These days, there are endless opportunities for growing a digital business. Unlike brick-and-mortar businesses that need to restrict their marketing efforts to a specific area, digital businesses can cast their nets wider and attract a larger base of customers. And as these businesses are online, they can make full use of the many different online marketing channels and tactics that are available.

No matter what your digital business does or who it’s trying to reach, here are some of the most effective strategies for boosting your business growth.

Create an SEO Strategy

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of making your website more search engine-friendly. When done right, it will help your web pages rank higher in search results, which will send more traffic to your website.

SEO can help you target valuable keywords, which send relevant traffic to your website. This means boosting your online visibility to more potential customers, which is essential for growing a digital business.

Implement Email Marketing

Email marketing is one of the most reliable, and effective, marketing strategies out there It also offers an excellent ROI for any digital business.

Establish a mailing list where you send regular newsletters and updates, You can also apply automation to save time and effort while ensuring your email marketing strategy delivers optimal results.

Develop a Strong Social Media Presence

When it comes to growing any kind of digital business, social media marketing is always essential. Focus on developing a strong presence on the social media channels that your target audience uses the most. Publish helpful content, engage with your audience, and remain active across your social media profiles.

This will help you drive more traffic to your website, reach more customers, increase brand awareness, and ultimately, grow your digital business.

Work With Affiliates

Affiliate marketing is a great way to grow your digital business because you only pay for results. It’s an affordable, yet highly effective, marketing strategy.

Develop an affiliate program that incentivizes people to share and promote your business. This will help you reach a larger audience and increase your promotional efforts without having to do the work yourself.

Create a Content Marketing Strategy

Content forms the foundation of any effective digital marketing strategy. This is what you share across your digital marketing channels to help you attract and engage customers.

Content marketing can include creating SEO-friendly blog posts, publishing videos, recording podcasts, sharing content on social media, and more. When developing your content marketing strategy, make sure that your content interests and adds value to your audience.

Establish a Referral Program

Referral marketing is another highly effective way to grow your digital business with minimal effort. This involves incentivizing people to share your business with their circles in exchange for a reward (like a discount). People trust word-of-mouth referrals from people they know a lot more than marketing messages from brands. This means referral marketing can be a great way to spread brand awareness and acquire new customers.

Run Paid Ads

Paid advertising is the fastest and most effective way of getting your business in front of potential customers. You can run all kinds of different online ads across a range of platforms – like search and social media. The great thing about online advertising is that it lets you be very specific about who your ads target. This means you only pay for your ads to be seen by the right people, which helps grow your business more efficiently.

Make Sure Your Website is Optimized for Success

There’s no point in generating traffic and growing brand awareness if your website isn’t designed for growing your business.

Make sure your website offers an excellent experience and that it’s optimized for conversions. Ensure your website looks professional, offers helpful content, and is easy to navigate. Try to include reviews, testimonials, trust badges, and any other forms of social proof that could help you build trust and credibility.

These are some of the best tactics that any kind of digital business can use to reach more people and generate more sales. Of course, the specific growth tactics you use should depend on who your target audience is, what their online behaviour looks like, and what kind of products or services you offer.

By establishing a broad digital marketing strategy and developing a strong online presence, you will be able to boost brand awareness and reach more potential customers. Focus on consistently growing each online channel, and it should result in steady business growth.

South Africa has a large agriculture industry which offers many agribusiness opportunities for entrepreneurs with an interest and drive for farming. Crop farming is one of the largest agricultural industries in South Africa. It involves a plant product, such as grain, fruits and vegetables, that can be grown and harvested to be sold for profit. In addition to providing food and raw material, crop farming in South Africa also provides employment opportunities to a very large percentage of the population.

Starting an agribusiness requires some skill, knowledge and resources. In this guide, we’ll explore some of the most important things to know to help you start a new crop farming venture.

Crop farming in South Africa

Crops provide the food, feed grain, oil, and fibre for local consumption, as well as for export.

Here is a breakdown detailing the various categories of crops.

• Food crops – includes rice, wheat, barley, millet, oats, rye, sorghum, and fruit and vegetables.
• Fibre cops – plants grown to produce fibre for textiles, such as cotton, hemp, jute and flax.
• Oil crops – soybeans, sunflower seeds, rapeseed, canola, and peanuts grown are all sources of oils.
• Ornamental crops – plants grown for decorative purposes in gardens and parks such as roses, orchids, ivy, oleander, tulips, and azaleas.
• Industrial crops – crops  industrially processed prior to final use, such as cotton, sugarcane,  coffee, tea, tobacco, coconut, and soybeans.

