Cash Kills Fast: Fix Your Small-Business Cash Flow Now

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Cash kills small businesses. Not bad ideas. Not lack of talent. Not markets. Cash. If you don’t see the cash picture clearly, you are one late invoice away from chaos.

Know the real score

Start with three numbers: current cash on hand, monthly burn, and runway. Put them on a sticky note where you can see them. Update weekly. Most owners treat cash like bookkeeping — once a month and too late. That’s how they die.

Track Days Sales Outstanding (DSO). Track debtor concentration. Track the top five invoices due in the next 30 days. These are threat indicators. If DSO creeps up, you have fewer options and higher stress.

Forecast like you mean it

Forecasting isn’t magic. It’s math and scenarios. Build a rolling 13-week cash forecast. Project receipts and payments. Run three scenarios: base, stretch, and worst-case. Update it weekly. If your forecast changes, make decisions — don’t hope.

Use tools that connect to your bank and accounting software. Good software saves time. Bad software sells buzzwords. Ignore the flashy demos. If it can’t give you an accurate 13-week projection in under an hour, it’s a toy.

Control inflows

Get invoices out fast. Automate invoicing and payment reminders. Offer a clear early-pay discount. Charge for late payment. It’s not punitive. It’s survival. Negotiate terms that match your cash needs. Ninety days payable with thirty days receivable is how businesses die.

Know your customers. If one client represents a huge share of revenue, call that out in the forecast and the credit policy. Add payment milestones or require deposits. Preserve the commercial relationship when you can. But preserve your cash first.

Control outflows

Cut discretionary spend first. Then renegotiate vendor terms. Ask for 60-day pay terms, split payments, or consignment for high-cost items. Most suppliers will work with you if you have a plan and can execute a partial payment on time.

Use a prioritized pay schedule. Pay suppliers who keep revenue flowing first. Delay non-essential capital until cash stabilizes. This isn’t charity. It’s triage.

Lines, loans, and alternatives

Have a backup. A line of credit or a business credit card is insurance. Get it while you qualify, not when you’re desperate. Shop rates. Read covenants. Don’t sign a loan with hidden triggers that strip your flexibility.

Invoice factoring and merchant cash advances exist. They work — at a cost. Use them for bridge needs, not to paper over chronic cash problems. If you need them repeatedly, fix the underlying process.

Automate repeats; human the exceptions

Automate recurring invoices, bank reconciliations, and payment reminders. Use rules and simple AI to triage late accounts into soft-collection (friendly reminders) and hard-collection (firm terms). Keep tough calls human. Relationship matters, but cash wins.

Stop trusting the messaging from banks and fintechs that promise one-click miracles. Their tools are useful. They are not a replacement for discipline.

Reed's actual take: Cash control is a muscle. Train it weekly. Build a 13-week forecast, automate billing, tighten terms, and secure a backup line before you need it. Cut noise — focus on DSO, runway, and your top five receivables. Do that and you stop firefighting and start growing. Ignore this and hope becomes a business strategy. That never ends well.