5 Ways to Eliminate Debt in Your Business

Debt is one of the biggest threats to small businesses. It is often the biggest reason why most business fail within the first few years. They have spent too much money and haven’t brought in enough in profits to offset that spending and pay off their debts. 

Many business owners take out loans to launch their business or grow it. While it always starts with the best intentions, not everything might go as planned and the debt you’ve accumulated may start getting out of hand. 

Many business owners feel that the more money they throw at a problem, that it will fix itself. While that may work in some cases, it is not an economically sound business practice. 

If you are in this situation, here are some solid strategies to get on the path to eliminating the debt you’ve taken on.

1. Manage Your Cash Flow Better

How are you managing the money coming in and going out of your business? Are you spending an adequate amount of your profits to pay down your debt? 

Managing your cash flow effectively will allow you get the money you need to grow your business while also reducing your debt. You need to look at your business carefully and make sure that you are allocating funds to the most effective parts of your business so that it will thrive in both the short-term and long-term. 

Hopefully, if you manage your money right, you are getting some sort of take home pay as well.

2. Consolidate Your Debt

If you’re carrying multiple debts for your business, you may want to consolidate your debt. Try to find a lender that will offer a competitive interest rate and transfer your debt into that one lender. 

An alternative option would be to get another loan at a lower rate and pay off your existing debt if it is on your credit cards.

3. Restructure Your Business

Do you have an in-house team that can be handled to an external firm? Do you have staff whose positions can be easily outsourced? 

You may want to look into how your business is structured to find out if can rearranged to help save your business the money it desperately needs.

4. Revisit Your Budget

As a business owner, you should be looking at your budget often. You should know what is bringing money in and where your money is being spent. You also have to weigh in on how effectively your money is being spent. 

Even if you think your budget is spot on, you should still revisit your budget to understand your expenses. Figure out if there are any unnecessary expenses you can cut, how you can save money on the necessities, and if you can unearth all the other hidden costs of running your business. 

5. Educate Yourself Financially

One of the biggest reasons businesses fail is because they don't know how to read and interpret their profit and loss statement. This is no surprise as business owners often make bad financial decisions because they are not educated about all the financial aspects of their business. 

This is where companies like Navicor Consulting come in as they help out struggling businesses. Whether it's learning proper accounting, managing payment terms, keeping track of a merchant account, or understanding your taxes, you should get the necessary education to develop financial competency.

The important thing that you need to remember is that eliminating debt takes time and careful planning. While it often feels like you’ve stagnated, you’ll start to see results as your business grows and you start to make better financial decisions.