Simply Junior

There are several ways of setting up a small business. Entrepreneurs can use their own funds to set it up, from the registration of the business all the way to starting the operations. They can also seek funding from several organizations such as banks and lending institutions, or pitch the business idea to a venture capital. But no matter who entrepreneurs talk to for funding, they will need to present their small business plans.

Writing business cases for small enterprises are just as intensive as writing one for a major business venture. Aside from the fact that the sections and parts are typically the same, they both have the same sets of information that need to be presented towards the objective of convincing the readers and audience to invest money into the venture.

If you are thinking of setting up a small business and are not yet convinced that you should go through the trouble of writing a business case, it pays to know the other reasons why it’s a smart move to come up with a small business plan. Aside from the fact that a business plan is required if you want to raise funding, either through investors or loans, it also helps you map out the internal process by setting goals, and laying down the strategies and directions that you intend to take in order to reach these goals. In addition, a business plan is also an efficient way to come up with a valuation for your business for sale or other legal purposes.

So what exactly is a business plan for small enterprises? A business plan is a document that proves that your business stands to generate sufficient revenues to cover all its operating and overhead expenses. There can be some variations on the messaging, however, depending on who you want to present this to. If you intend to show this to your partners to give them an idea on how you intend to grow your business further, your business plan should offer more operational details. If you intend to get funding, however, it should cover more financial details, as well as information on the management team. Investors will always want to know if the people who are leading the company where they are putting their money are credible, highly professional, and knowledgeable of the market.

There are several keys to developing a successful business plan, which means a plan that gets the buy-in of your audience. First, it should be able to present a coherent idea that has been thought out completely. The language and tone used should also be concise, brief and clear, and should not be beating around the bushes, so to speak. In terms of the structure, the business plan should be logical and chronological. The end goal should be to show the business’ profitability.

Small business plansare entrepreneurs’ ticket to getting funds for expansion purposes. Most investors recognize the fact that they don’t have the monopoly over great ideas. And so they are bound to know a good idea when they see one, and bank on its success with their own funds.

Across the nation, employers are either spending a lot more to cover employees with health insurance or dropping that as a company benefit completely. According to the nonprofit Commonwealth Fund, the average cost of providing employees with family coverage has reached a national average of $13,027. Yet, in more than half of the states (27, in fact), the average state-wide cost was even higher.

Between 2003 and 2009, the average cost of family health insurance policies rose by a whopping 45 percent in Pennsylvania and by 50 percent in Maryland. The worst hit was Louisiana with a 59-percent hike.

Almost a third of the people in the U.S. without health insurance work for companies with fewer than 100 employees, according to a March 2008 population survey. Another 2008 survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that while large companies have continued to provide health insurance at relatively unchanged levels, the percentage of small companies doing so fell to just 59 percent.

Small Business Owners Lose When They Stop Covering Employees

Small businesses can be harmed in several ways when they drop coverage for employees. The better benefits offered by big firms can funnel high-quality employees away from small businesses in droves.

Small companies are also at more of a disadvantage when employees are sick than larger firms are. That’s because small firms lack a reserve of employees with the knowledge and skills to replace workers who are out sick. That gap can cripple productivity, depress moral and give customers the impression that a business is no longer capable for servicing their needs all because critical personnel are missing.

Another way that small businesses suffer more is that they often have to pay a lot more to cover employees because they lack the buying power of bigger employers. So, what can small business owners do to dig themselves out of this hole?

Health Reimbursement Arrangements Work For Small Business Owners

While small businesses may not be able to pay for an employee’s individual health insurance plan, many times state laws let employers reimburse their employees tax-free via a Section 105 HRA Plan.

A Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) can include as much or as little coverage as an employer deems necessary. It’s simply an agreement as to which health care costs an employer will reimburse employees for and it can include health insurance premiums. It’s a business expense for company and a tax-free benefit for employees.

Employers decide whether to keep all, part or none of the funds they contribute for employee health care expenses at year end. They also set whether former employees, such as retirees, may continue to access unused reimbursement amounts.

Health Savings Accounts Offer Small Business Owners More

Another form of consumer-driven health care, health savings accounts are an easy-to-manage alternative for small business owners. HSA Plans reduce paperwork for the business by shifting control to the employees. With Health Savings Plans, employees determine which financial institutions will manage their health savings account (HSA) so the employer invests less time in setting up accounts.

Both the employer and employee may contribute to an HSA Health Plan, and employee contributions can serve as tax deductions to reduce their income taxes. In the move toward high-deductible health insurance to keep premium costs down, more banks and other financial institutions are making it easier to set up Health Savings Plans. They are also increasing options that make an HSA more attractive to employees.

Small Business Tax Credits Are A Bonus

Millions of small businesses were sent postcards last April to increase awareness of the new tax credits available to them. To be qualified, an employer must provide at least half of the expense for health insurance for some employees, and must have fewer than 25 full-time employees. That means businesses with less than 50 part-time employees may also qualify.

There are also regulations regarding annual average wages. To qualify, an employer’s average annual wages must be below $50,000.

As of 2010, this tax credit was worth up to 35 percent of the health insurance premium costs for small businesses, and up to 25 percent for organizations with tax-exempt status.

Once you have a budget and you know what you are spending, the next phase is to improve your spending habits. Making your spending more efficient means making your spending in each expense category more efficient, and each expense category has its own techniques of efficiency. By working with each category separately, you can dramatically improve your overall spending efficiency.

Perhaps the largest part of your living expenses category is your food budget, and food spending has its own set of improvements. Since everyone eats, everyone has a food budget. This spending can be improved in several ways, but I want to warn you, there is a certain amount of spending that must occur here. While you can save on your food, you can save even more in other areas. But many people start with saving on the food budget, so let’s cover some of the basics. There are both general and specific techniques of improving your spending on food.

General Techniques

There are four general techniques that can be applied to your food budget and have good results.