If you’re a small business owner or planning to start one, your goal for the new year is probably to generate more income, keep old customers and attract new ones.

Here are some tips to help you realize your business goals this year:

• Free listings.  Don’t underestimate the power of the Internet.  Make use of search engines and online directories. List your business online. You would be amazed at how many potential customers you can get if people can search and find your business online.  Listing your business online is simple and easy. In fact, you don’t need to be technical to do this. All you need is commonsense.

• Know what brings in the money. There are two types of money in a business:  profits and cash. What’s the difference between them? Profits come from selling services or products at an amount higher than they cost you to produce. Cash is from the sales generated by your business.  Usually, small businesses focus on getting more cash. On the other hand, if you want to achieve more this year, go for the profits.  Focus on the aspects of your business that brings your more profit.

• Think about your old and current customers. When my airduct needs to be cleaned, will I remember the name of the cleaning service I hired last year? Not really especially if the cleaning service failed to keep its name in front of me.  Happy customers are returning customers. They mostly like come back or refer others to your business.  Never neglect your old and current customers.  Market your services or products to them.

• Have a marketing plan.  It’s always wise to have a marketing plan because it makes you think ahead and it help you get organized and prioritize your business goals. Know your business well. Know your strengths and weaknesses as a business. Identify the good and bad customers and know how to reach to them. Make a comprehensive plan to help you consistently and effectively market your business.

• Develop a business plan.  A business plan is essential to your business.  If you want to get going this year, a business plan will help you move steadily to the direction you want to steer your business.  A business plan can also be a structure for effective decision-making.

• Business Loans.  Generally, in a small business, capital can sometimes be a setback.  Applying for business loans can be a good solution for your financing troubles. Business loans are for people who want to start, develop and expand a business. There are various online resources available out there. Lendio, for one, can help you with your business loans.

• Get started now. This is the most important thing that you have to do for your business. Get started now. Don’t put off what you can do today if you want your business to be successful this year.

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But I like Bobbi and there was food involved, so I agreed.  Unbeknownst to me, this group had just launched and only had a hand full of members.   And my hesitation seemed justified.  A large part of the group was about recruiting –Will you join?  Who do you know? Who can you refer? Ugh.

So, I had to think why I would join this group.  OK, so I like Bobbi but not enough in itself to justify joining.  (Sorry sweetie, love you!)

My reasons –

• Something Different – I have been in business 8 years, my clients come from the same places and I only tend to market when I am done with the current projects.  Typical small business dilemma – we are too busy to network until we are not too busy, then we are scrounging around for the next project.  BNI would ensure at the very least there would be an ongoing networking effort.
• Get Out of the House – Many small business owners work from home and don’t get to interact with any co-workers.  It gets a little stir crazy.  As Coach Sharna Fey  noted – “This allows me to get dressed and talk to adults.”
• Business Karma – BNI calls it the “Giver’s Gain” concept but I like to think of it as Business Karma.  You are helping a group of like-minded business owners grow their business.
• Power Groups – As business owners, we naturally have a referral base within our industries.   Our clients come to us for Web Development and eCommerce solutions.  These same clients need copy, PR, photography, graphic design.  I can go to my Power Team and know I am referring my clients to quality service providers.

I joined and it has been a great experience.  I have gotten new business, developed strategic relationships with other service providers and eaten lots of food!

To learn more about BNI 3.0 check out the BNI 3.0 Fan Page on Facebook.  If you like to join us as a guest – feel free to drop me a note mike@understandingecommerce.com

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Over the years, women have slowly evolved to become competitive, strong-willed and business-minded individuals. If you are a woman who wants to pursue her dreams of starting her own business but don’t have enough financing, there’s help for you out there.

There are small business loans for women who want to start, grow, and develop their own business. Small business loans for women are available to help women entrepreneurs minus the complicated, tedious and problematical formalities.

So when do you need small business loans? Business loans are for starting a new business; expanding and developing a business; purchasing an equipment or machinery; paying advertising expenses; and paying salary and wages. Small business loans are for women who want to start or expand their business but don’t have enough money to do so.

