It has taken a lot of strength and determination to be able to hold onto your business through these tough times. So this month, we’re celebrating the business owners that persevered and found a way to keep going.
Borrow $100,000 or more during July* and you’ll receive a $2,000 Amex Gift Card as our way of saying You Rock!
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(BPT) – Do you have a side hustle you’re looking to grow? Are you a small-business owner wondering if you should use your personal credit for your business? Before you do, consider your business credit score. Whether it’s a modest side gig or you’re looking to expand your small business into a full-time, multi-person venture, it’s important to understand your business credit score and how it can help you.
Haven’t heard of a business credit score? You’re not alone. “What is a business credit score?” is the top question we get at VantageScore from small-business owners. Our goal is to expand understanding about credit scores for everyone, and when it comes to businesses, helping empower owners with useful information to help them make smart financial decisions.
The credit experts at VantageScore Solutions share must-know info about business credit and how small-business owners can establish and grow their business credit score:
Consumer and business credit reports are different
A consumer credit report is for an individual while a business credit report is for an organization, even if it’s just one person. What’s on the report varies: A business credit report has different number ranges for credit ratings, such as zero to 100. Additionally, you won’t see a list of creditors on a business credit report like you would on a consumer credit report.
A positive business credit report matters
A business credit report shows credit-related data a credit reporting company (CRC) has gathered about an organization from different qualifying sources. This includes records of credit card balances and payments, as well as public records, such as bankruptcies. Having a rich business credit report can help you get better terms on business loans and other financial relationships needed to manage and grow your business, including lower interest rates.
Be proactive to strengthen your business credit report
If you get a consumer loan, that information may be reported to all three bureaus for your consumer credit report. On the business side, there’s less data consistency and less chance your lender is going to report to all the commercial credit bureaus. Be proactive by using strategies that include reporting to the bureaus, such as utilizing small-business credit cards. You can also work with vendors that knowingly report to the bureaus. Finally, as always, pay all bills on time and keep debt low.
Separate yourself and your business
Just like with consumer credit, it takes time to build a rich credit history. Business owners should start building good credit as soon as possible and start by establishing a business entity. The majority of small-business owners in the United States operate as sole proprietors, which means they don’t have a formal business structure such as an LLC, S-corporation or C-corporation. Having these types of designations separates you and your business and therefore separates your business and personal credit.
Avoid tapping personal assets
When starting or growing a business, a lot of people use personal assets such as savings, retirement funds or home equity for funding. Before you do this, exhaust all other possibilities for business financing. There are over 6,500 different companies with lending products for small-business owners, so it’s worthwhile to research and find one that fits your needs so you don’t have to put your personal finances at risk. Plus, many of these other options come with the opportunity to build your business credit report.
Check your business credit report regularly
Just because you pay your bills on time doesn’t mean you should assume your credit report is good. If something negative occurs, you want to respond quickly, such as financial fraud or identity theft. Visit VantageScore.com to access a list of free credit score providers for both your personal and business credit reporting purposes.
(BPT) – Three Asian-American entrepreneurs who have channeled their rich heritage and unique experiences into success are now using their voices, creativity and care to give back to their communities in inspiring ways. In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Target is lifting up the voices of the Asian community by spotlighting Andrew Lee, Priscilla Tsai and Vincent Kitirattragarn. The retailer is also helping guests easily find and shop for Asian-founded brands through Target Finds.
After a near-death hate crime against registered dental hygienist and entrepreneur Andrew Lee in 2008, Lee rose above his harrowing experience to give back to members of his community that faced similar challenges. The attack left Lee with intense anxiety and PTSD that led him to develop bruxism, a stress-induced condition that caused him to clench and grind his teeth. To ease this condition, Lee created OTIS Dental, an accessible, affordable solution to bruxism that provides the quality of more expensive night guards at a more accessible price.
“As a child of South Korean immigrants, I saw my parents endure countless racially charged attacks,” said Lee. “They rose above the hate and taught me to live by the principles of hard work, endurance and integrity.”
His parents reminded him of difficulties they had overcome, telling him he was not a victim, but a survivor. They motivated him to work his way through graduate school so he could fulfill his dream to take a more preventative approach to oral care.
“Every person should have a solution to fit their needs,” said Lee. “Having access to something affordable that actually works will help anyone with bruxism experience more peace and happiness.” His tips for entrepreneurs?
* Have a supportive group of people around you.