In South Africa maize is the most important food crop, followed by wheat and barley. As a staple food in the country, maize is  consumed in its direct form, and is used for products such as sweeteners, bread, and cornmeal.

In terms of fruits and vegetables, the major fruits consumed in the country are apples, pears, litchis, mangoes, plums, peaches, apricots, grapefruit, pineapples, avocados, and lemons. The most demanded vegetables in the country are lettuce, chicory, pumpkins, tomatoes, and carrots.

Read: How to Start an Agribusiness in South Africa 

Potential opportunities and challenges in crop farming in South Africa

One of the biggest challenges for small scale crop farmers is identifying profitable crops for production. It’s important for new farmers to identify market demand for different crops in the country and assess local and international market trends. In South Africa the most profitable crops are sunflower, soybean, grain sorghum, and groundnuts because of lower production cost.

To help you make the right decision, below are the major factors to considered in crop selection, according to the Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, Rural Development and Land Reform.

• Prevailing farm conditions – including climate, soil and access to stable supply of water.
• Crop or varietal adaptability – crops should be selected based on their adaptability to the prevailing conditions in the farm.
• Marketability and profitability – to ensure financial sustainability, crop selection must consider marketability and profitability.
• Resistance to pests and diseases – select a crop and variety with wide resistance to important pests and diseases
• Available technology – whether the technology for the growing of the crop has been well established or easy to learn and apply.

Read: Farming App that Helps Emerging Black Farmers is SA’s Best Business App 

These days, customers have many different payment options available. This includes Apple Pay – an easy contactless payment solution for people with Apple devices. It’s always a good idea to offer as many relevant payment options as you can for your customers. This will make it easier for more people to pay for your business, which could help you access more customers.

This guide covers exactly how your business can accept Apple Pay.

How Does Apple Pay Work?

Apple Pay is a mobile wallet payment system developed by Apple. The app uses near-field communication (NFC) technology to transmit payments between devices. Basically, this means you can tap your phone that has Apple Pay installed on it to a payment device, and the payment will go through. NFC is a type of wireless payment system that is gaining enormous popularity across the world. So, it only makes sense for your business to utilize it.

How to Set Up Apple Pay for Your Business

Expanding your payment options to include Apple Pay is easy to do. As long as you have the right equipment, you can set this up very quickly.

Here are the basic steps you’ll need to follow.

Get an NFC-Enabled Payment Terminal

The first thing your business needs to accept Apple Pay is an NFC-enabled payment terminal. Without this, you won’t be able to accept any kind of contactless payments.

Luckily, there are many different payment terminal options that exist. This includes plenty of affordable payment terminals that are easy to set up. Before purchasing a payment terminal, ask the provider if it can accept contactless NFC payments.

You also need to make sure the hardware you choose works with your business’s POS and payment software. Some POS systems have dedicated hardware solutions, while other payment terminals can work with multiple POS systems.

Set Up the NFC Card Reader

Set up the NFC card reader so that it works with your POS software. The card reader provider should have clear instructions available on how to set this up. Make sure that Apple Pay and contactless payments are enabled. Test to see if it works, then place the card reader somewhere that’s easily accessible.

Train Your Staff

Make sure that your staff is properly trained to accept and manage Apple Pay payments. In many cases, POS systems and card readers are set up for Apple Pay, but the staff isn’t aware that this is an option. Most POS systems are very intuitive, but it’s still a good idea to run everyone through how Apple Pay works to make sure everyone knows how to use the system.

Advertise Apple Pay

Once your business is all set up with Apple Pay, it’s a good idea to promote that you accept this payment method. You could do this with a small sticker or sign placed near your card terminal.

Using Apple Pay On Different Systems

The steps above are all it takes to accept Apple Pay in your business. However, different payment terminals and payment processing software options work in their own unique ways.

It’s always a good idea to contact your payment terminal and POS vendors to ask about any specifics in setting up Apple Pay for your business.

Using Apple Pay for E-commerce

You can also set up Apple Pay on your online store. To do this, make sure that your eCommerce and payment processing providers accept Apple Pay. They should provide clear instructions on how to enable it.

