How to Pick the Best Funding for Your Start Up

by Brad Campbell

Getting your startup off of the ground is not always easy to do. Not only do you have to face the rigors of simply being in business, you also have to find all of the money you will need in order to accomplish tasks which will make growth possible. You need to buy equipment and supplies for your office as well, including copier machines and other office equipment.


Finding the right investors for your company is a very important part of the startup process. Doing so will enable you to work with people who know about the things you need. Funding will also help you to buy all of the digital copiers and office equipment you will need to get your business running.

There are a few things to keep in mind when looking for the right investor for your business. You want to find an investor with experience working with companies in your field. It is important the investor is used to investing the kind of money you will need for your startup. It is also important that the investor has a proven track record for working with businesses which are successful.


Working in your field

When you dreamed up what your startup would be, there was a certain niche which you were looking to fill. A good investor for your company will understand what it is you do. It is important they understand what you do so you will not have to explain every step of the process as you grow. Additionally, investors who are used to working with companies in your industry might have some input for you as to what will help your company be more successful. Simply look at the past investments the investor has made to see how often they invest in your industry. Many will invest exclusively in one kind of industry.

Investing on your level

There are many different kinds of investors these days. The different kinds of investors are indicative of the different amounts of money in which they are used to investing. From the lowest investment amounts to the most are angels, super-angels, micro-VCs, VC, growth investors and equity groups. The difference is while angels might invest only a few thousand, VCs invest a few million and equity groups invest tens of millions. By using the right investor you will have a better chance the investor will not be scared about investing the amount you are looking to receive.

Track record for success

Hedging bets is very normal in the investing world. While it is important to work with those who are used to investing in your industry, if the investor has a bad history of investing in bad businesses there is a chance they can lead to the downfall of your company. While the failures are likely on the part of the company itself, it can often be due to the manner in which the investor interacts with them.

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How to Pick the Best Funding for Your Start Up

by Shannon Suetos

Companies need a few different things in order to grow. One of the most important things any company needs is money. Without money, there is no possibility to buy the things you need such as copier machines, office space and more. This is when you will want to turn to venture capital investors to get the money you need to grow.

There are a few things to consider before approaching a company for venture capital. By following a few simple rules, you will choose an investor who will understand what your company is trying to accomplish. You will also stand a better chance of getting the money that you need. You may even find along the way that you will get advice to help you to focus your business plan so that you will be able to find an investor. Following these ideals will help to make sure you not only get the digital copiers your business needs, you will get so much more.

Look for Investors Who Know You

Well, maybe the investors will not know your company personally, but they understand your industry and they know a good gamble when they see one. They will be able to see your business plan and know whether you have a winner or a loser of an idea. This will help to give them all of the information that they need in order to make a decision.


You can find these kinds of investors by looking at investors which have invested Venture Capital in other businesses in your industry in the past. They will not only be receptive to your request for a meeting. If you have made enough noise, they may actually know about your business and your potential.

Network Your Business

The different professional networks like LinkedIn and others will help you to discover those who are important investors in your market. The more you develop your own profile on these websites, the more you will be able to gain the attention of those you are looking to tap for an investment. You can even float questions which ask them to simply take a look at your plan and give you advice. Many will take the opportunity to help you focus your plan as well as point you in the direction of the investor who will be best for you.

Getting to Know the Investor

Venture Capitalist investors are looking for companies which will make them money. Their ability to make money is not based on a loan where they make back interest. Instead, they are tied in with your success. If they do not get what it is you are trying to do, they will not understand how it is that you will be successful. This is not only why you look for those who have invested in your kind of industry before.

If you have a business model which is slightly different or you are looking to turn the industry on its ear, you want an investor who enjoys a challenge. They will enjoy your gumption and will be willing to help you to succeed.

Shannon Suetos is a writer based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs such as phone systems & voip service at Resource Nation.

Are you a victim of the “6 Figure Myth”?

by Sandra P. Martini



Have you fallen victim to the “6 Figure Myth”? You know, the myth that so many gurus perpetuate which implies that once you “break through” (sounds hard!) to 6 Figures, all will be well:


• You’ll pay off your mortgage or invest in a bigger home
• You’ll convert those 6 Figures to millions while working 4 hours a week
• You’ll want, and get, a pair of Jimmy Choos for every outfit

You get the idea.

Fact is, it’s a myth. All of it.

I see so many business owners who reach and exceed the 6 Figure mark, only to be “making” less than when they were “under 6 Figures”. In fact, many of them have negative profits – yep, they made over $100,000 in revenue and had less than nothing left at the end of the year.

It’s not about revenue, it’s about profit.

Say it out loud. . . It’s not the revenue. It’s the profit.

As a business owner, there’s one number which matters more than any other – PROFIT. It matters more than revenue, more than list size, more than ezine open rate, more than Twitter or Facebook friends.

At the end of the day, how much money are you keeping?

Making It Real: My Request To You

As a conscious business owner, you may be shaking your head believing it’s not all about the profit, it’s about the impact you’re making.

Absolutely. . .the impact is important; crucial in fact when it comes to feeding your soul. However, without the profit, you can’t stay in business and if you can’t stay in business, it’s a lot harder to make a substantive impact.

Here are a few simple-to-implement ways to keep your eye on the bottom line as you reach for the stars:

1. Stay focused on the money by tracking how much you’re bringing in each DAY
2. Schedule a “Marketing and Money” meeting with yourself each week where you track key metrics such as revenue, profit, unique website visitors, ezine conversion, open rate, etc.
3. When creating new programs, products and services, know what your profit will be BEFORE you launch them.

By focusing strategically on both the marketing AND finances of your business, you can start increasing profits today, regardless of whether you’re currently making 6 figures, are a motivated 5-figure business or just starting out!

