nc efi placeholder

Low-Risk Investment Ideas for an SMB-Owner

Small and mid-sized business management doesn’t only include dealing with ongoing core projects. As an SMB-owner you’re responsible for your business present and future.

That’s why most business owners understand that they need to approach this matter in several different ways. One of the efficient strategies for ensuring a balanced business environment is to invest your assets in extra projects. In an ideal-case scenario, you would be able to save enough assets to invest one part of it this way. The following ideas are relatively simple and safe investments that a large number of business owners should be able to make.

1.Business rentals

There are two ways in which you can invest in business rentals: sublease your existing office space or buy a separate property that you’re going to rent out.

In the first case, you might realize that they have rented more space than you actually need. In that case, you might want to sublease the surplus of office space and make some money along the way. Of course, the property owner from whom you’ve rented the building or space in question needs to be notified of that business deal.

Another option is to rent a larger office at the beginning with a clear intention to sublease it and generate additional revenues. What some business owners do is turn part of their rented business premises into a coworking space and rent it further out to freelancers and other workers.

As opposed to that, you might want to buy a commercial property to rent it out and make money that way. Such an investment requires a detailed calculation regarding your return on investment if you’re buying it for cash. Taking a loan for such a property might be justified, but in that case, you need to calculate what interest rate you would pay at the end and see if that would pay off at all.

2.Clever retirement plans

Investing in a retirement plan is a must for every employee and employer.

However, there are different types of retirement plans in different countries. In the USA, for instance, the most popular retirement one is the 401(k) plan. It’s a basic and simple plan in which you can transfer your money immediately upon receiving a paycheck every month. You don’t pay taxes on the amount you put aside every month, but taxes are paid on distributions once you retire.

The negative side of this plan is that there are penalties in case you have to withdraw the saved money before the end of the arranged period.

For business owners, the SEP IRA plan is one of the most interesting ones. Thanks to the higher contribution limit, employers like this option because it gives them more freedom with their assets.

You can find out more about these plans in the guide on the Bankrate website.

Also, as a business owner, you should pay a life insurance policy. This is a form of investing in the future and ensuring that your family and your business keep going in case something happens to you.

3.Improved professional skills

In the modern business world, professional skills are considered an asset. That’s why SMB-owners should invest their money and time to expand their knowledge.

However, it’s important to stress out that you shouldn’t splurge your money on things that are not related to your business. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you are not allowed to learn those things, but you shouldn’t use the business money for that purpose.

In other words, if knowing the Italian language will improve your professional expertise, e.g. if you’re running a travel agency organizing tours around Italy, then you should pay that language course with your business money. But if you want to learn that language for pleasure, it should be paid with your private money.

The same goes for technical and electronic equipment. If it will help you increase your business productivity and income, it’s justified to pay it with your business assets.

In all other cases, you shouldn’t spend your revenues on such things.

4.Digital marketing investments

Running a business venture in a digitalized world means that you need to keep pace with the ongoing changes.

For starters, this means investing in digital marketing. The positive side of the online business realm is the fact that SMBs can get a lot of benefits with small investments. As explained by the web design Houston crew, you don’t need the fortune to launch an efficient and practical business website. If you’re aiming at mobile users, you should think about launching a business app, as well.

Apart from that, you should invest in online ads and social media marketing. All these are small investments that every business owner can afford. In turn, a lot more people will hear about your business and the return on such investments is usually significant and the turnaround is fast.

Investing assets aside from your business and its core tasks is a must if you want to cushion your business. Rentals are low risk, but you might need to wait for some time before they start returning theinvestment. Retirement plans and life insurance are long-term investments that eventually pay off, while digital marketing is a current necessity to ensure present business growth. Learning new things will yield benefits over a longer time. Before investing your business assets in any of these features, calculate all the benefits and costs to make sure that you’re doing the right thing.

Author Byline: Liam Collins is a tech pundit and Web enthusiast working at TuiSpace.com. He spends most of his time reading and writing about the current affairs in the world of information technology. When he isn’t working, he likes going for long bike rides and walks in nature.

Uptown Bio

Author

Adelina

Guest Speaker and Freelance Author

UpTown Connection

Share with us