How to take admin off your plate

Being self-employed comes with the luxury of making your own choices and choosing your own hours. But being your own boss has its challenges too. Admin is annoying. Banking is a burden, explains Michael Healer of digital business banking service, Tide.

It doesn't have to be hard

Separating your personal finances from your business income helps to eliminate a lot of hassle. It's a great starting point for micro-businesses, including sole traders. Making sure that you have one account for your personal funds and another totally separate one for work finances means you are more likely to pay the correct amount of tax. You will also reduce the risk of unintentionally spending your earnings on personal purchases.

It is currently estimated that there are c. 4.7m self-employed workers in the UK. Many still have all of their cash in one single pot. As a result, they struggle when it comes to filing tax returns and working out expenses.

Open a new account in an instant

Tide works in close partnership with Chris and his team at Premier Accounts in the new digital sphere of cloud accounting. We have a shared interest in helping feisty small enterprises. And that includes maximising the benefits of new online digital banking.

For many micro-businesses, opening a business current account used to be a laborious process. Now, they can set up a new account in just five minutes, rather than weeks of waiting involved with traditional high-street bank.

All that is needed is that you simply scan your ID, confirm your details, take a security photo and the process is complete. Business banking has never been so easy before - because we plan it that way.

Do you waste 120 days a year?

We know from experience that being self-employed inevitably comes with boring administrative tasks that get in the way of your real bread-and-butter work. A recent survey by software company Sage found that people who work for themselves can waste up to 120 days every year on admin. Furthermore, from 2019, the Government's Making Tax Digital initiative will begin forcing business owners to keep digital records of their finances, updating HMRC on a quarterly basis.

Modern banking services can help eliminate this admin. For example, Tide categorises your payments and expenses in real-time, and allows you to save comments and attachments directly in your bank feed.

This means that you can stay on top of your finances as they happen, safe in the knowledge that you won't be trying frantically to get organised when the time comes to file your tax return.

No higher high-street fees

Finally, many of us have experienced that unpleasant feeling of being burned by banks on fees in the past. High-street bank accounts can cost business owners hundreds of pounds per year to run.

But by removing costly physical branches and by using technology to drive efficiency, digital banking is incredibly cost-effective. Unlike traditional banks, Tide doesn't charge a monthly account fee. As a small business owner, you can use your debit card for free. And you pay only a small amount for bank transfers and ATM withdrawals.

Our goal is to make your life easier, so we will always be coming up with new and exciting ways to keep you and your team on top of your game.

Additional thoughts

I think it is important to stress some of the key underlying advantages of cloud-based online banking that you may have missed: -

The importance of mobile first - i.e. being able to perform tasks on the move, such as paying invoices or photographing receipts

Having a system that integrates with other business partners - including your accountant + Xero + current account

Streamlining communication channels - allowing your accountant to have read-only access to your business current account, thus no more emailing each other for minor requests such as February 2016's travel expenses

Tide's history

Tide was formed by entrepreneur and former banker, George Bevis, with the philosophy that business owners are heroes who deserve to have their lost administration time returned to them.

Tide's unusual business model, positioned mid-way between customers and financial organisations, adds value via its software and clever aggregation of services.

At the end of last year, Tide was opening 7% of new business current accounts in the UK, and now has tens of thousands of members. The company is also well-capitalised, with the backing of $14m (£10.6m) from well-known tech entrepreneurs.

If you would like know more about Tide, please visit https://www.tide.co

Feel free to get in touch directly via the email below, or contact a member of the Premier Accounts team. One of us will get back to you swiftly.

Happy digital banking!

Michael Healer

Partnerships

Tide