What Are My Business Finance Options?

Posted on July 29, 2010 by admin

When it comes to gaining funding for your business there are a number of different places and avenues that you can approach but the one that you actually choose to use will be based on your business needs. Some examples of the places that you can turn to in the hope of gaining the business finance that you need are bank loans, family/friends, credit cards, overdrafts and investors. These are only a handful of the finance options that are open to both start-up businesses and established businesses; however in some cases many businesses often choose to use a combination of many different sources of finance in order to cover all of the expenses.

It can easily be said that many new businesses will exhaust the internal financial resources which are needed and used to get your business off the ground during the initial start-up phase. It is because of this that new businesses will then seek additional capital in order for them to continue to grow. The statement it takes money to make money is also never more relevant than it is when it comes to small businesses. This is due to the fact that every small business needs money to get started, operate and expand as well as to grow.

If you are a start-up business and you are at the point where you require outside finance you must clearly identify the purpose of your business finance. The start-up finance that you gain for your business is generally acquired so that you can gain assets for your business. These assets are used to help your business achieve its profit making objectives.

When you start to look for ways of raising business finance you should have calculated roughly how much money you are going to need in order to cover all of your business start-up expenses. By doing this you have a better chance of getting the business finance that you want and that you require. Once you have gained a rough estimate of how much money you are going to need for your business start-up in order to get your business off the ground you can start to think about the various avenues that you are able to approach as a way of securing your business finance.

However when it comes to business finance there are only really two words that you need to consider, these are debt or equity. Debt finance, for example, comes in the form of bank loans and credit cards. Debt finance is money that is lent to your business. It will cover all of your business costs but you are required to pay it back. You will have to repay debt finance on a monthly basis with added interest. Before you agree to take out debt finance it is important that you are able to keep up with the monthly repayments. To find this out you should investigate your expenditure and ensure that you will be able to keep up with the payments sufficiently.

The second word that you need to know is equity. Equity finance is money that is invested into your business for a share of your business. You don’t have to pay this money back at any point within your business but it does mean that you lose an aspect of control over your business.

Within every business there are five main components that are needed in order to ensure that your business operates successfully. These components are Personnel, Equipment, Housing, Products & Services and probably most importantly Capital. Without capital all of the other components wouldn’t exist within your business.

By: Helen Cox

About the Author:

Helen is the web master of Angel Start-ups, specialists in all aspects of Business Finance [http://www.angelstartups.com/content/investor.php].Please feel free to republish this article provided a working hyperlink remains to our site

Caffeinated Content

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Business Growth Through Leverage

Posted on July 29, 2010 by admin

Lets begin by talking about leverage. What do I mean by leverage?

In it’s most basic application a lever allows you to lift or move a heavy object with a lesser amount of energy. For instance placing a long stick under a rock in order to move it.

But how does leverage apply to business? Can you place a stick under your income statement to boost up your net income?

The answer is yes.

There are many ways you can use leverage in your business to increase the results you are achieving. The term leverage is often used in reference to the financing of a business. Getting in with little or nothing down using someone elses money is a form a leverage.

THE STRONGEST LEVER

Marketing is arguably the most powerful business lever of them all.

Why?

Because marketing has nearly unlimited upside potential with nearly no downside potential.

Leveraging your business success through marketing can improve your results by 100%, 500%, 1000%, or more with almost no risk or downside potential.

Let me give you a few examples.

It costs the same fixed amount of time and money to run a newspaper ad whether that ad creates one response, five responses or a hundred responses. It costs you the same whether you close 1%, 10% or 20% or those that respond. It costs the same whether the fee income you create is $1000, $2000 or $3000.

When you send a follow up letter to your prospects it costs the same to mail it whether it generates a 0.5% response or a 1% response or a 4% response.

So, as you see the risk or downside potential is limited. And if you are already running the ads anyway the risk is nothing. But the upside potential, the opportunity to improve your results, it virtually unlimited.

And what is the lever that makes this happen? Your marketing.

In other words by becoming better at marketing, by learning how to use better words, better systems and better approaches to your potential client you can greatly increase the results you are getting with little or no risk.

Now that’s a lever!

You create leverage on your investment of time and money and create a much greater result. That’s called leveraging your mind.

By: Shawn Meldrum

About the Author:

Shawn Meldrum has spent the last two decades marketing everything from almonds to landscape lighting. He currently specializes in marketing for mortgage brokers, loan officers and real estate agents. For free mortgage marketing articles and much more visit: http://www.mortgagemarketingtips.com/

Website content

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Surviving an Economic Recession – A Business Improvement Perspective

Posted on July 28, 2010 by admin

A global recession triggered by various causes is certainly bad news for all businesses in an increasingly global economy. From increasing oil prices, to chokes in credit lines for companies to do business, all these would spell trouble for world demand, directly impacting the bottom-line of companies. The usual tendencies for companies in their quest for business survival during these turbulent times would have been to get into the acts of headcount reviews, budget freezes and reduction, and other drastic cost-cutting measures. However, overreacting to this situation or merely following the “order of practice of the industry” may handicap a company’s future growth when demand recovers again. What companies should do is to take this opportunity of a downturn to re-invent themselves and consider how best to position themselves for global recovery when it happens.

There is usually a silver lining in all recessions, and that it is the time far-sighted companies are triggered to re-invent themselves in terms of practices, processes and human resources through business improvement practices.

