You can never have 100% certainty when running a business, but with the new cash flow planner, you get customised, data-driven financial insights to help you make informed business decisions. Generate an overview of your cash flow, and plan the future for your business by projecting future expense and income scenarios — without editing your actual financial records.
Yes, the Cash Flow planner is available for all QuickBooks customers.
This refers to any unpaid QuickBooks Invoices or Bills for which the due/expected date is now in the past. Because these transactions will not show up in the Planner unless they have due dates or expected dates in the future, this notification will prompt users to update the expected date so that the transaction will show up as a future event in the Planner. Any changes to the expected dates will not change the due dates on the QuickBooks transactions.
Cash flow is the amount of money flowing in and out of a business over a certain period. In other words, it represents the amount of cash held by a business.
Positive cash flow indicates that a business is liquid i.e. it has enough cash available to pay the bills, repay debts and reinvest in the business.
Negative cash flow indicates a mismatch between expenditure and income. Ongoing negative cash flow can signal ineffective credit management, wastage or long-term loss, all of which can lead to business failure if left unchecked.
Improving your cash flow depends on your business, but there are some general ways you can help maintain positive cash flow:
- Reduce outgoings: Look for areas of wastage in your recurring monthly, quarterly and annual expenses. Can you reduce the cost of utilities, rent, payroll, subscriptions or other unnecessary expenses?
- Increase income: Look at ways to increase revenue by exploring new sales channels, expanding your offering or selling off assets you no longer need for a quick cash injection.
- Review stock levels: Practice lean stock control to free up cash that can be used in other areas of the business.
- Tighten your invoicing process: Make sure your terms of payment are clearly defined and streamline your invoicing process to avoid delays.
- Review your profit margin: Consider revising your pricing or supplier costs to increase your profit margin.
- Use a cash flow statement: A cash flow statement tracks money in and money out of your business. It’s useful for providing insights into expenses and income, how business changes impact your cash flow, and areas of wastage or costs that can be reduced.
A cash flow statement shows how much cash a business has over a certain period, where cash is being generated (cash inflows) and where it is being spent (cash outflows).
A cash flow statement usually includes the following information:
- Beginning cash on hand: The amount of money you have available at a particular period.
- Cash receipts: All the money coming into your business, including sales, financing, interest income and any other income.
- Cash payments: All the expenses associated with running your business, including cost of goods sold, operating expenses and other expenses.
A cash flow statement provides an overview of:
- Cash shortages and surpluses
- Business expenses and income over time
- How business changes impact your cash flow, for example new staffing costs
To create a cash flow statement, you’ll need to:
- Gather data and receipts of your income and expenses, as detailed above in ‘What to include in a cash flow statement’.
- Use a self-created spreadsheet or a template to organise your data into a cash flow statement. Your entries will show cash incoming and outgoings each month for the reporting period of your cash flow statement.
- Record the totals of your cash incomings and outgoings over your reporting period.
- Total your total money going out and subtract from your total money going in. You’ll be left with an accurate view of your company’s cash flow for the period you’ve set.