Should Your Business Accept Apple Pay?

Accepting Apple Pay is an excellent idea for any business. As you can see, it takes very little time and effort to set up accepting these payments. Chances are, your payment terminal is also already able to accept Apple Pay too.

Accepting Apple Pay can make payments more convenient for your customers, which improves the customer experience. A frictionless payment process can also result in more repeat business. Apple Pay is also a secure payment method, which makes it preferred by many consumers.

So, if your business wants to keep customers happy and stay ahead of consumer trends, then accepting Apple Pay is definitely something you should do.

Accepting Apple Pay can be a great way to improve your customers’ experiences. It’s simple to set up, and once you have it implemented, you can offer a wider range of payment options to help you generate more sales. Whether you’re an in-person or online business, this is always a good idea.

As a small business owner, ensuring that your business is tax compliant is of utmost importance. With the tax-year end just around the corner, it is crucial to be well-prepared and organized to submit the necessary documents to the South African Revenue Service (SARS). Whether you are a first-time business owner or need a refresher, this comprehensive tax filing guide for SMEs will provide you with all the essential information you need to know.

The guide is divided into four main sections, each addressing a critical aspect of tax compliance. Let’s take a closer look at what each section entails.

In the first section, we will provide you with a comprehensive guide to payroll tax-year end. This section is designed to take you through the essential steps of preparing for, processing, and being ready for the next tax year. Properly preparing for payroll tax-year end ensures that you have all the necessary information and documents required for the payroll reconciliation process. This section will cover critical steps such as verifying employee information, reconciling employee records, and ensuring that all the necessary reports and declarations are in place.

Moving on to the processing payroll tax-tax-year-endtion, we will delve into the actual process of submitting your annual employer reconciliation returns to SARS. This section will cover everything from submission deadlines to necessary forms, emphasizing the importance of accurate and error-free submissions.

The final part of the guide focuses on preparing for the next tax year. This section will assist you in developing a plan that helps you avoid any mistakes made in the previous year and provides tips on how to make the preparation process smoother and more efficient.

The second section of this ultimate tax filing guide for SMEs focuses on four mistakes to avoid when submitting your personal tax return. By highlighting these common errors, we aim to help you prevent delays, penalties, or even an audit. Mistakes such as forgetting to declare income, claiming expenses that are not allowed, providing incorrect information, and not using the right forms can have serious consequences, so it is vital to be aware of them and avoid making these errors.

The third section of the guide is dedicated to three tips that will make tax compliance easier for small business owners. Running a small business can be stressful, and tax compliance is often one of the most time-consuming and complex aspects. This section provides practical tips that can help you streamline your tax compliance process, reduce the potential for errors, and alleviate some of the burden associated with tax-related responsibilities.

Finally, the fourth section highlights four compelling reasons to partner with Sage this tax-year end. Sage is a leading provider of accounting and payroll software solutions for small businesses in South Africa. This section outlines the benefits of using Sage software to streamline your tax compliance process, save time, and ensure accuracy, ultimately making your tax filing experience smoother and more efficient.

In conclusion, tax compliance is an essential aspect of running a small business, and being well-prepared for the tax-year end is crucial. This ultimate tax filing guide for SMEs offers easy-to-understand language, step-by-step instructions, timely and accurate information, valuable tips and tricks, and resources and support to ensure that you can submit your documents to SARS accurately and on time.

Whether you are a first-time business owner or in need of a refresher, this guide will help you navigate the complex tax compliance landscape and streamline the process, allowing you to devote more time to running your business. If you have any further questions or require additional assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to our team members. Let’s get started on ensuring your tax compliance success!

There’s a lot that can go wrong when running a business. From natural disasters to cyberattacks and poor business management, business crises are only too common. This is why it’s so important for business owners to develop a clear plan to avert a possible business crisis. Whatever kind of crisis your business could face, here are some of the best steps and tactics to implement.

Focus on Regular Training Sessions

One of the best ways to avert a business crisis is to conduct regular training sessions across your business. This helps keep team members up to date with the latest crisis management techniques. It also ensures everyone has fresh knowledge of best practices for their performance.

It’s also a good idea to implement regular drills and simulations to practice crisis management under realistic conditions. This makes it easier for your team to understand their roles and responsibilities in the event of a business crisis, which makes implementing a crisis management plan more effective.

