How to increase sales over christmas

The festive season can be difficult for consumers and retailers alike and both are opting for online methods to avoid the retail rush. If you have the option to offer online sales - do it! If not there are still things to think about here for you too.

1. Festive Offers
Whether you're an online store or design studio it's important to offer a point of difference to attract people to your business during Christmas. Why not offer free gift-wrapping on orders over a certain amount? Try and encourage clients and shoppers to do a lot of shopping with your business by offering rewards for sizeable offers.

2. Social Media
Make some noise about Christmas in advance through your social media channels. We all know that Christmas is coming and this makes any messages relating to Christmas easy to identify and understand. Make gift suggestions and mention any promotions you may have on.

3. End of Year SEO
As more people turn to google and look online to purchase gifts, it makes sense to capture the interest as much of that attention as you can handle. It pays to invest in an SEO push just before the holiday seasons, and that time is now! Ask your search guru to help make your Christmas content relevant and optimised so it generates as much gift-seeking traffic as possible.

4. Handling Traffic
There's no working on SEO if your site can't handle the increase in traffic. Make sure you host is reliable and capable of handling an increase in search engine walk-throughs.

5. Website Review
The end of the year is the perfect time to make sure you site is as user-friendly as possible. What's the point of having heaps of traffic if your new visitors are put off by a confusing or ugly website? Get a new set of eyes to look over it and make sure it is as simple and attractive as possible.

Now let those Christmas conversions coming. Good luck!

Rental Returns

We specialise in rental returns so why not get the expert to take care of things for you?

We can assist you with:
- Developing strategies to help grow your property portfolio
- Claiming for capital allowance
- Identifying special building write-offs
- Highlighting negative gearing advantages

Referral Program

Do you know someone that might benefit from our services? Let us know so we can get in touch with them. You could receive up to $100 cash for doing so. It's just our way of saying thank you.

Contact us on (07) 3133 0105 or send an email to admin@123businesspartners.com.au.

Business Start-Up Package

Whether you are thinking about starting a business or if your business needs a bit of help, we have developed a series of cost-effective packages to give you a helping hand. Our packages range from Basic to Advanced and include items such as business cards, letter heads and business coaching sessions.

Call us on (07) 3133 0105 for more information. http://www.123bp.com.au/

Small Business Network

Are you a small business own in the general South East Queensland area? Are you looking for marketing strategies to increase your sales? That's where 123 Business Partners can help. We are in the process of developing an online and in-office business network where local businesses can be listed on our website and on our publicity station for free. We are only offering one space per industry so get in quick.

What can we offer you?
- Free advertising space on our in-office publicity station
- Free advertising space on our website
- Free online ebooks about marketing and running your own business
- Opportunity to advertise in our bi-monthly newsletter

Contact us on (07) 3133 0105 or send an email to admin@123businesspartners.com.au for more information.

The Courier-Mail and Sunday Mail Spring Home Show 2010

One of our valued clients A1 Asbestos is hosting a trade show next month and they have asked us to design their exhibition stall, redesign their logo and organise the overall running of the show. We're thrilled at the opportunity and look forward to hosting a successful event. If you happen to be at the show, come and see us at stall 577! We're also working on lauching their new website, but we'll let you know all about that soon.

Here are some of designs for the show.

The exhibition wall which will be curved and have down lights, a matching lectern and brochure stand.

There will also be two retractable signs at each side of the exhibition wall.

We hope to see you there. For more information about the Spring Home Show click here.

Bring a Friend!

Don't have time to come into the office to see us? Simply email, fax or post us your documentation to us and we can handle everything for you. Easy!

Bridge to Brisbane

Fun and Run - two words that should never be in the same sentence together. Call us crazy but we've signed up to take part in this year's Bridge to Brisbane fun run to raise money for Noah's Ark, a non-for-profit charitable organisation which helps children with disabilities.

Any donation, large or small, will be greatly appreciated. You can make a donation one our Everyday Hero website. The race is on Sunday, 29 August but you can continue donating after the race if you like.

A1 Asbestos Removal

One of our valued clients A1 Asbestos Removals hosted their very first trade show at the Ipswich Home Show a few weeks ago. We designed their brochures, organised the event and set it all up so Ben and his team of asbestos removals could get the most out of the day. It was a great success which resulted in a few contacts, some big jobs and a couple of us may have even received a massage and a couple of glasses of wine from our fellow stall holders. All in all a great weekend.

