KPI)

Whether you decide to hire an expert or do it yourself, there are some metrics that you need to absolutely need to keep track of at all times:

Outstanding Accounts Payable: Remarkable accounts payable (A/P) shows the balance of cash you now owe to your suppliers.
Average Cash Burn: Average money burn is the rate at which your business’ cash balance is going down on average each month over a specified time frame. A negative burn is a good sign because it indicates your organization is generating dollars and growing its funds reserves.
Cash Runaway: If your business is operating baffled, cash runway can help you estimate how many months you can continue before your business exhausts its cash reserves. Similar to your cash burn, a poor runway is a superb sign that your business is growing its cash reserves.
Gross Margin: Gross margin is a percentage that demonstrates the total revenue of one’s business after subtracting the costs connected with creating and selling your enterprise’ products. It is just a helpful metric to recognize how your revenue compares to your costs, enabling you to make changes accordingly.
Customer Acquisition Cost: By focusing on how much you spend normally to acquire a new customer, you can tell how many customers you must generate a profit.
Customer Lifetime Value: You need to know your LTV to be able to predict your own future revenues and estimate the total number of customers you should grow your profits.
Break-Even Point:How much do I have to generate in product sales for my company to produce a profit?Knowing this number will highlight what you must do to turn a earnings (e.g., acquire more customers, increase rates, or lower operating expenses).
Net Profit: This is the single most important number you should know for your business to be a financial success. logistics If you aren’t making a profit, your organization isn’t going to survive for long.
Total revenues comparison with last year/last month. By monitoring and comparing your total revenues over time, you can make sound business judgements and set better financial goals.
Average revenue per employee. It is important to know this number so that you could set realistic productivity aims and recognize ways to streamline your business operations.
The following checklist lays out a suggested timeline to deal with the accounting functions that may preserve you attuned to the functions of your business and streamline your tax preparation. The reliability and timeliness of the figures entered will affect the main element performance indicators that drive enterprise decisions that need to be made, on a daily, monthly and annual base towards profits.
Daily Accounting Tasks

Review your daily Cashflow position which means you don’t ‘grow broke’.
Since cash is the fuel for your business, you won’t ever want to be running near empty. Start your day by checking the amount of money you have on hand.
Weekly Accounting Tasks

2. Record Transactions

Record each transaction (billing customers, receiving cash from consumers, paying vendors, etc.) in the correct account daily or weekly, depending on volume. Although recording transactions manually or in Excel linens is acceptable, it is probably simpler to use accounting program like QuickBooks. The huge benefits and control far outweigh the price.

3. Document and File Receipts

Keep copies of all invoices sent, all cash receipts (cash, check and charge card deposits) and all cash obligations (cash, check, charge card statements, etc.).

Start a vendors record, sorted alphabetically, (Sears under “S”, CVS under “C,”etc.) for easy access. Develop a payroll file sorted by payroll time and a bank statement data file sorted by month. A common habit is to toss all paper receipts into a box and make an effort to decipher them at tax moment, but if you don’t have a small volume of transactions, it’s better to have separate data for assorted receipts kept structured as they can be found in. Many accounting software systems enable you to scan paper receipts and steer clear of physical files altogether

4. Review Unpaid Bills from Vendors

Every business must have an “unpaid vendors” folder. Keep a record of each of your vendors which includes billing dates, amounts credited and payment deadline. If vendors make discounts available for early payment, you may want to take advantage of that should you have the cash available.

5. Pay Vendors, Sign Checks

Track your accounts payable and have funds earmarked to cover your suppliers on time in order to avoid any late fees and maintain favorable relationships with them. If you are able to extend payment dates to net 60 or net 90, the better. Whether you make payments on-line or drop a check in the mail, keep copies of invoices directed and received using accounting software program.