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Know Your Business' Opportunities and Threats

Paul Martin • Mar 23, 2014

Astute business people are constantly keeping a watchful eye on what is happening in their business environment.

If you want to keep up with the play, stay ahead of your competitors, and plan for potential fluctuations in the marketplace, you simply cannot hunker down within your own business and forget about the outside world.

You've got to be out there researching the market. But market research doesn't have to be an expensive exercise. In her book Marketing for Small Business Success, Angela Nitchov suggests using the following sources of information in the first instance:

- direct observation
- surveys
- sale tests
- small group discussions
- personal interviews
- the internet. 

If you want to take your research further, look to professional associations, trade journals, government departments and so on, which have potentially already done some of the information gathering for you.

What you're looking for are the potential opportunities and the impact of possible threats upon your industry. Think about the:

- capital available to invest in new plant or equipment
- major trends that have affected or will affect the industry
- changes to government policy limiting, or opening up entry to new markets
- possibility to forge alliances with other operators to gain more buying power
- future changes to demographics in the industry eg, an ageing population will have greater reliance on the health industry in the long-term
- new competitors setting up or current competitors changing what they do
- new technologies posing a threat to your business.

The list of potential questions can be endless and no business needs to answer absolutely everything. Look at the research as a means to help your decision-making and target your questioning as appropriate.

This information forms your SWOT Analysis – what you've identified as your business' Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats – and can be used to support your decision-making process.

Probably you did a SWOT Analysis as part of your business and marketing planning. If so pull it out and review – don't let it sit around gathering dust. The SWOT, as with all aspects of your business and marketing plan, needs to be constantly updated and modified. The business environment is forever shifting and you've got to keep abreast of what is going on if you want to realise opportunities and plan for potential threats.

How the new Government and coalition agreements might affect owners of residential rental properties

By Paul Martin • 04 Dec, 2023
There were some key takeouts of interest to many of our clients from the recently signed coalition agreements between National, ACT and New Zealand First and the formation of the new Government. In particular there are a number of policies which will likely benefit landlord clients who own residential rentals. I have summarised some of these below. 1. Return of Interest deductibility for residential rental properties Interest deductibility for residential rental property owners will return. It will be phased back in over three tax years: • 2023/24 tax year: 60% of interest cost will be deductible. • 2024/25 tax year: 80% of interest cost will be deductible. • 2025/26 tax year: 100% of interest cost will be deductible. 2. Reduction in bright-line period National signalled in their pre-election campaign that the bright-line period for residential rental property sales would reduce from 10-years to 2-years. While the exact implementation of this policy is not yet known, it is good news on the horizon for residential property investors. 3. Reinstatement of 90-day no-cause termination notices The new government will reinstate 90-day no-cause tenancy termination notices. This will avoid many unnecessary disputes in the Tenancy Tribunal and gives landlords more confidence in letting to possibly “marginal tenants". Many landlords have avoided what they considered to be risky tenants because eviction for anti-social behaviour was so difficult. With this reinstatement, landlords might be more inclined to give a marginal tenant a chance because they know that if the tenant misbehaves, they won’t be stuck with them. If you would like more information on how these changes might affect your personal circumstances, please feel free to contact us to discuss further.

How does provisional tax work, especially in an economic downturn?

By Paul Martin • 18 Jul, 2023
If you had to pay tax of more than $5,000 in your last income tax return, you may have to pay provisional tax for the following year. Provisional tax is like making progress payments on next year's income tax.

How to handle inflation as a sole trader

By Paul Martin • 18 Jul, 2023
Sole traders have had an especially difficult few years as inflation surges. We have got three tips to help lighten the load for your sole trader business. 
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