* Due diligence is key. Research, and pay a bit more for quality results.
* Take personal time throughout your day.
Asian culture has had a profound impact on modern skincare and on entrepreneur Priscilla Tsai, who built her beauty brand, cocokind, with higher standards for ingredients, environmental impact and customer transparency in mind.
“Being Asian has inspired so much of who I am and what I do, both in terms of values as well as my inspiration for skincare,” said Tsai, a Taiwanese American born and raised in Michigan.
After struggling to find skincare products that worked both for her skin and her values, Tsai created a conscious beauty brand designed for everyone. She began building a digital presence, then partnered with Target to introduce cocokind to its guests with great success.
“Seeing our brand come to life at Target has been one of the most rewarding experiences of starting cocokind,” said Tsai. “It’s the culmination of many dreams and challenges.”
Priscilla credits her success to the example of her hardworking, determined parents and her own resilience. Her advice?
* Don’t wait for perfection to get you going.
* Understand that failure along the way isn’t avoidable; it is necessary to succeed.
* Take action – the best ideas in the world are nothing without action behind them.
Dang Foods is the first and largest Asian-American snack brand, created by Thai-Chinese brothers Vincent and Andrew Kitirattragarn.
Vincent Kitirattragarn took his passion for food and turned it into a career, working at Thai restaurants and studying the food truck business to build his company from the ground up. After he told his mom he planned to start a pop-up restaurant at a San Francisco nightclub, she gifted him her recipe for Miang Kum, a Northern Thai snack made with toasted coconut.
“I made it, then immediately called my family in Thailand because it tasted so good,” said Kitirattragarn.
The brand has developed several tasty snacks including coconut chips, Thai rice bars and nutrition bars featured at Target under their brand name, Dang – Kitirattragarn’s mother’s name.
“We believe East and Southeast Asian food is healthier because it’s plant-based, has less sugar and is less processed,” said Kitirattragarn. “Our purpose is to share our culture for a healthier and more flavorful world.”
His tips?
* Seek others who share your values.
* Be bold.
* Trust yourself.
These three entrepreneurs credit much of their success to their unique heritage and experiences, understanding that their brands give them the opportunity to elevate and inspire others in the Asian community.
Another way to support Asian-owned brands? Look for the Asian-owned badge when shopping on Target.com – a new feature just in time for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
Like, nearly, everything else, in life, purchasing, and owning, investment real estate, should be considered, on a risk/ reward basis/ scale! While, many have earned their fortunes, or supplemented their incomes, buying these types of properties, doing so, is not true, for all! There are many possibilities, both, positive, and negative, and a wise buyer/ investor, recognizes, understands, and analyzes, as many of these, as possible, in order to make the smartest decision! With that in mind, this article will attempt to, briefly, consider, examine, review, and discuss, some of these types of considerations, variables, etc.
1. The purchase price: The process begins, with closely, examining, and considering, whether the price, you purchase the property at, will serve your objective! Do you know, the realistic range, of rents, you might be able to charge, for tenants’ leases, etc? How easily, should you, be able, to rent these, so there are fewer vacancies? What might be your cash flow, after considering your financial outputs, both up – front, as well as on a monthly basis? How will you determine the rents, you charge? Are you certain, you aren’t over – paying, for this investment? What rate – of – return, are you seeking, and how will you get there? How realistic are your objectives?
2. Upgrades needed: What condition is it in? Will you need to make certain repairs, upgrades, etc, at the onset? If you think you will need to upgrade, soon, what will be your strategy, and focus, and will you be disciplined, enough, to – create a realistic, workable, time – table? Remember to factor – in, any expenditures, in these areas, you will need, to make, in order to determine, your overall cost of purchase!
3. Potential upgrades: Fully consider, and budget, for future upgrades, which you, envision, will need, to be performed! When you determine these, and adjust, your projections, accordingly, you begin to better understand, the correlation between the potential rewards, versus the possible risks!
4. Cosmetic and structural: There are 2 basic forms of upgrades, to consider, cosmetic, and structural. Obviously, the latter, cannot be delayed, while, you sometimes, might be able to delay the former. However, whether it makes sense to proceed, immediately, with a cosmetic change, it’s important to weigh, whether doing so, might make, the property, more sought – out, viable, and potentially, able to generating, enough additional revenue, to make this a smart approach. Before purchasing, it’s important to have a qualified, Home Inspector, or Engineer, comprehensively, examine, the entire structure, in terms of its overall quality, and expectations!