Happy [financial] New Year!

The butcher downstairs was certainly happy last week when we held our end of financial year sausage sizzle. We went through more than 3 kilos of sausages in a few hours! Some of our neighbours stopped by to say hello too which was great, as well as some passers by who were interested in a snack and some tax information. Our family and friends also came around to show their support and to get a free feed no doubt!

If you weren't able to stop by here are a few photos from the day.

Jacqueline giving Norm from Step It Up some helpful information about doing his tax return.

Scott looking pleased with how the day was going.

Watch those sausages sizzle!

The kiddies definitely enjoyed themselves.

And in case you hadn't met the 123 Business Partners team yet, here we all are.

Jacqueline Arrow, Scott Oldfield, Jacqueline Aldridge and Sarah Duncan.

We're all set for the new financial year, are you?

What information do I have to provide my accountant at tax time?

Have you asked yourself whether you've got everything you need to do your taxes? If you haven't been collating your data over the last year, you might be in a mad rush to get it all together. Try and organise a system. Whether that means putting your receipts into a shoe box, a manila folder or a filing system, it will make tax time a whole lot easier for you and your accountant.

So what do you need to keep a hold of?

If you're an employee you will need to have your income details including your wages and investment income.

Make sure you keep a record of:

- Your group certificate/s
- Bank statements
- Dividend notices and interest payments
- Documents detailing your rental income
- Capital gains your investments including shares and real estate
- Work allowances
- Reportable fringe benefits
- Exempt income
- Pension payments
- Foreign income
- Prizes and rewards
- Summaries of benefits from Centrelink
- Gifts over $10,000
- Records of your mileage and your odometer readings

For business owners, ensure you organise the following.

- Have your PAYG ready to be sent out by the 14th of July
- Are you using MYOB? Make sure you've updated it to the most current version to ensure you have the latest tax tables
- Reconcile wages
- Rollover your MYOB to the new financial year
- Records of your mileage and odometer readings

Make Life a Little Easier for Yourself

- Top up your super contribution. Employer super guarantee contributions are included in the 25,000 and $50,000 concessional deduction caps.
- Delay invoicing customers or receipt of income until 1st of July
- Offset capital losses against capital gains made during the years
- If you're a small business with a turnover less than $2 million you can claim an immediate deduction for the cost of depreciable assets which cost less than $1,000 and some repayments including lease and rent expenses.
- Dispose of slow-moving stock and write-off obsolete stock before June 30.
- Write off bad debts and claiming back the GST credits where debt has been outstanding for more than 12 months.
- Review PAYG installment obligations and consider changing for June 2010 quarter if the estimate of the business income tax payable for the year is less than the installments raised by the ATO.

Accounting and Bookkeeping Procedures

- Ensure your BAS lodgments and super guarantee contributions are up-to-date. Where the business is behind on tax and BAS payments, ensure arrangements have been organised with the ATO.
- Report salary sacrifice contributions on employee's 2010 PAYG Payment Summaries.
- Organise to complete stock takes of Inventory.
- Ensure data files and paperwork is up-to-date and accurate.

Start Planning for 2010-11

- Prepare or update your business plan to regain direction for the business.
- Update the budgets for the next 12 months and compare to current budget.
- Review insurances to ensure adequate level of coverage.
- Reduce costs in areas identified as excessive in the current year.
- Implement new internal control systems to address weaknesses identified.

It's Tax Time!

Come and meet the 123 Business Partners team this Thursday at our end of financial year sausage sizzle. We hope you can make it!

Kevin out, Julia in.

As you've no doubt heard Kevin Rudd has just been given the boot as the nation's Prime Minister and Julia Gillard has now stepped into the role. What do you think about having Julia Gillard as the new Australian Prime Minister? Interesting times are no doubt ahead for the country, but what does this means for our financial and business future? We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Welcome

Welcome to our new home in cyberspace. Here you'll be able to keep up-to-date with the business world and perhaps even get to know the people who make up 123 Business Partners.

Stay tuned for videos, online conferences and information to help our online community thrive. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment or give us a call on (07) 3133 0105.