Find out what we've been up to in recent months at CBC.

INSIDE THIS EDITION

CAROLINE BOARDMAN CONSULTING business news and current offers.

CLIENT FOCUS: LISA CLENNELL of Your Happy Customer talking about the importance of excellent customer service.

SPRING Tax tip, FreeAgent tip and Money Saving tip.

CBC business news and current offers

Finally here we are in Spring, the sun has been shining and we will some be seeing pink of the trees, I love this season. It's a great time for new starts and great timing for onboarding new clients who have been on my waiting list (some since November 2021, thank you for your patience if you are reading this!)

We had the busiest January to date, throw Covid into the mix, reaching the Boardman household mid Jan. it was challenging to say the last. 

I've made some big decisions for 2022, including to get all clients on to FreeAgent accounting software, this year, ahead of MTD for Income Tax which is coming in April 2024. I've also decided that to help and encourage clients to get more organised CBC will need all 2022/23 self-assessment information to be up to date and available by 5th October 2022.

And the other biggie for CBC is our VAT registration from 1st April 2022 :-) This one isn't a decision of course.... it's compulsory once you reach the VAT threshold of £85k income for the last 12 month period.

What's been happening?

• I've delivered "My 5 top finance tips for the self-employed" workshop to a few membership groups with fantastic feedback.
• I ran a FreeAgent training session myself in February with over 20 clients signed up to learn more about how to get the best from the software. It's such a great tool for small businesses who want to better understand their financial position throughout the year (not only when the tax return is due). If you haven't been to a training session yet, the next one will be on Monday 11th April 2022.
• Clear Day support continues to be invaluable - My final coaching session with Helen Calvert is in March and she's helped me to come up with some brilliant ideas to take my business forward, social media scheduling support from Sam and more admin support from Vic. All still working perfectly.
• Clients will be getting used to lovely emails from Emily requesting the information I need to help you with compliance requirements. It won't be long now before she'll be sending out all the 2022/23 checklists, so look out for them.
• VAT registration will be coming for CBC from 1st April 2022. All invoices sent out after this date will be +20%. Clients have had email communication about this over the last 2 months but please do ask if you have any further questions about how this affects you.
  
• Throughout March and April I will be onboarding new clients as well as meeting with current clients to discuss tax planning ahead of the tax year end and getting those early tax returns in.
• And finally I was interviewed for the first time on a podcast.... Emma Hitchman's fabulous Small Business Gurus and the subject was a great one "How to Remove Anxiety from Accounting", you can listen to it here... https://open.spotify.com/episo...

If you want to recommend me, please still do! Let people know to contact me through my website Contact me - Caroline Boardman Consulting

Current CBC offers

• Annual FreeAgent accounting software licence to all clients for £240 per annum until 31st March 2022. From 2023 the only option to work with me will be if you use FreeAgent accounting software. MTD for Income Tax is coming in April 2024 and I want to make sure we aren't having a last minute rush to comply. 
• Bookkeeping - this service is becoming increasingly popular, mostly due to VAT registrations but also smaller businesses have asked us to keep on top of their FreeAgent updating too. Get in touch if you would like more details.
• There are limited amount of one off 1:1 consultations available each month at £99, you can book this here Book an appointment - Caroline Boardman Consulting these are for you if you don't necessary want to commit to having an accountant but do have a few questions you would like to ask an expert about.
• FreeAgent training sessions - as mentioned earlier, next one is in April 2022 then every couple of months thereafter. 
• Tax investigation insurance renewal invoices will be sent out in March. This is still available at £100 per year.
• If you are on Facebook, I really encourage you to join us in the OEC Facebook group where we have regular posts every weekday, quarterly in-person networking at Blend in Sale town centre, bi-annual retreats and monthly wellbeing meetups. It's a real additional benefit to being a CBC (or Clear Day) client.
• If you aren't on Facebook, sign up to our newsletter www.theoec.co.uk and we will start to keep you updated from there in 2022.

CLIENT FOCUS

This month it's the very lovely and successful Lisa Clennell of Your Happy Customer. 

Lisa is the founder of a fantastic customer-led marketing business, her ethos is to focus on current customers, build real customer relationships and she believes that this will result in more business, increased profit and happier customers. She says that good customer relations aren’t just ‘nice to have’ they’re often your single most cost-effective form of business development. I couldn't agree more.

I love this ethos! And when I met Lisa in 2019 at a networking event, I knew that I wanted her on my team helping me to keep focused on what I knew was the most important thing to me, looking after current customers. My clients will know that I always respond to their emails, once you are signed up as a CBC client, you become a priority. Lisa helps me keep this at the forefront of my mind. 

Here's what Lisa has to say about the benefits of good customer relations

Why does your business need Happy Customers?

• It costs 5 times more to recruit a new customer than to retain an existing one.
• Existing customers are 60% more likely to buy a new product or service from you.
• You can focus your time and resources much more effectively.
• Happy customers typically spend more.
• Loyalty is a premium you get from customers feeling valued and understood.
• Happy Customers will talk to others positively about your business, promoting trust, generating referrals and building your reputation.

If you’d like to discover how a customer-led marketing strategy can support your business growth and reduce your costs of sale, start your Happy Customer journey today. Your Happy Customer | Manchester and Cheshire

You will find Lisa on Facebook(4) Your Happy Customer | Facebook, Instagram Ms Lisa Clennell (@your_happy_customer) • Instagram photos and videos and LinkedIn (5) Lisa Clennell | LinkedIn

CBC's SPRING TIPS

TAX TIP

As a sole trader you may want to make either one-off or a regular payments into your private pension. Any payments you make should be classed as “drawings” if they go through the business' bank account. You should be able to categorise these payments from your accounting software to make things easier.

It's also worth remembering that the tax relief on private pensions works differently if you're trading through a limited company. So in this case, if you are a limited company, the pension is classed as a company expense. This means that any payments would be taken pre-tax. You may however, be eligible for some extra tax relief on self assessment. However this only applies when you are paying higher rate tax (profits over £50k).

This is different to if you were employed, where for example, you would pay in an amount, say £100 per month and the pension provider add 20% in.

MONEY SAVING TIP

Everyone is talking about energy bill price hikes and as always Martin Lewis is on topic.... have a look at his tips on what to do if you are worried or struggling to pay your energy bills What to do if you're struggling to pay your energy bills (moneysavingexpert.com)

FREEAGENT TIP

How safe will my data be in FreeAgent?

As I am now encouraging all clients to use FreeAgent for their business finances, I thought it would be a good idea to share how safe it is....

All information that passes between the FreeAgent servers and your computer is encrypted using a technology called Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), the same technology that banks use to protect data. 

FreeAgent data is held securely in data centres located in Ireland. These data centres meet the strictest security standards, including ISO 27001, 27017 and 27018 certification, and comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

FreeAgent also encrypts any information stored on your behalf, including data in the database and any files you upload, using 256-bit AES encryption.

Of course, you own your data. You can export all of your FreeAgent data at any time in Excel spreadsheet (XLSX) format, and analyse it or back it up yourself, as you see fit. Learn more about data and security.

FreeAgent take customers' privacy very seriously. FreeAgent is built on the principle that only you (or people you give login access to) can access your data. Your data will never be revealed to anyone unless required to do so by law. Find out more in their Privacy Policy.