Monthly Archives: September 2007

Today, I ran across a series of free business finance workshops that seem very helpful. They take a while to load, but they are very well done. There is a PowerPoint style presentation with a voiceover (not just reading what is on the screen.) Each workshop covers a different “How to” – I’ve annotated the […]

Many business owners have been turning to leasing as an alternative to bank loans.  Now, more and more businesess are also tapping into small business cash advance services as a financing solution.  Cash advances can be used either in combination with or in place of leasing. The following list takes a quick look at various aspects of bank […]

Getting a business loan is no simple task. Getting a restaurant loan is even harder! Why are banks so hesitant to provide financing to restaurants? Bluntly stated, the majority of new restaurants fail within the first year. An equally sad number of restaurants fail within the first two years. The biggest controllable factor that can […]

After writing a post on making the decision to pursue the Government Grant path, I decided to put together some links for grant seekers. · Here is a list of Federal Government Resources, including Grants, Contracts, and Auctions that provides a list of links to government grants. · For information on finding and applying for government grants, […]

One of the most important steps in attempting to calculate cash flow is breaking your business down into cycles.  Some examples of business cycles are:  inventory cycle, accounts payable cycle, sales cycle, and accounts receivable cycle.  The key to smooth cash flow is to coordinate these cycles as much as possible with one another. Unfortunately for […]

For all those female entrepreneurs out there, here are some great resources that I found compiled on the SBA’s Office of Women’s Business Ownership site.  Some, like the library and courses, are good for all you entrepreneurs, regardless of gender.  Many of these organizations are great ways to network, in addition to the specific benefits […]

The most frustrating thing about running a small business is EVERYTHING that is out of your control.  One of these things is when your customers don’t pay you.  Here are some tips on collecting that money which is owed you already, and which you need NOW.  While you are waiting for your money, if you […]

Growing a hair / beauty salon business requires financing! Lenders know that these business can really struggle with varying receivables and high overhead. A successful salon needs time to develop a loyal customer base. A salon’s success is based on a local following and until that business has established it’s “regulars” overtime, revenue can be very […]

During my morning surf, I found some directories of Business Planning Freeware and I thought I’d put links up.  I haven’t checked these programs out, so use your own judgement.  Some of them look rather old, but a formula is a formula and it looks like many of these programs could be very useful. Many […]

By using online finance/accounting calculators and other online tools, you are able to bypass hiring someone to calculate for you AND you are able to recalculate quickly and easily for various situations, projections, and ‘what if’s’.   Bank Rate has the following free calculators for Small Business Owners: • Calculate payments on any loan (incl. […]