Develop a Crisis Management Plan

In order to efficiently avert a business crisis, you should have a solid crisis management plan in place. This lays out the exact steps and procedures you can take to prevent and recover from possible issues.

The first step in developing a crisis management plan is establishing what possible risks could affect your business. Start by making a list of all the potential threats that could harm your business.

Once you have established what potential crises exist, you can consider the risk factor of each one. Think about how likely it would be for the crisis to occur and what kind of damage it could generate.

Now you can rank each crisis in order of risk, and establish a plan of action to mitigate the risk of each one. The plan should include clear steps to take to mitigate the risk of the crisis, prevent the crisis, and recover from a possible crisis.

Establish Crisis Management Roles and Responsibilities

When you have a crisis management plan in place, you’ll want to establish a crisis management team. This involves handing out certain crisis management roles and responsibilities to different individuals.

This will generally involve a crisis management leader in charge of the team, as well as various other team members with clear responsibilities. Ensure there is a solid communication plan between the crisis management team, and that everyone is clear on what they need to do in the event of a business crisis.

Prepare Your Business for Fast Responses

If you’re going to avert a business crisis, then you need to be ready to respond to the crisis as soon as possible. Ideally, this involves identifying signs of the crisis before it takes place so that you can prevent it from happening.

One of the best ways to implement rapid responses is to keep an eye on your business data and analytics. Constantly monitor business performance, and identify any trends or occurrences that are out of the ordinary. This could signal a potential crisis about to happen.

Of course, having your crisis management plan and team, in place also means you can respond to the crisis as swiftly as possible.

Consider Crisis Management Software

Crisis management software systems exist that could help you deal with potential risks your business faces. This could include software tools for communication and incident management in the event of a crisis.

Compare various software options and understand exactly what you ended from the system. The right crisis management software could help you respond to incidents a lot more swiftly.

Constantly Review Your Business Plan

One of the best ways to avert a business crisis is to constantly review your business plan. At the start of each year and each quarter, go over your business plan and look for possible problem areas and trigger points. Understand what you will do when you reach these trigger points and try to factor in a plan B.

This will help you be prepared for any surprises or incidents of underperformance in your business. Always be as critical as possible when reviewing your business plan to help you identify possible issues that could arise.

Knowing how to avert a business crisis is essential. It could save your business operations, and help you get through any kind of difficulties your business faces that are beyond your control.

While you can’t always prevent crises from happening, you can have a clear plan to mitigate their risks and recover from them. Following the steps above should help you achieve this

Finding success in farming relies a lot on finding the perfect agricultural equipment suppliers in South Africa. The right equipment is not only a necessity, but can also result in increased productivity and profitability for a farm.

Agricultural equipment is a long-term and costly investment, so it’s important to do your research ahead of time. Some considerations when working with a supplier are the quality of their equipment, affordability, after-sales support, and local availability. Your supplier should also be able to help you navigate challenges, such as any budget constraints and a lack of technical knowledge; ensuring that you ultimately get a good return on investment. Other factors to consider, according to SA Wine Farms, are additional costs such as “services, part replacements, additional attachments, insurance and any other hidden costs”.

Read: ​​Here’s What You Should Know to Start a Business in the Agriculture Sector 

Must-have agricultural equipment

There are various pieces of essential agricultural equipment that small farm owners in South Africa should consider. These include tractors,which is considered to be one of the most important and most used tools, planting and harvesting equipment and irrigation machinery such as sprinklers.

Renting vs. buying

Farmers have the option to rent or buy the agricultural equipment they need. Some factors influencing decision-making are cost-effectiveness, equipment maintenance and flexibility, and investment considerations.

Renting can be a good option for farmers who only need certain machinery for a specific time, or those with limited funds or restrained cash flow, as it often comes with lower payments and upfront cost. However, there are advantages to purchasing equipment outright, such as asset building, and having greater control, as you do not have any limitations on the use of equipment.

Financing options for agricultural equipment purchases in South Africa

There are a number of different financing options available to small business owners in South Africa who wish to invest in agricultural equipment, including business loans, leasing, grants, and government assistance programmes.