There are various types of small business loans for women available out there depending on your needs and capacity to re-pay the loan. Just like any other business loans, there are several things that you have to consider when applying for small business loans for women.

First, you have to know how much risk your venture could be for the lender. Some banks and lenders will evaluate different aspects of your business to decide the terms and conditions of the loan you are applying for. Generally, they will consider your personal credit history, educational background, work experience, business feasibility study, and your business plan. Also, you have to consider whether you want to get a secured business loan or an unsecured business loan.

A secured loan is when you offer an asset such as a property or a car as collateral to pay off a loan.  Usually, a secured loan has a lower interest rate compared to an unsecured loan due to the collateral for the loan.

An unsecured loan is a loan that is not collateralized. Most of the lending companies would only grant loans to those applicants who have good credit scores and good credit history. For unsecured loans, there is a high risk for lenders. The higher the risks for the lenders, the higher the interest rates for the borrowers especially for those who have bad credit history. Compared to secured business loans, unsecured business loans offer limited loan amounts and less flexibility to borrowers.

There are various types of small business loans for women out there. You just have to choose which one is right for you and your business. Before choosing a loan company, make sure that you have done enough research and have considered other loan companies as well so you have more loan deals to choose from.

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Small businesses have contributed a lot to the economy of the United States. In fact, the small business industry has helped in keeping the United States economy alive by generating income for the owners and creating employment opportunities for workers. A significant part of the equation is the SBA loan lender – a private banking firm or a non-profit organization that has partnered with the Small Business Administration with aims to provide financial and other forms of assistance to individuals and companies to establish and / or grow their small business operations.

Basically, an SBA loan lender is a financing party that shells out loans to eligible and approved individuals or companies. A significant portion of each loan request is then covered or backed by the SBA. Looking at the whole scheme of things at a different perspective, SBA, through their varying loan packages and financing options, coaxes these banking firms to release money with the assurance of covering big part of the loans to minimize losses if the borrower defaults. The same can be said to private non-profit institutions that offer SBA loans.

That said, some non-profit organizations that participate in SBA lending programs do not cashes out loans. Rather, these groups are provided funds by the SBA as well as other financing entities, which are then given out as loans, or grants in some cases, to eligible and deserving individuals. These groups choose the borrowers in accordance to their pre-set standards and criteria on top of the usual requirements mandated by the SBA.

Becoming an SBA loan lender is a very thorough process and depending on the size and capabilities of a bank or a private non-profit organization, some can qualify for all the small business loan options while others are only allowed to offer one or two. The most common loan options that are offered by almost all SBA loan lending parties are the SBA 7A loan and the SBA 504/CDC loan. For specialized loan financing options such as Patriot express loans, community express loans, and other lending initiatives, requirements can be stringier, since these loan packages are designed for specific individual and business profiles.

The SBA also has special designations for top-performing lenders and most of the time, these designations are just telltale signs of how good a firm is when it comes to approving and releasing SBA-backed loans. Terms such as Preferred SBA Lender or Top SBA Lender in The State should tell you that a banking firm is a reliable partner when it comes to small business loans.

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The World Wide Web is full of information as to where you can get minority business loans. That said, care and caution should also be in place. Do not believe everything that you read, see, or hear in the Internet. It is imperative that you hook up with reliable sources and legitimate online operations and make sure that you do not let your guard down if somebody offers you information in exchange for money or personal details. With that, let us begin with the most obvious options.

The Small Business Asministration (SBA) provides several loan programs designed to help individuals obtain business funding from banks and conventional lenders. The SBA does not have any package dedicated in giving minority business loans per se, but members of the minority can qualify for the agency’s existing loan programs provided they satisfy the requirements.

Each state government has an agency dedicated to the development of minority-owned businesses. Also, most of these government offices have several financing solutions structured to help people from the minority obtain minority business loans. Aside from the crucial funding, most of these offices also require minority business owners to undergo special management and technical skills enhancement training to make sure their enterprise will be capable of succeeding in these hard times. You can check out your local Department of Commerce or Business Development for more information.

