#25 Who are you doing business with?
Do you know who you’re doing business with? I’ve seen a number of cases where business owners get into difficulty down the track when they haven’t properly verified the individuals and businesses they are transacting with. As a small business owner, this step is absolutely vital.
In this episode, I discuss the importance of verifying the business that you’re building a relationship with. I talk about what this means and why it is critical for small businesses. I discuss verifying individuals, larger organisations and companies, how these vary and why you need to do it properly from the outset.
I also discuss the legal implications of what might happen if trouble occurs and your verification hasn’t been done correctly.
As always, prevention is better than cure.
TOPICS DISCUSSED AND WHERE TO FIND THEM:
[1:20]: Today’s topic is the importance of verifying people and businesses you build work relationships with.
[2:50]: If you’re a business and you’re providing services to other businesses, the first thing you should be doing when working with a new client is verifying their ABN, name, and physical address.
[5:20]: There is an additional step of verification if you are dealing with a company, not an individual. This is to confirm the company details on the ASIC registrar.
[6:30]: Larger organisations often have an authorised officer who has authority to sign with you in place of the directors.
[7.30]: It is vital that you get these things in place from the outset because if done incorrectly you may not be able to hold the client legally accountable if trouble occurs.
[9.00]: Always know who you’re doing business with. It's vital to do the ABN check and know if that’s right. You need to know if you’re working with an individual or a business.