Read: Agriculture Funding Opportunities in South Africa 

Some of the most well-known government organisations businesses can look to include, the Black Industrialists Scheme that supports black entrepreneurs, the IDC Agro-processing and Agriculture Strategic Business Unit programme, that supports new or existing companies within the agro-processing and greater agricultural sector. For women-owned enterprises, the Isivande Women’s Fund (IWF) specialises in providing debt financing to women-owned businesses, including those in the agricultural sector.

Another popular option is a traditional bank loan if you meet all their requirements. Some of the considerations they will look at are the farmer’s and farm’s financial history, the farmer’s capabilities, cash repayment ability and whether they can provide collateral.

Download: 20+ Business Funding Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in the Agricultural Sector

Get a full list of agricultural funds for the following categories/businesses:

• Field crop farming
• Animal production
• Dairy farming
• Food & agricultural value chain
• Agro-processing
• PLUS – Niche funds for Black and Women-owned agriculture businesses

Although it doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves, the township business economy is alive and well. There are thousands of innovative and exciting township entrepreneurs across South Africa, each with valuable knowledge and stories to share.

Attending the right township business events is one of the best ways for any township entrepreneur to grow their knowledge and network. Various events run throughout the year, where township business owners can connect with each other, learn more about the informal economy, absorb valuable business skills, connect with possible mentors, and display their businesses to potential customers. If this sounds interesting to you, then here are some of the best township business events that you should know about.

Township Economies

Township Economies is one of the most exciting business events for township entrepreneurs. The event includes a two-day conference designed to help township entrepreneurs access all the tools and information they need to grow their businesses. There is also an expo that gives township entrepreneurs an opportunity to showcase their businesses and products.

The Township Economies event is focused on exploring support services for the informal market sector. The event highlights challenges that township entrepreneurs face and provides strategies for improving and expanding support services for anyone working in the informal market sector.

If you are a township entrepreneur looking to grow your business and learn valuable business skills, then this is an event you won’t want to miss.

TEA

The Township Entrepreneurs Alliance (TEA) is a national township-based organisation that creates platforms to help township entrepreneurs learn, network, and grow. Their regular TEA events connect township entrepreneurs, government officials, and corporate leaders together to help grow the township economy.

While each event is unique, they all focus on some kind of township business workshop or networking experience. The events are designed to equip township entrepreneurs with valuable business skills to build more sustainable businesses. There are also business exhibition opportunities and business pitching challenges.

Township and Village Tourism Expo

Any township entrepreneurs focused on the tourism sector need to check this event out. The Township and Village Tourism Expo is a premier event for showcasing products, services, and trends in the township tourism sector.

The expo includes keynote speakers, panel discussions, and exhibitor booths. This provides attendees with excellent opportunities for learning more about the industry and networking with other township tourism professionals. As an exhibitor, you get both a booth space and the opportunity to give a presentation. This is a great opportunity for any growing township tourism business.

Africa Entrepreneurship Indaba

The Africa Entrepreneurship Indaba is an entrepreneur conference and exhibition event that provides excellent learning and networking opportunities.

While it’s not specifically focused on township businesses, the platform does provide township entrepreneurs with a chance to exhibit their businesses, attend business seminars, and connect with some of the key players in their industry.

Anyone looking to explore their entrepreneurial opportunities, get inspired, and join other African business owners should certainly consider adding this event to their calendar.

eKasiMall Market Presents #PretoriaJuly event

The eKasiMall Market presents #PretoriaJuly event is a special event for township brands to showcase and sell their products to the Tshwane community.

The event includes a VIP section with food, music, drinks, and general admission. This is a great opportunity to learn more about the potential of township brands and what kind of products and innovations township entrepreneurs are offering. Not only will you be able to network with other like-minded township entrepreneurs, you will also be able to sell your products at the event.

Startup Grind

Although Startup Grind is not specifically focused on township businesses, it is one of the best platforms to meet and learn from other entrepreneurs and investors. Startup Grind hosts regular events each month, where business owners come together to find mentorship, connect with new partners, and reach new users.

Beyond the networking aspect, Startup Grind is also a great opportunity to learn from some highly successful people across various industries. Each event has its own unique theme and focus.

These are a few of the most exciting township business events that take place. Joining the right event could be an excellent opportunity to learn from other successful township entrepreneurs, expand your business network, gain inspiration, and connect with potential customers.

If you are serious about growing your business, then attending regular business events is always a good idea. No matter what type of business you run or the industry you’re focused on, these events can add plenty of value to entrepreneurs.