Companies could use a myriad of business improvement methodologies such as Lean, Six Sigma or business process re-engineering to reap current and future benefits during a downturn. Lean, largely associated with the elimination of the 7 business wastes, could be used to review current processes and practices for immediate cost reductions without reducing valuable headcount. Examples of Lean techniques worth considering could range from the simple 5S (a methodology to ensure that what’s needed is known to be available, and what’s unnecessary is made known for alternative uses) to value stream mapping which could be used for identifying the 7 business wastes for elimination and process improvement. Six Sigma, a well-known methodology typically used for achieving zero defects, could be used to discover root causes of high business expenditures so as to facilitate their reduction and control. Even the good old process re-engineering practices could be used to review and analyze current business processes for streamlining and improvement.

Also worth noting is that business improvement activities involve teams and encourages teamwork. Such activities would most certainly improve employee morale during the gloom of a global downturn, while at the same time increase their intellectual capacity and create a learning organization. Don’t forget that it is also the people that make the company, and improving their morale in turbulent times will go a long way in firming the foundations for good times that will come again.

The bottom line of this perspective on how companies can survive an economic recession through business improvements is that business improvement methodologies provide a valid alternative to the “layman version” of cost-cutting measures. These methodologies provide a more prudent approach for reviewing the business during a downturn for long-term survival. They also enable the invigoration of companies for the next wave of growth. The possibilities are endless. It is up to companies to be innovative for their survival during a recession and beyond.

By: Adrian Tan

About the Author:

Adrian Tan is founder of One.Strategist LLP, a boutique management consultancy firm specialising in providing business improvement solutions. He is a senior member of the American Society for Quality (ASQ), and a Certified Six Sigma Black Belt. He is also a PMP, and member of the Project Management Institute (PMI). During his career, he has helped companies with improvement projects enabling both tangible and intangible benefits.Website: http://www.onestrategist.com.sg

Caffeinated Content – Members-Only Content for WordPress

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Vested Business Brokers

Posted on July 19, 2010 by admin

Hiring the expertise of a vested business broker is a good strategy, especially when doing business. If you are thinking of buying or selling your business, the foremost thought on your mind is, of course, how you will be able to optimize your sale or purchase. Getting the services of a reliable and knowledgeable vested business broker can make a huge difference.

Vested business brokers act as the middlemen between buyers and sellers. They may have ready resources, such as a long list of clientele who are ready to make purchases or people who are itching to sell businesses or properties. Vested business brokers may also be in contact with a wider network that, in turn, can put you in touch with more possible buyers and sellers.

Aside from these perks, the services of vested business brokers usually include some form of promotion, like advertisements and publicity, which can speed up the sale or purchase of your item.

Business deals, such as the buying and selling of a business or property, usually includes a fair amount of paper work and can take up a lot of your time. If you do not want to be bothered by the technical details, then you can hire a professional to address your needs. Vested business brokers can take care of everything from setting up meetings, making credit inquiries and even doing your paperwork. With these people at the helm, all you need to worry about is getting a fair deal.

The buying and selling process can be complicated. Many of the business dealings involving buying and selling can be taxing. That is why you need someone reliable who will take care of your assets and your money. You want someone who is smart enough to know a good deal when he stumbles upon one and turns away from a bad deal as soon as the warning signs flash.

By: Steve Valentino

About the Author:

Business Brokers provides detailed information on Business Brokers, Small Business Brokers, Business Loan Brokers, Business Broker Network and more. Business Brokers is affiliated with Internet Businesses For Sale [http://www.i-BusinessesForSale.com].

Caffeinated Content

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Wholesale Business – How to Start a Potential Wholesale Business

Posted on July 15, 2010 by admin

When starting a wholesale business you should always start small, it is advisable to check first whether you are good in selling that specific good or not. However, later you will have to expand your product range. As your business does well you may want to employ salesmen to visit your retailers. Making your deliveries to the retailer cost free is a good way of making your business popular.

In this business you need a very strong communication skill and being a little more persuasive always helps, and you need this to make the manufacturers to sell their goods to you at lowest price. This is important because you would have to sell the good at the market price and you have to make sure that it covers the marginal cost of the good and thus making a profit. This business requires ones marketing ability to persuade the customers to buy from them. You should always keep track of potential customers and make them offers so they are always interested in buying from you.

When starting this business you should be in a location near other distributors, this is strongly advisable as retailers would not make unnecessary travel just for you. Your location should provide good parking facilities and should be central to all your customers, because a retailer usually comes with loading vans and centralizing helps you reach your customer. The hours of business are adequate, from 8:30am to 5:30pm. You can also open on Saturday’s half-day if you are having trouble keeping up. As a wholesaler you would be dealing with many goods so it is always a good idea to specialize in one field in order to compete with other businesses.

Wholesaling business is a good business if you are willing to start one. You should start small and keep working on your business skills. Persuasion always is a plus for this business. You should always start with a good location depending on your customer and retailer needs. The business is getting tougher each day as now shopping marts are opening and they are buying their goods directly from the suppliers and selling them to the customers even still there is a good demand for the wholesalers.

By: Jennifer Conelly

About the Author:

Wholesale Dropship ListGet Instant and Unlimited Access to 8,000 Pre-Screened Legitimate Wholesalers Including Suppliers that Have Decent Profit Margins. See more about Wholesale Salehoo Dropshippers

Caffeinated Content – Members-Only Content for WordPress

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | Leave a comment