Private organizations and non-profit foundations are also a good source of minority business loans, especially those that cater to specific minority sectors. Women, African-American, Asian, and People with Disabilities are some of the minority groups that are well represented in the business world. It is not hard to locate a group that provides financial and technical assistance to people from the minorities. You can start from the local level, and work your way up and ask for directions as to where you can get minority business loans.

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The Small Business Administration, also known as the SBA, has been helping out Americans who want to start their own companies or expand their existing enterprise with loan packages that feature easy repayment schedules and flexible interest rates. That said, it should be noted the the SBA does not release the funds directly to the borrowers. Instead, the SBA loan programs are designed to coax banks and other lending firms to provide the money to borrowers with the promise of guaranteeing a sizable portion of the loan amount.

Obtaining government funding for small business through the SBA is relatively simple. All you have to do is look for a lender that provides SBA-guaranteed loans and make sure you satisfy the requirements. SBA, though structured to open financing avenues even to people who are usually declined by banks, also have a screening protocol when it comes to approving or rejecting loan applications. Consultancy firms such as Lendio provides great advice and tips and getting their expertise on the matter should be considered.

The most common element many lenders and banking firms look for is the business plan. The same goes for any SBA-backed government funding. If you want to get government funding for your small business, make sure you have your business plan well detailed and properly prepared. SBA loan officers want to make sure that the money guaranteed by the US Government will be used for a realistic and beneficial purpose.

A business plan should entail your company’s profile, facts and important information about the owners and shareholders, collateral description, and most importantly, the purpose of the loan. Since you are borrowing money with the government’s help, it is only logical that the SBA would like to know how you plan to spend the money.

It is important that you consult your lending officer or your local SBA officer for more information and to help you map your options. Knowing, like the old adage goes, is half the battle. Once you have submitted your application, make sure you keep your lines of communications open to make sure that you get informed if there is anything more required or things your lender wants you to provide.

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A grant has many definitions. But in the world of business, a business grant is entirely free money given to a business startup or an existing venture with the purpose of improving one’s product or services. In the World Wide Web, you may have heard of free grants for small business. Some sites even offered e-books and online articles that could point your to the right direction with regards to getting free small business grants.

However, you need to understand that while there are indeed grants offered for small businesses, only a select few can be considered eligible. And most of the time, passing eligibility requirements does not guarantee free money. Grant giving bodies are very strict when it comes to selecting its recipients and at times, require grant candidates to several observe and comply to several conditions before they can be even considered for a grant.

Since a business grant is basically free money, recipients are not at all required to repay the amount awarded to them. But the money should be spent on purposes that are acceptable to the terms of the grant giving body. It is hardly rare that a government agency provide free grants for small businesses to individual owners.

Most government-sponsored grants for small businesses are dedicated for research, community development, and entrepreneurial technology. Thus, these are usually given to organizations and non-profit groups instead to individuals. Basically, nailing free grants for small businesses from any government offices is quite a task. You are better off with government-guaranteed loans instead.

That said, there are organizations that offers small business grants to deserving individuals. Although the standards may vary, common practices include providing grants to entrepreneurs with a unique yet potentially successful business idea, people who lack the usual requirements for a traditional bank loans and come from a poor economic and social background. Suffice to say, not everyone can apply for a small business grant.

If you are looking for a small business grant, you can check out your local listing for business organizations as well as charitable foundations. As mentioned earlier, landing a grant for your small business is slim. It would be best if you explore your options and look for other funding alternatives, such as SBA loans and other forms of financing schemes. You can talk to your local SBA officer and to your preferred lender for more information on affordable loan programs by the government and help you map out your financing plans as well.

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Intellectual property is a term that applies to a few different things, but at its core, it refers to any unique innovation, whether it is commercial or artistic (or both), or any unique business name, logo, symbol, or design.

