Articles
The 6 Questions You Absolutely Must Ask Your Accountant this Year
Regular meetings with your accountant can help you keep on top of your financials and taxes. You can ensure you make the most of your meetings, and stay prepared for the year ahead, by asking these six questions. 1. How can I help you do a better job for me? No matter how skilled and…
4 Tips to Improve Your Business Credit Profile
While everyone understands the value of maintaining a good personal credit score, for small business owners is just as important to make sure your business credit profile is the best it can be. Both scores impact a business owner’s ability to secure a small business loan; and a good business credit profile can help secure…
ObamaCare Changes: What You Need to Know Now
The Affordable Care Act has given business owners plenty of deadlines and changes to track, on top of the daily work of managing their business. Here’s a quick look at the pertinent changes and deadlines you need to know right now. The Employer Mandate for 2015-16 The Employer Mandate, originally scheduled to begin in 2014,…
The Amazing Fate of the ‘Oscars Pizza Guy’
Ask almost any person on the street what they remember about the 2014 Oscars, and chances are they’ll answer, “the pizza.” In one of the more hilarious and touching moments in Oscars history, host Ellen DeGeneres ordered pizza during the broadcast and brought a delighted delivery man into the theater, to deliver slices to Angelina…
5 Business (Types) That Are Perfect For Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is one of the more empowering developments of the Internet age. Through the connected power of the masses, aspiring entrepreneurs can get their great ideas seen, supported, and funded. A wide variety of ideas have found enormous success with crowdfunding. A few of the biggest successes include a redesigned “Coolest Cooler” that raised over…
5 Common Startup Financing Mistakes
Financing a startup is a challenge. In fact, unless you have exceptional credit and some cash in the bank it can be almost impossible. Writing for SmallBusinessTrends.com, Tom Gazaway identifies five common mistakes that make it even a harder—yet are pretty easy to overcome with a little bit of planning and forethought. Gazaway suggests you…
5 Questions with David Bobbitt, President of the SCORE Foundation
1. Tell us about SCORE, and what the organization’s mission is. SCORE builds vibrant small business communities through mentoring and education. Our backbone is 11,000+ volunteers—successful executives and entrepreneurs across the USA—who give back through no-charge mentoring. We have amazing SCORE volunteer groups in Manhattan and in Cedar Rapids in Eastern Iowa, in South Dakota…
Customer Success Story: Tropic Tan
Sharon Herd and her husband wanted to purchase and expand a tanning salon and were looking for a small business loan to help facilitate the purchase and fuel the expansion of Tropic Tan in Kennesaw, Georgia. After completing an online loan application at 2:00 am, she was on the phone the next morning with an…
Three Reasons Why You Are Missing Out On New Customers
While you might be running an offline business, the strength of your digital efforts has a powerful influence over the potential success or failure of your business. According to a survey by Search Engine Land, 85% of consumers have used the Internet to search for local businesses. It’s not surprising as eMarketer estimates that US…
Do You Have the Right Insurance For Your Business?
Insurance is designed to protect small businesses from expenses associated with lawsuits, but also from costs surrounding injured employees, stolen equipment, or damaged property. No matter what type of business you run, consider purchasing some or all of the following types of insurance for your company and its assets: 1. General Liability Insurance. If your…
Small Business Lending: Does Your Business Qualify for an SBA Loan?
Although the SBA (Small Business Administration) is not a bank and doesn’t actually make small business loans, they do offer a guarantee to the traditional lenders, like banks and credit unions, which do. The SBA might not be the biggest source of funds available to small business owners, but they are an important source—making funds…
How to Get Extra Time to Pay Your Suppliers
If you’ve been in business for awhile, you know that getting the funds to ignite your killer idea is just the beginning. Once the dust settles, the day-to-day challenges of running a business take center stage. Dealing with cash flow issues usually tops the list. At some point, you’ll probably find yourself in a situation…
The Single Biggest Killer of Employee Productivity in Winter… And How to Beat It
Winter can be a rough time for employee morale, what with the frigid temperatures, icy roads, and those gloomy winter skies. It’s also a rough time for our employee health; since we are all cooped up indoors together, we spread germs faster during the winter months. That means that your team is much more likely…
These Grammy Nominees Learned Key Business Lessons. Can you Guess Them All?
Making it in the music business is no easy task – and these days especially, success demands a deep understanding of both the artistic side and the business side of the industry. Here are a few Grammy nominees with exceptional professional capacities that can be valuable to any business owner. 1. Know how to market…
Does My Age Affect My Personal Credit Score?
The short answer is no. Your date of birth doesn’t necessarily impact your personal credit score—but the age of your credit profile does. “What it means is the age of your credit report. Yes, your credit report has an age just like anything else,” writes Gerri Detweiler for Credit.com. “And that age has a positive…