A turbulent 2016 is drawing to a close, with many business owners and executives praying that 2017 will bring far less uncertainty. While there are many factors beyond the control of many companies, it is possible to engineer a path towards improved profit margins and increased sales. Here are a few top tips for improving your business next year.

Review your accounts

Whilst the tax year doesn’t end until April, it’s worth poring over every detail of your balance sheet. Look at where your money goes and see if it’s possible to spend less. If there’s an expense that seems a little too high, investigate it further and look for cheaper alternatives.

Regarding income, if your business’s finances are in the red or the profit margins are not quite to your liking, set higher revenue targets. Check out any opportunities for your business; someone providing development opportunities like Sogeti can help with that side of things.

Follow the news

Whether your client base is local or global, it’s always worth keeping an eye on current events. If, say, there’s growing demand for a product or service that you provide, this could give you something to fuel your marketing push. Business news websites are the best resources for that – Forbes is as good a place as any to start, while Bloomberg and the BBC are really useful too.

Make a marketing push

There’s a possibility that business may not be as expected because you haven’t got the word out yet. To this end, a marketing push for the start of the new year can add a little rocket fuel to your sales. It won’t take a huge amount of effort or expense to do.

This involves smartening up your website, getting your website ranked highly on search engines for specific terms relating to your business and making good use of social media. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn are all great for sharing news about your services and engaging with customers in a fun yet simple way.

Look for incentives

If your business is looking for a little boost, the government does have a few schemes that can help to reduce your costs and keep you on the right track towards growth. Tax and National Insurance relief schemes are available for businesses large and small; business rates relief is available for companies who have just set-up, are based in rural areas or in enterprise zones.

They may seem small in nature, but any help you can get could make the difference between profit and loss. You do need to check eligibility before applying for tax incentives though.