The concept of IP goes dates back to the mid 1800s in Europe, but modern worldwide protections did not come into place until 1967 with the establishment of the World Intellectual Property Organization. The governments of most developed countries in the West protect intellectual property in the following ways:

• Patents for new inventions
• Trademark protection for business branding items such as logos, phrases, and images
• Copyrights for artistic expressions such as music, video, and visual patterns
• Trade Secrets that protect formulas or methods that have economic value and that are used commercially

Of the above, the three IP components that affect business owners most are trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. These are in place to help protect the creations that are the life force of many a business, and this protection is a huge part of what allows a business that produces unique and innovative goods and services to truly prosper in a very competitive market.

This is true both for smaller, less established businesses, and for more famous products that are often counterfeited and sold illegally. New York intellectual property lawyers, for instance, have been known to keep especially busy due to the illegal production and sale of items such as counterfeit handbags in that city.

Smaller businesses with innovative products and services also often find that they need to retain intellectual property lawyers to stave off imitators, counterfeiters, and the like. It is very important for small businesses to establish themselves in a market first, and to do it legally and with the right paperwork, just in case they ever have to go to court to protect their innovations.

The right lawyers can help protect the rights of businesses and inventors by helping with the patent process, bringing cease and desist orders, and even lawsuits when necessary. They are also beneficial due to their experience and knowledge in navigating what can often be a confusing legal area.

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Get your concept on paper. While it may seem that writing your thoughts down on a sheet of paper has nothing to do with a business loan, penning your business concepts is actually the very first step in drawing up your business plan. And a business plan, a very good one at that, will be critical in getting your loan request approved and your start up funded.

Seek expert advice, opinion, or expertise. In building up your business plan, you need to tackle on some areas that might be a bit complicated for you, such as accounting, income projection, real estate requirements, and technical description of your proposed collateral among others. If you have a friend or a relative who can help you out with these matters for free, then ask for them. If your budget allows it, try to hire a professional to give your business plan a credibility boost.

Prepare (and fix) your finances. It is important to understand that banks and lending firms lend money to earn money. That means they are always looking at the person’s capacity to generate income and his ability to pay his financial obligations. Most of today’s financing institutions are very strict when it comes to credit scores, financial history, and all other related stuff. If you have a bad credit rating, it is best that you try to fix it first before you apply for a first time business loan.

Know your industry and your market. Bankers and lending officers can be impressed with your business pitch if you show a significant knowledge about the industry you are planning to enter and the demographics of your market. This to them is a sign that you are serious about your venture. Some things you might want to study include the current situation of the market and the varying age groups of your target market among other things.

Always dress the part. Once your loan request has been considered and you are called in for an interview, always make it a point to treat such events as business transactions, because they are. That translates to you coming in well-groomed and donning an attire appropriate for a business meeting.

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The Small Business Administration has launched several small business lending programs to cater various individuals and business profiles. However, there has been no implementation of any sort of a loan initiative designed for minorities, including members of the Hispanic community. With that said, individuals with Latin heritage my still apply for loans such as the SBA 7a loan program, SBA community express loan, and the SBA Patriot Express loan for military personnel.

Having said all that, SBA has partnered with several Hispanic business groups across the United States to further explore the possibility of creating a minority-based lending program that would benefit not only the Hispanics, but members of other minorities such as Asians, African-Americans, Native Americans, and Eskimos to name a few. There is a pressing need to create a loan for the minorities and soon enough, there will be one.

For now, members of the Latino community may want to explore their options when it comes to Hispanic small business loans. As mentioned earlier, there are quiet a number of business groups as well as non-profit institutions that cater to the development of Hispanic-owned small businesses along with the growth and economic security of the Latino community in general. Banks, especially those that are located in Latin neighborhoods, often have loan programs that are designed specifically for Hispanics and these are good places to start a search as well.

You can also check out your local business clubs or the district commerce officer to help you start your search. These individuals will be more than happy to help you with your query and get you on your way to become an entrepreneur. If you feel that you qualify for an SBA loans , you can also go and get in touch with your local SBA officer and ask for more information and discuss possible options.

There might be little Hispanic small business loans available at this time, but there are other choices that you can take a look into as well.

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