Fine-tune your business relationship

In these dynamic times, businesses benefit from taking a close look at all their business affiliations, partnerships and buying arrangements. Whether you’re evolving to provide new offerings, striving to boost efficiency, or want to improve operations, examine these five areas to find small modifications that can have a big impact.

1. Vendors

Do you have the right insurance, design, inventory, technology, and other essential support for your current needs? Look at both pricing and whether you’re getting the skills and assets you need to do your best, most efficient work. While long-lasting vendor relationships can be a valuable asset, smart business dictates evolving your relationships as your business changes. Consider whether you need vendors with additional or different capabilities to help move your business to the next stage. Of course, always give current vendors with whom you have a history a chance to meet your needs.

2. Technology

Businesses that update technology to gain efficiency and improve service tend to pull ahead of the pack. Deloitte research shows that 85% of small and midsized businesses feel digital tools have helped their businesses grow.

As you think about how you can put technology and tools to work for your company, keep in mind that the cheapest technology solution may not be the most economical for your business in the long run. An investment in the right technology now may end up saving you money down the road. Consider these areas to look for opportunities to put technology to use:

• Communication. Are there collaboration tools, software to facilitate document storage or sharing, or other tools to help your team stay connected and do their best work?
• Security. What tools do you have in place to protect company or customer information?
• Operational efficiency. Is your team spending valuable time in manual tasks? Time is money, and tools such as online banking and bill pay and mobile banking can save you time, so you can focus on your business.
• Customer service. Whether it’s a service to send automated responses to customer service emails, track inventory in real time, or capture and share customer account notes, an investment in keeping customers happy will pay off now and in the future.

3. Partners

Working with other companies to offer more to your customers is a proven tactic. It’s always a good idea to regularly reevaluate your partnerships to see if they are well aligned with your objectives.

• As your business grows, see if there are additional needs existing or new partners might be able to fulfill that would enhance what you offer. You may find greater success by delegating work to your partners, so you can focus on building your company.
• Review whether your existing partners are still the right match for your company, and whether your agreements with them still make sense in the current environment.

4. Banking

Are you taking advantage of all the benefits that a business relationship with your bank provides? There are many ways the right banking relationship can help a small business grow and thrive.

• Day-to-day services. Does your bank meet your needs for mobile banking, online bill paying, and collections support? You should be able to access your financial information when you need it, where you need it, so make sure your bank is available 24/7.
• Managing cash flow. Does your bank offer detailed reporting that gives you insight into your finances, including essential areas like cash management (to keep daily operations running smoothly), payroll services (to ensure everyone gets paid quickly and accurately), and merchant services (to help you accept a variety of payment options)?
• Financial growth. Even if you don’t need it today, every business should have access to a line of credit, so you’re ready to take advantage of opportunities when they arise. Make sure your banking partner can help you access funds for short-term uses (like purchasing inventory, accounts receivable, or seasonal needs) or longer-term plans to grow your business.

5. Protection

Forty-nine percent of global businesses experience a data breach at some point. October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, so now is a good time to make sure the protection you have in place for your technology will keep your data and your customer information secure.

There are several ways you can keep your customer, employee, and financial data safe.

• Monitor your systems. Use two-factor authentication and secure passwords for all your systems, and run antivirus software on a regular basis.
• Train employees on security. Make sure all employees — particularly those with access to sensitive information — are trained on data privacy and know how to avoid phishing attempts to access information.
• Share files securely. If multiple people within and outside your organization need to collaborate on files, use a cloud-based file-sharing service such as Box®, Dropbox®, or Google Drive® to transfer files securely.
• Ask questions of partners and vendors. Your data is only as safe as the security practices of your most lax vendors. Build in questions about data protection and other security issues to conversations with all current and potential vendors.

The best business relationships are ones that benefit everyone involved. Review the partners and vendors you work with to see if they truly meet your current and future needs.

Ready to take care of business? So are we.

Find out how a Citizens Business Banking relationship could help your small business grow and thrive.