Financial Hacks to Help Run Your Business

Six Financial Hacks to Make Your Business Run Better

You are a small business owner. You are sitting in your workplace, studying a computer screen. Suddenly, you shout, “Oh no!” Or something far more colorful.

On your monthly checking statement, you’ve noticed a $5,000 check to someone you’ve never heard of. You are 110% sure you did not send money to this stranger.

Fraud has reared its ugly head. Someone has forged a copy of one of your business’s paper checks, wiping out a chunk of profits. At Ameris Bank, we’re ready to help you deal with fraud and any number of other financial issues. But first, a few words of background. 

May is Small Business Month. It’s a time to celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit that goes into America’s 33.3 million small businesses. Only about 6 million of those businesses have any hired help at all - and many of those have four or fewer workers.*

That means that most small business owners are wearing many hats. Mostly, they are experts in the product they sell or produce or the service they offer. Often, they lack some of the knowledge needed to navigate every financial challenge that comes down the pike.

Good news. Members of the Business Services team at Ameris Bank are excellent problem solvers. As our gift to entrepreneurs this month, we offer six solutions – the kids call them “hacks” – to common small business challenges.

Fighting fraud: Back to the bogus check. You thought the biggest fraud risk was from cybercriminals and other e-scammers. You’re right, those are serious threats. But spurred by technology that makes paper forgery easier, U.S. businesses lose over $20 billion annually to check fraud.**

Ameris Bank rides to the rescue with Positive Pay. Every time your business mails out a batch of checks, you send us a computer file listing the payee, check number and dollar amount. When a check is presented for payment, we automatically compare it to your list. If something looks sketchy, we flag it. At that point, your business has a chance to reject or accept the payment.

In short, you get to say “no way” before circumstances have you yelling, “Oh no!”

E is for electronic efficiency

You got into business to make money. What may have caught you off guard is how much you end up sending to others. Rent, utilities, vendor services, supplies and equipment. You could spend hours each week writing checks. 

The solution? One of our Online and Mobile Banking tools. With electronic Bill Payer, your business can make one-time bill payments with a few keystrokes. And you can schedule recurring payments – like utility bills – to be made automatically. 

In the end, you’ll save hours of time that can be better spent building your business. And you’ll cut down on postage costs that are cutting into your profit margin. 

A good card trick

Somewhere along the way, a lot of people simply stopped using paper currency. In fact, about 60% of all purchases these days are made with credit or debit cards.***

That convenience is great for the consumer. But it can pose challenges for smaller businesses that need to find an efficient way to process card payments and quickly move them into bank accounts.

Payment processing systems are known as Merchant Services. At Ameris Bank, we partner with a national firm called Clover to provide customized systems – terminals, software and customer support - at affordable prices. You’ll be able to accept all kinds of cards, which can increase sales. You’ll be able to handle contactless payments made with smartphones. We can even upgrade your website to make it more commerce-friendly. In short, everything will run so smoothly that you won’t miss that cash register full of $20 bills.

Productive dollars

There’s just too much sitting around! No, your employees aren’t slackers. It’s the dollars in your operating account we’re talking about. They can sit idle for days or weeks, doing nothing until they’re spent. Your business – like everyone’s -- is looking to trim expenses and increase revenues. An Ameris Bank Credit Line Sweep Account can help do one or the other – or both. When the balance in your operating account exceeds a certain total, funds are moved – or swept – to a money-making investment account. Alternatively, the money can be used to pay down a line of credit, reducing your interest payments.

When your operating account needs a refill, funds are swept back into it. The best part? All this money movement occurs automatically. That means you don’t have to interrupt your own work to put your money to work.

Expect the unexpected

About that line of credit - It can be the ideal solution to those cash-flow challenges that always seem to occur at the worst time.

For instance, you might need to pay for major repairs and new inventory at the exact same time. Or you might need to hire temporary help when revenues are sluggish but the busy season is right around the corner. Obviously, there’s no time to get a new loan for each financial challenge.

With an Ameris Bank Business line of credit, one application gives you access to a pool of money for years on end. Tap into it as often as you wish for any reason at all. Worried about your monthly budget? You can make interest-only payments – and you pay interest only on the amount of money in use.

So there you are, five tools and services that address key financial needs and help boost your business’s bottom line.

What’s that? You say we promised six hacks. OK, here’s the last one - you don’t have to figure out everything on your own. Just give our experienced Business Services team a shout.


Published June 2024

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

Sources:
*Pew Research Center (Stats regarding small businesses)
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/04/22/a-look-at-small-businesses-in-the-us/#:~:text=Among%20the%20roughly%206%20million,have%20100%20to%20499%20workers.

**Federal Reserve Bank of Boston (Paper Check Fraud)
https://www.bostonfed.org/news-and-events/news/2023/08/check-fraud-rampant-mike-timoney-column-fraud-awareness-key-to-slowing-surge.aspx

*** Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta (Credit and debit card use)
https://www.atlantafed.org/-/media/documents/research/publications/policy-hub/2022/07/11/10--payment-card-adoption-and-payment-choice.pdf