Say goodbye to monthly bookkeeping for good!
You’ve probably noticed that the more frequently you work with your clients on their bookkeeping (or on yours, personally!), the more insight you have with regards to the current cash flow situation. And therefore, the more likely you are to be able to advise on cash management issues that impact the performance and management of the business.
That is where you can move into a more Advisory capacity with your clients. If you see an opportunity, you can then begin on the path towards offering Advisory services. This is especially true if you talk to the team at Dryrun to get you on the path to Client Advisory Services and utilize the world’s best Advisory platform.
Hint: Dryrun has everything you need for all your clients Financial Modelling & Cash Management needs.
Many finance professionals do not view the task of building a 13-week cash forecast as an exciting or worthwhile endeavor. They view it as an additional task to appease an overbearing lender. Furthermore, companies generally do not prioritize their liquidity needs until they are forced to. Therefore, people rarely prioritize cash forecasts until it is too late to fix the problem.
The compilation of weekly cash forecasts is extremely beneficial in all industries, for businesses of all sizes. It is especially important for small businesses, as they have less cash to “play with” and can rarely afford to make mistakes. In almost every case, the companies wish they had performed the analysis sooner. Weekly cash projections are essential for businesses small and large, healthy, and distressed, and across sectors.
What is a weekly cash flow forecast?
In weekly cash forecasts, a company projects its liquidity in the medium term, forecasting when and how much cash will be received and expended.
A weekly cash flow forecast is a useful tool for all businesses, large and small, growing, and mature. It can be tailored to fit businesses of any size and in any industry. The weekly breakdown of the business provides granular information that may be missed if done on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis.
13 weeks is the ideal period to forecast. Your team should have enough time to react to new information within that period, but not so far out that precision becomes nonexistent.
What is so useful about a weekly cash flow forecast?
It imposes discipline over problems by putting emphasis on cash: GAAP helps cover up problems, but if a company's focus is on cash, it is difficult to conceal problems.
The customer and supplier stratification process provides insight into key customers and suppliers, including when some customers are slow to pay or when some suppliers offer early payment discounts. Companies can plan for long-term growth and raise appropriate capital by understanding their near-term liquidity requirements.
By understanding how long a credit facility will last, a company can lower the cost of capital to fund payroll and rent. The financial team needs to communicate across departments to prepare the cash flow forecast.
Talk to the team at Dryrun for more details about our Partner Program for Finance Pros offering Advisory Services.
But how can you possibly conduct weekly cash flow forecasts for all your clients?
The first step is becoming a Dryrun Partner to take advantage of all the benefits of the platform.
No more need for pesky spreadsheets! Those were what was holding you back from offering weekly advice in the first place, right? They sure take up a lot of time.
Using Dryrun it is easy to pull in 3-4 weeks of actual data to draw a trend, and then project from there. If the required accounting software is connected and up to date, this is the easiest step!
The reports will be generated for you, and you just need to convey the information and your recommendations to your clients. You can also run a “what if” scenario if they have any questions about how the outcome of certain financial decisions would look.
Cash flow is the lifeblood of a business and to make educated decisions, it must be examined and understood regularly.
Don’t listen to the nay-sayers.
There are many “reasons” not to do weekly cash forecasts.
Many people believe that because their business is not in a distressed situation, they don’t need to conduct the analysis. Well, surprise, part of staying out of a distressed situation is conducting these analyses.
Having a small team is no excuse either. Using Dryrun, it is easy to put together and comprehend these reports. So easy, you could do it daily if you wanted!
If your company is growing steadily and you don’t believe that these reports are necessary so often, it’ll be hard to convince you otherwise, until something unexpected happens and you are strapped for cash.
All of these are relatable, but short-sighted. Companies will always face shaky times, including during the Great Recession when blue chip companies with a stronghold in the world were brought to their knees. The possibility of a weekly cash forecast may not have prevented the disaster, but all these companies failed to anticipate their liquidity needs, making the disaster even worse. A market operator must know the limits of their liquidity to make informed decisions.
Why is it suitable for certain types of businesses?
The cash flow of a business could be forecast in many cases to avoid financial stress; however, in some cases, the forecasting process is necessary to take appropriate corresponding action. In most cases, the cash flow of a business can be forecasted. This tool can be tailored to fit the unique needs of any small to large company and can even be tailored to any type of business, because cash is king!
Helpful in times of crisis.
It’s okay to be skeptical of cash forecasts if you’re first seeing them in a time of strife ─ how could they possibly dig you out of your hole? Despite a tough economic environment, you may be able to improve business performance based on what you glean from these reports and based on what an advisor may indicate.
You may realize that cash spikes on certain days, indicating that you should run promotions on those days to increase your average order size.
Companies have also used these forecasts to convince banks to reduce the amount of debt repayment required if the business has an extreme seasonality to it and may be facing less profitable times. Cash flow management reports have helped avoid crises like these more than you know.
Healthy companies also benefit from weekly cash flow forecasts.
When business is booming, it might make sense to establish a habit of weekly forecasting. Keep testing and honing the strategy so that when an issue arises it will be able to deal with it by reducing costs, hoarding cash, and navigating the obstacle.
Even if you’re liquid, some suppliers offer early pay discounts and you can always be more liquid to improve business.
Weekly cash bookkeeping and forecasts can help you take advantage of different programs that are available, strengthening relationships with suppliers, all while increasing profitability and operational efficiency.
Talk to the team at Dryrun for more details about our Partner Program for Finance Pros offering Advisory Services.
Takeaways
Weekly cash forecasting can result in significant improvements in discipline and financial control. While weekly forecasting will not necessarily solve all problems, it can help businesses make crucial business decisions, save money, improve revenues, and boost cash flow.
It can also help managers avoid potential problems by being proactive and planning appropriately if done with critical thinking and insight.
Dryrun delivers real-time, dynamic cash flow and revenue forecasts with complete manual control and unlimited scenario planning.
Book your DISCOVERY CALL to learn about the Dryrun advantage or START YOUR TRIAL today!
