You likely started your business because your entrepreneurial mindset was driven by your passion, not because you like performing financial tasks.

How can you reduce your time spent on financial tasks while maximizing your profits? Take advantage of the free resources available to you online, especially if they have been crafted by an accountant or payroll professional.

Luckily, CSI Accounting & Payroll offers a variety of free resources for small businesses. Let us help - your nightmare is our passion!

We increasingly live in an age that is centered on convenience. Streaming services mean that fewer people go out to the movies, and car apps like Lyft and Uber mean that fewer people own vehicles. One space that has seen an online surge are food delivery apps. DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Postmates all advertise that they can get your favorite restaurant’s food right to your door, without you ever getting out of your pajamas.

It’s good to see outdoor dining spaces opening at local Twin Cities restaurants this spring. Patios are getting swept, tables and chairs are receiving a power wash, and sun umbrellas are popping up along sidewalks.

All of the prep tends to move it’s way inside the building as management and staff are in spring cleaning mode. Don't let the momentum stop there. 

Annual tax hangover or not, now's the time to do some spring cleaning of the financial variety.

Doing so will allow you to trim expenses, identify new opportunities, and carve out more time to work on building profitability for your restaurant rather than being swept up in the day-to-day activities.

Menus have evolved over the years to serve multiple purposes -- be it branding and marketing, or setting the tone of the dining experience, menus are an important extension of your business and point of contact with customers. As a restaurant owner or manager, however, you shouldn't overlook the fact that your menu design can enable better sales, first and foremost. A pretty menu that highlights low-margin items doesn't add value to your business. 

One of the largest obligations a business owner has is conducting payroll. Tracking, reporting, and executing payroll for your restaurant involves many tasks to ensure accuracy, timeliness, and compliance. Payroll duties should not be rushed; otherwise, costly errors may occur resulting in upset employees and penalties from government agencies. 

You may be keeping the books for your restaurant in-house, which takes a certain number of hours each day, week, and month. You may also have someone on staff or in your immediate family handling the accounting needs. At some point, maybe you decided to outsource your payroll or you installed a new point-of-sale system to track hours. Shortly thereafter, as your business began to grow, you found another service to handle tax preparation and filing.

This type of piecemeal approach for handling your financials can sneak up on you in a hurry. And while you may be making the right decisions in the moment, such an approach is not ideal for long-term profitability and growth.

Restaurant margins are slim. To maximize profitability in today’s economy, you need an accounting service that acts as a true business partner -- one that is as concerned about your restaurant's success as you are in each stage of growth for your business.

Creating a weekly schedule in the restaurant business is an arduous task -- you have to consider employee availability, peak hours and days, upcoming local events, potential employee training, and even elements outside of your control, such as severe weather.

Many operators will use a POS system or scheduling software to help them in the process. Others may still be using a hand-drawn matrix to complete the task. Regardless of the system you have in place, if you are not using sales projections as part of the criteria for scheduling employees, you may be leaving money on the table in terms of labor cost as a percentage of sales.

While we strongly advise every small business owner to partner with an accounting firm for tax preparation and filing, we understand that many restaurant owners are simply not aware of certain tax provisions that could save them a lot of money.

Because restaurants have unique costs, you are eligible to claim deductions to reduce taxable income. By maximizing your tax deductions, you lower the reported profit for your restaurant, which helps minimize the taxes you owe.

Restaurants are particularly susceptible to profitability issues due to the nature of the business. Menu pricing becomes an increasingly important tool as inventory staples fluctuate in cost. Although raising your menu prices may increase the potential for profitability on paper, asking for more money from an already strapped customer may turn business away, harming your bottom line in the long run.