The Essential Financial Toolkit for Business Owners
When it comes to business finance tools, we’ve got BIG opinions of what’s the best. We’ve researched and tested out these tools so you don’t have to wonder what’s the best.
If you’ve got questions about anything on this list, reach out to us at support@cultivatedstrategy.com. We’re always happy to share more insight!
PS. Some of these links are affiliate links. We only recommend products that we truly love, but if you purchase using the link, we may receive a commission.
Business Finance Tools
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Quickbooks Online aka QBO is the best in class cloud accounting software for small businesses. We know it isn’t a perfect solution (what software is), but know that it will help you run your business more efficiently. If you haven’t signed up for QBO before, make sure you sign up for either the Simple Start plan or higher. You don’t want Quickbooks self-employed. This will not get you the functionality that you need as a business owner.
If you’ve got questions about the best plan for you or would like help setting your accounting file up, reach out. We’d love to help!
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Gusto truly takes the pain out of payroll and payroll tax filings. They also give you the ability to offer amazing benefits (think 401k, health, dental, vision, and disability insurance) to your team.
We’ve worked with many payroll processors and Gusto’s customer support and ease of use can’t be matched. Where QBO payroll will let you down and lead you to manually filing certain returns, Gusto has you covered. -
When it comes to bill pay we find Melio to be the best bang for your buck. They don’t charge a monthly account fee (unlike BILL & Plooto) and have reasonable payment processing fees for ACH and checks.
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The best online business bank is Relay. Hands down. No competition. Relay has ZERO fees and allows you to open several accounts (hello Profit First… see book recommendation below) and they have savings accounts. We also can’t tell you how amazing the Relay customer service is. Don’t just take our word for it, experience it yourself.
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Guideline takes the cake here. If you peep the list of personal finance recommendations you’ll learn that I am passionate about investing. So, it’s no surprise that I took a good, hard look at the investments offered by small business 401K plans. Guideline investments are all Vanguard funds which means that there are many low fee fund options. This means that your hard-earned money isn’t eroded away by high investment fees. Guideline also has low management fees. It’s a very affordable way for small businesses to offer retirement plans to employees.
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Fidelity Investments all day. Fidelity customer service is great, the user interface works well, and it’s easy to setup these plans. And that’s all on top of having low or zero fee fund options.
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You truly can’t beat the Chase Business Unlimited credit card with no annual fee and a flat 1.5% cash back on all transactions.
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LiveOak has the best savings rates we’ve seen through all our research. They offer HYSAs for both business and personal. Also, the customer service is phenomenal.
Business and Finance Books
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This book will change the way you view yourself within the context of your business. It will help you understand the need, as an owner, to move from a technician role to that of an owner and how you should be thinking to make your business more efficient.
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If you’re looking for guidelines on how to think about business finances, this book is a must! We utilize this method in working with our monthly clients to make sure they’re paying themselves well and putting their precious cash to the best use.
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This is a newer book that’s been added to our list. However, if you’re open to learning more about open book management and building a bonus system that rewards the whole team for rowing in the same direction then this book is for you.
We’ve implemented this bonus system within our company and helped clients implement it too. And you don’t have to share all of your business finances to use this system. You can just choose to share your critical number.
Personal Finance Books
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If you never read any other book in your life, read this one. This will change your life and your legacy if you implement the teachings in it.
Side note: While all funds mentioned in this book are Vanguard funds, Fidelity also has amazing options and is our preferred go-to.
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It took me a long time to appreciate Dave Ramsey. I was blessed to grow up with good financial management skills, so I was beyond a lot of his teaching from the beginning. This frustrated me. What I now know is that he knows his audience very well and he speaks directly to them. Can’t fault someone for knowing their niche.
All that to say, I’m not just another Dave Ramsey fan recommending a book. I’m a non-fan, recommending this book because it’s that good. If you’re looking for some faith-based understanding around growing your wealth, this is a great book.