Dairy farming continues to be a lucrative opportunity for entrepreneurs in South Africa. According to South Africa Online, dairy farming is one of the largest agricultural industries in the country.

There’s a lot to consider before starting a dairy farm in South Africa, including having an understanding of the basic principles of farming and the business skills needed to run a sustainable enterprise.

What is dairy farming

Dairy farming involves the “breeding, raising, and utilisation of dairy animals, primarily cows, for the production of milk and the various dairy products processed from it”. This includes milk and products such as butter, cheese and yoghurt.

Dairy industry overview

South Africa has a large dairy industry. There are currently about 1200 dairy farms and 1.2 million dairy cows in South Africa, and industry employs 26,000 people. This is according to statistics provided to the Daily Churn by Milk SA, a non-profit promoting South African dairy.

South Africa continues to see an increase in demand for dairy products, similar to other countries across the globe. This means there is great growth potential, profitability and opportunities present for aspiring entrepreneurs.

The industry is, however, not without its challenges. The dairy sector can be challenging for emerging farmers as it does need a large scale production to start being profitable. Other obstacles identified by Milk SA are the “high intensity of milk production and risk factors such as milk quality and safety” and “requirement for specialised knowledge”. Both factors keeps aspiring farmers out of the industry.

The basics of starting a dairy farm in South Africa

To succeed in this industry, it’s important that aspirant farmers know the fundamental steps involved in starting a dairy farm in South Africa. These basics include land selection, breed selection, facilities, regulations, and financial considerations.

Land selection

A successful dairy farm requires adequate farmland, located in an agricultural area.

Some of the important considerations when choosing land for a dairy farm in South Africa, according to Milk SA are: a dependable source of electricity available, distance to market. Additional requirements are good road infrastructure, and availability of electricity and good water supply, as well as good pasture.

Read: How to Start a Farming Business in South Africa

Breed selection

The success of a dairy enterprise is dependent on choosing the right breed of cow. According to Food for Mzansi, the cow you select determines the amount of milk produced by the herd, which in turn has an impact on your profit. There are currently six cattle breeds that are considered ideal for a dairy operation. The most popular breed, however is the Holstein-Freisland. Beyond milk production capabilities, other factors farmers must consider are adaptability to local climates, and disease resistance.

Equipment

You will also need the right equipment to get started. Dairy farming requires substantial equipment and infrastructure to run a dairy farm effectively. Some of the facilities that a new farm will need include milk tanks, milk palours and sheds, feeding systems and cooling equipment

Despite the challenges present, dairy farming remains a lucrative opportunity if you can cover the rather extensive capital and land requirements. With the proper planning and adequate infrastructure, there is plenty of opportunity for small-scale farmers to start and grow a dairy business in South Africa.

Becoming an entrepreneur generally means starting a new business from scratch. While this is highly rewarding, it also takes a lot of time and effort to get the business operating profitably. There’s also a lot of risk involved in starting something new.

This is why acquiring a business is an attractive option for many entrepreneurs. By acquiring an existing business, you can take over a business model and brand that is already established. You can also acquire a business already generating a profit, so there’s often less risk involved.

If this approach to business ownership sounds appealing, here are some different ways that you can acquire a business.

Franchising

Franchising is a type of agreement where the franchisor (the original business owner) lets the franchisee open up a new branch of the business. The franchisee gets to use the franchisor’s brand name, trademarks, and products.

Franchising can be a smart way of opening a new business, because you get to use an already proven business model, and you start with an already established brand. Franchisors also offer support to franchisees to help them establish and manage the business to the right standards.

The downside to opening a franchise is that the franchisee doesn’t have much freedom to run the business the way they want to. Paying for franchising agreements can also be expensive.

Buying Into an Existing Business

It’s possible to buy into an existing business by purchasing enough shares to put you into an ownership position. You could purchase the business outright, or buy into a portion of ownership and become a partner.

Buying into an existing business can be a good idea because you can join a business that has already established itself and is already generating a profit. When doing this, you should have a good idea of what you can bring to the table to grow the existing business even further.

There are a couple of different options for buying into a business. One example is a management buyout, where the business’s existing management team purchase the business from the owner. This often happens when the owner wants to retire and leave the business in trusted employees’ hands.

