Why Most Business Owners Get Year-End Reviews Wrong
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Release Date: 12/28/2024
Can Joining GIP Academy Change Your Business Forever?
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Can Joining GIP Academy Change Your Business Forever? Summary: In this episode of the From Chaos to Clarity podcast, host Sonya Jones interviews Torri Jones, founder of The Learning Group, a STEM consulting firm. They discuss Torri's entrepreneurial journey, the importance of financial management, and how GIP Academy has supported her business growth. Torri shares her experiences with bookkeeping, the lessons learned in tracking finances, and the benefits of being part of a supportive community. The conversation emphasizes the significance of knowing your numbers and investing in...
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Unlocking Grant Funding: Insights from a Grant Writer with Victoria Ravenel
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Unlocking Grant Funding: Insights from a Grant Writer with Victoria Ravenel Summary: In this episode of the From Chaos to Clarity podcast, host Sonia Jones interviews Victoria Ravenel, a nonprofit consultant and grant writer. They discuss the importance of understanding grant writing, the role of grant writers, and common myths surrounding grants. Victoria emphasizes the need for nonprofits to be grant-ready and the significance of data in securing funding. The conversation also touches on entrepreneurship, financial management, and the importance of investing in oneself and...
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[Live Q&A] Is Wave A VIABLE Alternative To QuickBooks For Small Businesses
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Summary: In this episode of the Chaos to Clarity podcast, hosts Sonja Jones and Jackie discuss the importance of accounting software, specifically WAVE, and its suitability for different types of businesses. They share best practices for using accounting software, the significance of access and security, and the implications of merchant processing fees. The conversation also highlights the importance of bookkeeping for tax deductions and when to consider hiring a professional bookkeeper. Additionally, they provide insights from a recent workshop on cash flow management and the foundational...
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Is Wave A VIABLE Alternative To QuickBooks For Small Businesses
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Is Wave A VIABLE Alternative To QuickBooks For Small Businesses Summary: In this episode, we discuss Wave, a cloud-based accounting software, with Jacqueline Mercer from Baldwin Financial Services. They explore who Wave is best suited for, its pricing structure, and the various features it offers, including invoicing, payment processing, and financial reporting. The conversation emphasizes the importance of understanding the software's capabilities and limitations, particularly for small businesses and entrepreneurs. The hosts also highlight the need for professional guidance when navigating...
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Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Grant Applications with Broderick Wamble
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Grant Applications with Broderick Womble Summary: In this episode, host Sonja Jones engages with Broderick Wamble, Community Affairs Officer at Simmons Bank, to discuss the importance of financial literacy, the intricacies of grant applications, and the support available for small businesses and home ownership initiatives. They explore the role of banks in community development, the significance of understanding one's financial position, and the common pitfalls in grant applications. The conversation also highlights the unique challenges faced by...
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[Live Q&A] How to be a Bankable Business with Chasity Monroe of Pink Noir
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
How to be a Bankable Business Summary: In this episode, Sonia Jones interviews Chasity Monroe, the founder of Pink Noir, a beauty supply store in Memphis, Tennessee. Chasity shares her journey of starting Pink Noir to meet the needs of the community, the challenges she faced in securing funding from River City Capital, and the importance of financial preparedness and understanding one's numbers in business. The conversation highlights the emotional impact of receiving funding, the strategic approach to loan repayment, and the critical nature of financial literacy for entrepreneurs,...
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[LIVE Q&A] Small Business Owners Are MISSING OUT On Crucial Tax KNOWLEDGE
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
How to be a Bankable Business Summary:In this live Q&A session, Sonia Jones and Latasha discuss the common tax mistakes entrepreneurs make, emphasizing the importance of proper bookkeeping and financial literacy. They cover topics such as mixing personal and business expenses, tracking cash transactions, underreporting income, and the significance of timely filing to avoid penalties. The conversation highlights the need for entrepreneurs to understand their financials to make informed decisions and avoid costly mistakes with the IRS. Takeaways: Mixing personal and business expenses...
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How to be a Bankable Business with Ron Brooks of River City Capital
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
How to be a Bankable Business Summary: In this episode, the hosts discuss how to become a bankable business, focusing on the importance of financial preparedness, investment in time and resources, and understanding financial records. They emphasize the need for entrepreneurs to solidify their personal finances before starting a business and the significance of maintaining clear financial records to build trust with lenders. The conversation also covers key financial metrics that businesses should be aware of to ensure success and stability. In this conversation, the speakers discuss the...
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Small Business Owners Are MISSING OUT On Crucial Tax KNOWLEDGE
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Summary: In this episode, Sonja Jones discusses the tax literacy gap among small business owners and highlights the common mistakes they make when it comes to taxes. She emphasizes the importance of separating personal and business expenses, tracking cash transactions, reporting all income accurately, maintaining proper records to avoid missing deductions, and the consequences of filing taxes late. Additionally, she promotes GIP Academy as a resource for financial education and support for business owners. Takeaways: There is a significant tax literacy gap among small business owners....
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[LIVE Q&A] Tax Deductions You’re Probably Missing (And How to Claim Them)
From Chaos to Clarity: Unleash Your Business Potential
Summary: In this live Q&A session, Sonja Jones discusses various tax deductions relevant to small businesses, emphasizing the importance of understanding what qualifies as ordinary and necessary expenses. She covers deductions related to merchant fees, clothing, gifts, entertainment, and meals, while also promoting GIP Academy as a resource for entrepreneurs seeking assistance with bookkeeping and tax preparation. Takeaways: Ordinary and necessary are key terms for tax deductions. Merchant account fees are deductible expenses. Clothing can be deducted if it serves a business...
info_outline- Celebrating wins is important to keep the team motivated. GIP celebrated its first staff retreat, intern, six-figure year in gross sales, and major contract.
- Understanding gross sales before expenses is essential for financial clarity. You need to know what you made before you deduct expenses to accurately assess the business's financial health.
- To calculate your growth rate, take the current year's gross sales, divide it by the previous year's gross sales, then subtract one, and multiply by 100 to get the percentage. For GIP, the growth rate from 2023 to 2024 was 39.8%.
- Client growth can be misleading. Although GIP saw a dip in the number of clients, their revenue increased, showing that focusing on revenue is key. It's more important to maximize revenue than to just add more clients.
- Analyzing sales by product and service is crucial. GIP tracks income from monthly bookkeeping, QuickBooks setup, end-of-year tax prep, consultations, and QuickBooks online subscriptions. It's helpful to use the products and services feature in QuickBooks to see which clients are most profitable.
- Visibility is vital, especially on social media. GIP invested in a social media coach and content creator to improve their reach.
- Set clear, actionable goals for your business. GIP's revenue goal was 250K, and although they didn't meet that, they surpassed their previous year's gross revenue. They were at 86% of their goal by their staff retreat.
- Your mission statement should guide all business decision. GIP's mission is to "empower entrepreneurs to know their numbers and position their organizations for maximum impact".
- It is important to be intentional about the platforms you use and tailor your message to your audience. For example, GIP uses LinkedIn for CFO clients and other platforms for GIP Academy.
- Consistency is key in offerings. For GIP, the word for 2025 is consistency.
- You must be open to adapting your strategies based on feedback and data.
Additional Notes:
- Data analysis is important to understanding client needs and how to improve services.
- You should always reflect on lessons learned to improve your business.
- Financial literacy is key for entrepreneurs.