How to Monitor Expenses

They say that a smaller house is easier to clean. When your martial arts school was just starting, keeping an eye on your expenses was not that hard. You had everything on paper and yes, there were some miscellaneous costs but they were very small and easy to ignore. But now, your business is growing. Having an oversight on everything is harder and harder to accomplish. You may never know that some unnecessary expenditure is being done. How are you going to deal with this?

First of all, relax and take a deep breath. The good news is “expense leaks” are normal in businesses. You can detect these leaks by conducting bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly assessments. A good place to check first is your bank account and your credit card bills. Anything out f the ordinary should be inspected immediately. To narrow it down, here are some of the 4 usual things that drain your budget in small but profound ways.

Ad Campaigns

If you’ve embraced the internet and dabbled on some world wide web advertisements, then you might want to double check it from time to time. The interweb has made it easy for business owners to customize what they want to put on the net. Business owners have so much control that they also have the ability to automate their ads. Although it may sound convenient, some people forget about these things and let it run forever as long as it’s paid for. Review your ads and see if they are actually contributing to your business and always keep them on check.

Membership Fees

Monthly membership fees are convenient because they only cost a few bucks and you get to pay every month. But the thing is, some services aren’t even worth it. Software charges, magazine subscriptions, and club memberships that do nothing for your business must be eliminated. List all of them and see if they are still useful, if not, then it’s time to cancel.

Credit Cards

Credit cards aren’t that bad. They’re convenient, useful in emergencies, and offers lots of rewards. The bad thing about them is that they prey on the minds of the irresponsible and the materialistic. But when you’re using them for business, credit cards can save your martial arts school a lot of money through rebates. If you’re paying on time, see the actual rewards that you get and compare it to perks that other credit card companies offer. If you’re sure that you’ll benefit more when you change cards then make the switch.

Communication Bills

There are lots of options to choose from when it comes to communication charges. If you still have a single plan for your internet, cable, and telephone then switch to a bundle. Telecomm companies offer lots of teasers and promotional offers that usually expire in 6 months or 1 year so request for a new one or see if the competition is proposing better deals.

These are just the usual things to look out for but make sure to keep an eye on all of your expenses. Some of the things may only cost a few dollars but over time, they will accumulate and burn a big hole to your budget.