Nine ways to keep your business on track for financial success

Protect yourself and your business by following these nine strategies:

• Find a qualified financial advisor
  A financial advisor can provide you with strategic advice on insurance, risk management, employee benefits, retirement planning and business succession planning—and they can provide input as a trusted advisor when you’re consulting with bankers, accountants or lawyers.
• Build a business plan
  Work with your advisor to build a business plan that keeps you focused on short, medium and long term goals. Map out what you want to do and how you want to do it—including how to manage turnover, illness, disability and be prepared for whatever else may come your way as a business owner.
• Recruit and retain top talent
  Your advisor can help you choose the right employee benefits, like health and dental insurance, giving you a solid competitive edge in the marketplace to help attract and retain the best talent.
  
• Get the best-possible rates and returns
  Your advisor can help you find banking solutions that reduce your borrowing costs and identify personal and business investments that earn the highest-possible returns.
  
• Understand tax implications
  Knowing the tax implications—for employee compensation, business succession and asset management—can make a difference to your business performance and your personal wealth.
  
• Protect yourself and your business with adequate insurance
  As a business owner, you’re accountable to the people who rely on you: your family, your employees and the families of your employees. Protecting yourself and your business against premature death, illness or disability with life, critical illness and disability insurance can help minimize the impact on yourself, your family, your lifestyle, your business and your employees.
• Insure your best talent
  Many businesses have at least one person, other than the owner, who is critical to the company—and their loss or injury could have detrimental consequences on your business success. Consider protecting key people with the right insurance.
• Develop a business succession plan
  Work with your advisor to deal with every aspect of succession planning, including taxes and finding the right replacement for yourself or other key employees.
• Rely on more than your business to fund your retirement
  Instead of relying only on the sale of your business to fund your retirement, consider asking your advisor to add retirement planning to the mix, giving you more opportunities to enjoy a financially secure retirement.

If you don’t have a financial advisor, we can help you choose an advisor who can offer advice about services or products that may provide more value to your business.