5. Rental income: Examine, on the lower – end, what the property (unit – by – unit), might deliver, in terms of rental income. Make your projections, based on only about 75 – 80% of these figures, in order, to ensure, you are able to handle the cash flow!
Examine potential investment property, using the risk/ reward approach! Don’t do this emotionally, but, do so, in a logical, analytical manner!
Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, Director of Development, consultant, professionally run events, consulted to thousands, conducted personal development seminars, for 4 decades, and a RE Licensed Salesperson, for a decade+. Rich has written three books and thousands of articles. Website: http://PortWashingtonLongIslandHouses.com and LIKE the Facebook page for real estate: http://facebook.com/PortWashRE
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Richard_Brody/492539
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10134801
Smaller, investment properties, often, offer, significant financial/ economic benefits, in terms of creating a combination of asset growth, return – on – investment, and some degree of safety! However, this is true, only, if, the purchaser, first, thoroughly, understands, what to seek, and why! Different potential properties, have, varying, potential, for optimal performance, etc! While, everyone, cannot, consistently, take care of, afford, or get involved, in major real estate deals/ purchases, far more, are able to take advantage of smaller properties, etc. These vehicles, often, include, one, to four, family/ unit, houses, and, while some, offer, attractive investments, others, may not, always! With, that in mind, this article will attempt to, briefly, consider, examine, review, and discuss, 4 significant, meaningful, main/ essential considerations, and evaluations.
1. Cash flow: Cash flow, when it comes to these, usually, refers to, the difference, between, the funds/ revenues, received, and the monthly costs. It is important to consider these, in a conservative manner, by, basing evaluations, not, on the highest, potential rent – rolls, but, by market – based rents, and, no more than 75% occupancy (to avoid, a potential, cash – crush, if there are any interruptions, due to a variety of possibilities/ contingencies). In addition, the investor, must, be careful, to ensure, his personal cash flow, doesn’t suffer, by using too high a percentage of his reserves, for up – front costs, as well as creating reserves, etc!
2. Area/ neighborhood/ local market: Before, making – the – leap, thoroughly, consider, and evaluate, local real estate market conditions, and discover, the marketplace, for rentals, in terms of, availability, demand, advantages, and/ or, disadvantages! Thoroughly, know the specific area, and determine, if it offers, the best scenario, for you, and your priorities and purposes!
3. The 6% Rule: Many pay close attention to, what is often, referred to, as the 6% Rule, when it comes, to purchasing, smaller, investment properties. This means, three – quarters, of a realistic rent – roll, must achieve, at least, a six percent profit. Expenses, must include: mortgage – related expenses, including principal, interest, taxes, and escrow; landlord – paid utilities; repairs; renovations; upgrades, and reserves, etc.
4. Property condition: Understand, the existing condition, of the subject property, and, what, will need to be addressed, immediately, on an intermediate – basis, and in the longer – run. Reserve funds, must be used, and prepared, for as many contingencies, as foreseeable, etc! On the other hand, don’t be, overly – influenced, by staging, and overestimating, rent – rolls!
After, over 15 years, as a Real Estate Licensed Salesperson, in the State of New York, I believe, strongly, in the possibilities, and advantages of investing in smaller, investment properties, but, only, when, this is done, carefully, and in a focused manner! The smarter, you proceed, the better – off, you will be!
Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, Director of Development, consultant, professionally run events, consulted to thousands, conducted personal development seminars, for 4 decades, and a RE Licensed Salesperson, for 15+ years. Rich has written three books and thousands of articles. Website: http://PortWashingtonLongIslandHouses.com and LIKE the Facebook page for real estate: http://facebook.com/PortWashRE
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Richard_Brody/492539
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All too often I see small business owners missing the mark with their marketing. Sure, it’s easy to do when you specialize in a specific industry niche and you spend your time engulfed in industry sector jargon. However, it’s best to put yourself in your potential customer’s shoes and think your marketing through from their perspective, addressing their most important questions. Your customers want to be able to trust you, to know you are looking out for their interests and that you don’t just see them with Dollar Signs in your sunglasses.