Mergers and Acquisitions

If you already own and operate a business, you can purchase another business and merge it into your existing company. Mergers and acquisitions are done when a business purchases another business that can complement what it does, or add another valuable element, product, or service, to expand the existing business’s opportunities.

Mergers and acquisitions can be very complex scenarios that require plenty of assistance from financial and legal professionals.

Joint Ventures and Partnerships

Joint ventures and partnerships happen when two business pool their resources and expertise to establish a shared business venture. Of course, this avenue of acquiring a business is only possible if you already have an established business.

Joint ventures and partnerships are done to help businesses access a wider market share or expand into new markets. This is effective because merging with an already established business helps you generate results straight away, as opposed to starting a new venture from scratch.

Asset Purchase

An asset purchase is when you buy specific assets from an existing company, like their equipment and stock. This often happens when a business closes down and wants to sell everything they own.

In an asset purchase, you don’t acquire the entire business and don’t trade under the original business’s name. This means this approach actually involves starting a new business from scratch.

However, you can take an already-established business, purchase its assets, and simply continue operating in the same way under a new name. Some common examples of this are purchasing the assets of a bakery or petrol station, and continuing the same business model with a different brand.

Auctions and Bankruptcy Sales

Businesses are sometimes sold through auctions or bankruptcy proceedings. If you find a suitable business being sold in this way, it could be a great way to acquire a business at a lower cost.

However, businesses sold through auctions and bankruptcy proceedings often come with a lot of potential risks that you’ll need to take on.

These are some of the best avenues for acquiring a business. Whatever approach you take, make sure that you understand the opportunities and risks involved in each scenario. While acquiring a business overcomes many of the risks of starting a new business, the process still comes with its own unique challenges.

Unethical business practices can have an adverse impact on all businesses, regardless of size. On an organisational level this can include employees being encouraged to perform unethical or illegal acts or turning a blind eye to the misconduct of peers.

For a business, unethical business practices can result in a ruined reputation which can have a disastrous impact on their bottom line. On the other hand, businesses that are ethical and transparent stand to benefit in a number of ways as consumers look to support businesses aligned with their values.

Read the full article: Are you running an honest company? 

The guide below outlines the most common unethical business practices in South Africa and ways to reduce ethical risk.

Corruption

Business corruption is defined as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain”, this can include a number of unethical business practices and illegal activities such as bribery, fraud and money laundering, among others.

Bribery

Bribery involves “offering, giving, soliciting, or receiving of any item of value as a means of influencing the actions of an individual holding a public or legal duty.

Research by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) found that bribery was flagged by many small business owners as a major business growth impediment in South Africa. The research found that SMEs are most likely to encounter bribery when dealing with public sector officials.

Read more: How to Avoid Getting Burned by Bad Clients

Fraud

Small businesses should take the risk of fraud seriously. It usually involves using false information to scam an organisation. To avoid this happening to you, do not share business or personal information until you are sure about the legitimacy of the potential recipient. Other tips businesses owners can use include the following:

1. Update all changes to your business information
2. Report all suspicious incidents
3. Closely monitor your business bank accounts
4. Control access to your business accounts

Read the full article: What are you doing to protect your business against fraud? 

Unethical suppliers

It’s important for small businesses to vet and select ethical suppliers and business partners as bad players can have an impact on the business. Comprehensive background checks can help businesses avoid dishonest suppliers and provide invaluable insights, says Michelle Baron-Williamson, executive of Managed Integrity Evaluation (MIE), in the article ‘Supplier vetting on the rise in South Africa’. In fact, advance vetting services can highlight any conflict of interest between, or fraudulent activity relating to vendors and employees, identify tender collusion and irregularities.

Read the full article: Supplier vetting on the rise in South Africa 

Need help finding the right strategic alliances, partners, collaborators, sub-contractors? Regine le Roux from Reputation Matters offers the following advice for small business owners.

• Stay true to your values and align with people that share and demonstrate the same values.
• Open and honest channels of communication are key.
• Respect and safeguard each other’s intellectual property.
• Have a process in place when selecting who you want to do business with and stick to it! As part of this process, check all the parties’ competencies. Conducting “values and ethics” due diligence is important.
• Have checks and balances in place throughout each project to ensure its on track and on par with your level of service.
• Have clear deliverables and milestones in place against a payment plan so that you don’t get to the end of a project and questions about invoicing and billing only raised then.