If you have a great business idea, which you want to turn into a start-up, you need prepare yourself for unforeseen circumstances. Bottom-line damaging factors such as financial market volatility, cyber-attacks and natural catastrophes are hard to predict, so how can you prepare your firm to weather these storms? Turner Little asks: How can you protect your business’ financial future?
Understanding risks
The most effective way to safeguard your business from unforeseen circumstances is to take out insurance, but which policies does your business require? In order to answer this question, you first need to understand what kind of risks your business faces.
In December 2014, online tutorial site Envato Tuts+’s Copy Editor, Andrew Blackman, defined five main categories of risks for businesses. These are reputational, financial, operational, compliance and strategic – any could inflict serious financial losses on your firm and put its future in jeopardy, if you do not protect your operations against it. It is also important to note that in a world where firms are increasingly doing business online, cyber-security is also a serious risk to your business’ fiscal future.
Cyber-security threats
The tactics used by cyber-criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated, so they can now bring your entire company down. We see headlines practically every week, reporting on large companies, even multi-national corporations, who have been brought to the point of bankruptcy by a cyber-breach. Figures released by HM Revenue and Customs, indicate that during the previous tax year, cyber-thieves tried to steal around £100m from UK tax payers, illustrating the scale of this problem.
As a small business owner, it is even more important for you to think about cyber-security, as you do not possess the resources held by large firms. When you are targeted by cyber-criminals, they have the ability to hit every level of your operations, from legal compliance to finances and even reputation. According to Telegraph, 28% of a UK firm’s value can be attributed to its reputation. So if you experience a cyber-attack which, for instance, leaks your consumers’ details online, you will no longer be trusted to handle sensitive data, damaging your image and ultimately, your firm’s bottom line.
Shielding digital assets
So how can you shield your digital assets from cyber-criminals, in order to safeguard your firm’s finances long-term? You would be advised to invest in specialist cyber insurance. With these policies, providers will cover your losses or damages that your firm incurs due to cyber-attacks. Some providers also offer prevention services, utilising sophisticated technologies such as artificial intelligence, data mining and machine learning, to stop cyber-criminals before they can conduct attacks.
You can also implement a range of online security best practise measures. This includes using password protection systems such as LastPass, educating staff on cyber-security fundamentals and investing in effective website hosting for your online portal. Consider using Turner Little’s website hosting packages, which come with features like spam filtering and virus scanning, providing you with the security required to ensure that cyber-criminals cannot jeopardise your firm’s financial future.
Turner Little
Turner Little was founded in 1998 and it has since become a well-established UK based professional Company Registration Agent, Registered Bank Intermediaries and Business Consultants, as well as Trust provider. You can receive our monthly newsletter by signing up using the form below.