Below is a sample page, perhaps good for a website, brochure, email, or letter. Why not look this over and consider how you might form your own message. Use your own voice, your own style and remember you are talking to your customer across the table for the first time. You know what questions they will ask. Show that you care, that you are working for them, and will go out of your way to get them the best rates, and great service. Here is the sample:
Commercial Real Estate Loans
Are you looking to purchase an income property such as an apartment building, small office building, or retail center? Would you like to put several rental properties in your real estate portfolio into one commercial mortgage? Wish to find a suitable piece of land and develop that property? Do you need a loan for acquisition and construction?
Do you want to buy a business property with a business on it; a restaurant, carwash, service station, laundry mat, hotel, etc.? Are you looking for a commercially zoned property with a warehouse or industrial building on it? Are you expanding an existing business and/or want to own the property under your business rather than paying the monthly lease?
Are you in the agricultural sector, looking for specifically zoned farming property; land for a vineyard, orchard, or crop such as berries, vegetables, or flowers? We have significant experience to make this happen. Our area in Southern CA has one of the best climates in the world, and incredible top soil for growing almost anything.
We can assist with all types of commercial real estate loans including government-guaranteed loans such as FHA, USDA, and HUD. If you are looking for an SBA 7(a) loan or a CDC/SBA 504 loan for commercial real estate we can get it done.
We can assist you with traditional commercial mortgages, commercial bridge loans, or commercial hard money loans. We also have lines on non-traditional sources for hard money commercial real estate loans, which are custom tailored to you needs for complicated projects outside the normal scope of typical commercial real estate loans and mortgage offerings.
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Why not try something like this? Just because the Federal Reserve has raised rates doesn’t mean you have to let new deals and new clients move to your competitors. I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.
Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Innovation in America. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net.
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Lance_Winslow/5306
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Joint venture businesses are composed of two or more companies, groups or individual businessmen or businesses. The join each other to create a much better or a new business line, hence the name joint. Today, a lot of businesses have been joint venturing with other businesses and companies for numerous benefits. Although the benefits are obvious, there are still some disadvantages when joint venturing.
Joint venture has lots of benefits; one of the most obvious is that you can survive financial crisis or depression because your venture partners can absorb some of your financial crisis to retain the company in shape. Usually this venture is being done to eliminate some or totally eliminate the competition to achieve a monopolized market for your business.
Another reason for businesses to have a joint venture is to have a different line or target market. This is to enable the company, usually a much bigger one, to target other market other than their present market. This enables the company to enter a new line of business and learn more about the products that they are going to create from their joint partners. This is very beneficial especially for those companies that jointed with other companies that have trade secrets or patented products and intellectual properties. They can now gain access to this valuable information that could help them and their partners expand their business.
Upon entering a new market, this venture not only allows the other company to enter and penetrate the market of the other, it also helps the other companies’ capabilities with handling the market. This makes the company a much bigger and better competitor if not the best in their specific market. Giving them full and great access and flexibility with their target market.
Joint venture capital also helps the company grow faster. This is because of the number of business lines that they have. This enables them to profit from different markets. For the part of the company that a market fails, the total failure is being absorbed by the entire venture capitalists. This works equally the same by the time they gain profit.
Although there are numerous advantages of joint venturing, there are some disadvantages too. One is that if your business partners were not as productive as your business. This will become a drag for you since you will equally share and endure the drawback of the other business. Another is you will have to share all the information that you have to your partners. And finally, if your business partners are not as effective or work efficient as you are. This may affect the management area of your business and may result to lower success of success. Besides that the power to govern your business is no longer solely to your company, but for the whole joint ventured companies.
Overall, joint venturing is a nice thing to do if you plan on expanding and growing your business much faster and if you intend on having different lines of market. Just a simple reminder, learn more about the partners you are going to have your joint venture. Choosing the right business or company can lead to success and vice versa.
Contact us for more information on a host of additional services.
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Mabel_Miles/887749
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The idea of joint venturing is now attracting lots of business out there, and it does not matter whether they are big or small. This is because of the benefits that small businesses and even successful and big businesses. But before a big business will consider to joint venture with a smaller business, they inspect the credibility and history of the business in-order for them to ensure themselves that they have ventured with a reliable source. This is the main goal of smaller businesses to attract those companies to joint venture with them. There are many problems that one might face when starting up a business. For instance, where to start the business from and after that, where are you going to get all the resources that are needed to attract other businesses and companies successfully.
Basically, new businesses attract joint venture partners that are much bigger than they are by being knowledgeable, successful and being effective in their market. This shows a promising business that will grow and give them benefits. By doing so, you will have to invest more on your business to become successful. This is done through advertisements and referrals, which may put you into the minds of people when it comes to your product. The same problem goes; you will need to invest more on the business.
