7 FinTech Tools to Take Small Business Financial Planning to The Next Level
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, there are over 61.2 million small businesses throughout the nation (and climbing). This means that understanding what the most effective financial planning tools are is essential for ensuring your business has adequate funds to cover expenses and investments alike.
The pandemic provided a jarring reality check to small business owners! Despite the pivots of the past two years, many are using this time of recovery to rebuild. Whether your business survived these unprecedented times or you just joined the record-breaking number of entrepreneurs entering the market, good financial planning keeps you on track as your small business grows, when challenges arise, and when unexpected crises hit.
When four of the seven pressing issues small businesses face are about money, it becomes clear that choosing the best financial tools will ultimately keep your company in a formidable position. Let’s explore seven leading tech tools to help take your small business financial planning to the next level!
QuickBooks
QuickBooks is the premier standard for accounting tools that has withstood the test of time by consistently providing solutions to help professionals organize and manage their business. This comprehensive platform is a full-featured business and financial management suite complete with tools for accounting, inventory, payroll, tax filing, invoicing, bank account tracking and reconciliation, expense management, budgeting, payment processing, accounts receivable, and accounts payable management. QuickBooks effectively removes the tedious parts of the business process and instantly provides results so you can look like an entrepreneurial wizard.
Be it data reporting with a customized dashboard or creating a custom archive of receipts, Quickbooks offers an array of fully-functional choices. While it can be a complex system that can overwhelm new users at first, the power behind its versatility makes it a must-have option. Prices start at $10 a month and four different tiers are available based on user needs.
Mint
A popular platform for personal budget tracking and planning, Mint is also quite the hit with small businesses and not-for-profit organizations. Featuring easy-to-use functions such as credit monitoring to bill negotiations, it will never be too much of a hassle to find the information you need instantly.
Mint has extensive integrations with top-ranked applications and banking institutions so that it can be a one-stop-shop for accessing an accurate bird’s eye view of your finances. All your information will conveniently be available on your phone, tablet, or PC from anywhere in the world. Mint is available for free with additional charges per detailed function.
Wave
As small business owners, we love to evaluate options to find the best fit for our bespoke needs. Wave is another renowned all-in-one platform option that combines all of the accounting processes and simplifies the business experience. From payments made to payroll, Wave provides bookkeeping and banking services that are always highly detailed. However, Wave’s true value is its advisors. With a simple click, you are able to set up consultations for their bookkeeping, tax, and payroll services in order to remedy any problem quickly.
One would think such quality service would be out of your price range; however, Wave starts with a free service.
PlanGuru
It doesn’t hurt to take a page from the budgeting and business planning processes that have helped corporations achieve sustainable growth! PlanGuru aids small businesses in exploring advanced features to excel. While it can import documents from Excel, Quickbooks and Xero, PlanGuru shines more as an active planning system. Among the features included are forecasting tools that simulate financial impacts for up to 10 years into the future, allowing you to make informed choices with minimal effort. Also, a reporting tool neatly combines all data into streamlined, easy-to-use documentation that showcases what is and is not working for the business.
Plan Guru offers two options: cloud-based or desktop-based. Both versions are the same price, starting at $99/month.
Gusto
The most important feature of any business is its employees. Thus, having the best software that allows you to provide the essential human resource (HR) functions is a no-brainer. Gusto handles everything from payroll and employee benefits to the hiring process. Aiming to simplify employee management, Gusto uses in-depth algorithms and reporting to summarize the standing of all employees and the productivity they offer.
Gusto has three-tiered memberships starting at $39, as well as a custom fourth option that allows you to pick only the services you need.
Expensify
Having a stellar expense report at hand never hurts! Expensify is a must-have for any business owner looking to have an easier time managing inventory, purchases or even paying bills. With hardly any drawbacks, Expensify easily integrates travel, HR, and accounting documents through API access to Xero and Gusto, providing highly detailed tracking management. Take comfort in your bank and credit card activity being safeguarded by top security standards as well as customized workflow access so every employee is accounted for.
Expensify starts as a free service and offers two paid tiers based on usage, starting at $5/month with an Expensify debit card included.
Business Credit Cards
We can easily forget that one of the oldest financial tools is also one of the most necessary for businesses of every scale! However, unlike in the past, first-time business owners now have an array of choices and these business credit cards can cater to the needs of small companies without fail.
Every small business has its own specific needs and having the choice between a business cash card or credit card is no different. If you’re looking for a highly rated with a 0% APR for 12 months and a robust rewards system that offers up to 2x points for every purchase made before a total of $5,000, then the American Express Blue Business card can potentially be an asset to you.
Perhaps you and your employees travel a lot and receiving money back with each purchase would work wonders. Then the Chase Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card might come in handy, with 1.5% cash back on every purchase.
The options are plentiful but of course, picking what is right for your business is always key.. or “card” in this case.
How Do I Know What’s Best For Me?
These seven options are only a glimpse into the world of financial tools available to you. Therefore, before you make any decision, answer the following questions:
Are the financial management tools your company using able to match the anticipated needs and growth goals, or will you be forced to invest more money into new tools when change happens?
Are the tools being used able to protect your company’s private information and be accessible to employees for use safely?
Is there a defined budget and how much is needed to completely cover the requirements of the business?
Is it better to have an in-house program to provide more control over security parameters or a cloud-based program to allow access from anywhere?
There’s never been a time like this for small businesses. Let’s make sure you have the right tools to thrive for years to come.