It’s about optimizing as much as it’s about creating. :-)

Sandra Martini is an award-winning marketing and productivity consultant who helps entrepreneurs create and implement the systems to achieve their visions, with services such as coaching, client systems development, consulting and Team Sandy Done 4 You Online Business Marketing & Management as well as a variety of informational products. For more business building strategies and to get your free audio series “5 Simple & Easy Ways to Put Your Marketing on Autopilot”, visit Sandy’s site at http://www.SandraMartini.com today

© 2002-2010 Sandra P. Martini. All Rights Reserved

Business Planning and Funding for the Start Up

by Shannon Suetos

When starting a business there are a few initial steps you need to take, such as writing a business plan, how to get financial backing and so on. If you didn’t take many business classes, or marketing courses you may not know exactly how to get started with everything.

Business Plan

Writing a business plan can help you organize your business early on, not to mention help you get capital. If you aren’t sure how to write your business plan, there are many services you can take advantage of. You can find templates starting at around $10 and you could spend up to $5000, depending on what you need done.

Even with the initial sticker shock, investing in your business plan can yield a positive ROI. Your business plan is what investors are going to want to read, and it needs to be laid out well, and have specific information.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to answer this question, “how will you make your investor money?” Once you answer that question, the rest should fall into place. “I will be able to make money because of A, B and C—I will do this by XYZ.” Avoid using a lot of buzz words—instead be straight forward, and get to the point.

Location

According to CNN Small Business, the top ten best cities to start a business are:

1. Oklahoma City, OK
2. Pittsburgh, PA
3. Raleigh, NC
4. Houston, TX
5. Hartford, CT
6. Washington, DC
7. Charlotte, NC
8. Austin, TX
9. New York City, NY
10. Baltimore, MD

CNN goes on to report, the best cities to get capital from banks are:

1. Salt Lake City, UT
2. Minneapolis, MN
3. Milwaukee, WI
4. Los Angeles, CA
5. Chicago, IL
6. Dallas, TX
7. Detroit, MI
8. Columbus, OH
9. Boston, Ma
10. Newark, NJ

If you aren’t fortunate enough to live in one of these cities, there are still plenty of viable options to choose from other than bank lending. Such as angle investors and VC loans.

Gaining Capital

Angle investors are a great place to start for the new entrepreneur. There are now social networking sites that help you connect directly with angle investors.
FundingUniverse

This site helps connect entrepreneurs to the right lending source based on their future company’s needs.
Gaebler

This site has a state by state run down of angle investors.
Go4Funding

Similar to FundingUniverse, this site connects people to the right kind of investors.
These are just three of many sites you can find by doing a quick search on Google. The SBA is also a great resource for new entrepreneurs for business plan writing, all legal documents you may need, and how to find investors.

Shannon Suetos is an expert on lead generation writer based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs such as telephone answering systems at Resource Nation.

With SMBs Finally Seeing Lending — How Can You Attain Extra Capital

by Shannon Suetos


We all know times are hard these days. Money is hard to attain, and most don’t want to part with what money they do have. Small businesses are the bread and butter of our economy, but what happens when they can’t find the capital they need to stay afloat during hard times?

The government understands how important small businesses are to our society, and has asked banks to start lending again. It seems they have listened. Bank of America for instance, announced back at the beginning of June that it would, “purchase $10 billion in products and services from those companies over five years, with the spending amount expected to grow by an average of more than 5 percent each year.”

Even with banks like BOA pledging to give more, “credit is still pretty tight for small businesses,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James and Associates to Market Watch. With that being said, what can you do as a small business owner to get the gears rolling again?

Tax Incentives

Getting creative with your taxes can be extremely beneficial—and there are some out there to help you do this. A bill passed this week will allow, “long-term investors in some small businesses [to] escape capital gains taxes. The bill [will] also increase tax deductions for startup expenses by new small businesses.”

Another bill passed earlier this year, will allow businesses to receive tax deductions for hiring the unemployed. “Companies will be exempt from paying their share of Social Security payroll taxes, normally 6.2% of a worker's wages, for any new worker who was unemployed for the prior 60 days. The legislation extends a provision to that allows small businesses to write off as much as $250,000 of their capital expenditures in 2010,” reported CNN.

Factoring
If you aren’t familiar with factoring, basically factoring is when you “sell” your outstanding invoices from a client to a factoring company. The company then pays you a certain amount of money, takes over the debt, and works with the outstanding balance on their end.


Although you won’t get the full amount owed by the customer, you will be attaining more money. Getting your advance from the factor usually happens within two to five days following the validation of your clients’ invoices, though a factoring company allows online invoicing, you may be able to receive your funding in as little as twenty-four hours.

Marketing
Many times businesses cut down on their marketing efforts when business is hurting. When in fact the opposite be happening. Investing in marketing can help get the exposure you need to attain more sales. A major reason small businesses are hurting currently isn’t the bank lending problem but, “businesses of all sizes are telling us they need most right now is more business," said Brian T. Moynihan, president and chief executive officer, Bank of America.

Online marketing efforts such as new media tactics are very cost effective, and can help get you more brand exposure. Even the B2B marketing is starting to implement social media, according to eMarketer, “studies from HubSpot have found B2Bs can find leads for less through inbound social marketing, and that social participation can help increase B2B leads.”

Telemarketing services may also be able to boost brand awareness, and help with promotions. There have been some reports lately of companies getting in hot water with “robocalls” where people have not signed up to receive these calls. If you do find this tactic useful, make sure you are calling only people who have signed up for the call list.

What types of tactics have you found useful to keep your company afloat? Let us know in the comments below.

Shannon Suetos is an expert writer based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs such as b2b telemarketing at Resource Nation.