Other people and business owners simply does not have enough funds and capital to support or to make their businesses progress in the proper way. This is why a lot of joint venturing businesses and companies use a joint venture capital.
Joint venture capital is different from a standard bank financing. Bank finances or bank loans usually requires you to pay the loan in a given specific time. This usually takes months or years depending on the contract loan that you have signed and agreed or the amount of the loan that you made. In these times, a specific interested is placed on top of the total amount of the loan you made, which makes it risky for businesses if ever they fail. Joint venture capital on the other hand, the money that you borrowed will be paid with a percentage of the entrepreneur’s stock. This usually lasts for about three to eight years. This is at the span where the company succeeds and grows. This is initially implemented with a successful Initial Public Offering or IPO. The IPO will bring the company’s stocks to the public market.
With the venture capital that you have, an agreement on the ownership is going to be negotiated predetermined in a venture investor concludes the finances. You can either raise the funds for your business to prosper to make it easier to enter a joint venture or get a venture capital that can easily give you the finances that you require for your business. This comes with risks, both will, so it is important to select the best option for you and choose something that you are comfortable with and the one that you can properly compensate.
Contact us for more information on venture capital and as well as a host of additional services.
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Mabel_Miles/887749
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6131065
Today’s article contains great news for investors and brokers alike.
According to an important Bloomberg article published this week, the economic boom currently being enjoyed in America will probably not result in an extra big bust, according to the work done by the Nobel-prize-winning economist, Milton Friedman.
You may recall that Milton Friedman was a famous economics professor at the University of Chicago from 1947 to 1977. Friedman was the foremost proponent of the Monetarist School of Economics, and once famously said, “Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon…” In everyday English, he meant that if a government creates a lot of new money, there is going to be a ton of painful inflation. “Inflation is taxation without legislation,” was another one of Friedman’s famous quotes.
In 1964, Milton Friedman developed an economic hypothesis called the Plucking Model. The Plucking Model holds that the economy is like a string on a musical instrument — recessions are negative events that pull the string down, and after that it bounces back, like a guitar string. But here’s the thing: When you pluck down on a guitar string, it only snaps back to its original position. It doesn’t go careening to the other side of the neck.
And just as a string snaps back faster if you pull it harder, the Plucking Model holds that the deeper the recession, the faster the recovery that follows. But you can only pluck the economy in one direction; bigger expansions don’t lead to bigger recessions!
But is the Plucking Model true? “Friedman proposed the idea in 1964 and argued that if he was right, future recessions would show a correlation between the depth of the bust and the speed of the recovery that followed. He then waited 20 years to see if his predictions were borne out. In 1993, he looked at the business cycles that had happened in the intervening years, and he concluded that he’d been right.”
“Since then, others have found more evidence to support the plucking idea. A 2005 paper by economist Tara Sinclair used advanced statistical techniques to confirm that, in the United States, bigger recessions are followed by faster recoveries — but not the other way around. If you pull that guitar string really far – bam – it snaps back blazingly fast; but bigger recoveries don’t produce faster recessions. In other words, when a big expansion starts to end, an economy doesn’t instantly plunge in a deep, dark recession.”
After the Great Recession of 2007-2009, researchers looked at European countries and concluded that those that had it worse in the downturn ended up bouncing back faster. In other words, those European countries which saw their GDP’s fall the furthest were the first to recover.
But there was no correlation between how well a country did before 2007 and how much it suffered afterward. In other words, those countries which enjoyed the biggest increases in GDP did NOT suffer worse than the countries who fared only so-so in the preceding expansion. All this evidence implies that recessions cause recoveries, but that booms don’t cause busts.
But why does this happen? The answer is that it’s easy to give people raises, but it’s hard to make them swallow pay cuts.
In good times, growth simply feeds into higher wages (as well as higher profits). But when a recession or other negative shock comes along that hurts corporate earnings, employers might like to cut wages, but they can’t. Instead, they lay off workers. The more workers who get laid off, the bigger a pool of unused labor there is, so the faster the economy can grow once the recovery takes hold. Makes perfect sense, huh?
All of this is great news. We can now forget about the Sword of Damocles hanging over our heads and truly enjoy this expansion. Yes, we will eventually have another recession, but it will probably not be a horrible one.
By George Blackburne
