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	<title>Small Biz Toolbox Blog &#187; Financial Tools</title>
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		<title>Merchant Funding</title>
		<link>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/merchant-funding/</link>
		<comments>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/merchant-funding/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:09:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Elle Wood</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/?p=374</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Merchant funding can be a daunting but necessary task. By doing your homework and asking tough questions you can find what you need. Making a list of your needs will keep you on the objective.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Merchant funding can be confusing and complicated. There are many types of products and services geared toward helping a business with their monetary needs. This leaves many business owners frustrated as to which business funding option would be right for them. If you are in the market for a merchant account cash advance then this information will be vital to your success. After reading this information you will be able to choose which merchant funding will fit best with your needs.</p>
<p>The world of business funding is chock full of legalese and asterisks, this can make it seem that legal council need be present to venture into the process. Rest assured that securing funding for your business need not be complicated. What is will require of you is a plan. You need to assess what your needs are and then categorize them in a list. Do you need funding for an expansion? Is the money you are applying for going to be used to fill an emergency need such as meeting payroll or covering overhead? Before you look at any merchant account funding you must be clear about the intent of the need.</p>
<p>Once the intent of the merchant cash advance is established you then need to decide on where you will look for the money. There are hundreds off banks online and offline that offer merchant funding solutions. This can become its own burden as the sheer amount of choices can overwhelm even the savviest of business owners. Again, clarity of your needs will help with the decision.</p>
<p>Look at the websites for each lender you are considering. Check out their FAQ section see if there is an email address or phone number of an agent that can answer your questions. If you are looking offline, go into banks in your area and ask to speak to a business specialist. Set up an appointment to discuss your options and what is available to you.</p>
<p>When you have chosen the lender for your business funding you will have many choices that you must make. Your lender will start talking over options; all of them will have basic requirements before you can apply to them. The process of elimination will quickly render which option would be right for you.</p>
<p>Conventional loans are a viable option but will require good credit, newer loans such as a business cash advance don&#8217;t require good credit, but will require that your business primarily deals with processing credit cards. Each option will have its benefits and possible drawbacks. Make sure your lender discusses these matters with you in detail.</p>
<p>Merchant account cash advances can be a daunting but necessary task. By doing your homework and asking tough questions you can find what you need. Making a list of your needs will keep you on the objective. Investigating lenders will help you choose the one that will address your specific needs in a way that will make you comfortable with the process. Going over your options in detail with your lender will ensure that you only apply for funding that you can qualify for thereby saving you time and as we all know, time is money.</p>
<p>Author: <a href="http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elle_Wood" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elle_Wood&amp;referer=');">Elle Wood</a><br />
Article Source: <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?Merchant-Funding&amp;id=2518312" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/ezinearticles.com/?Merchant-Funding_amp_id=2518312&amp;referer=');">EzineArticles.com</a><br />
Provided by: <a href="http://instantpot.com/technology/how-electric-pressure-cookers-work/" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/instantpot.com/technology/how-electric-pressure-cookers-work/?referer=');">How Electric Pressure Cookers Work</a></p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Business Start Up Funding Silver Bullet</title>
		<link>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/business-start-up-funding-silver-bullet/</link>
		<comments>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/business-start-up-funding-silver-bullet/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 13 Dec 2009 18:05:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Will Schroter</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/?p=258</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Business start up funding starts with finding your silver bullet answer to investors.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Business Start Up Funding</p>
<p>Startup companies often get frustrated when they cant find investors willing to fund their new idea.   What they dont realize is that in order to get an investment, they need more than just a good idea and the promise of future profits.  What investors are looking for is a silver bullet in the business that ensures their small investment will yield a huge return.</p>
<p>Business Start Up Funding &#8211; You Need a Silver Bullet</p>
<p>The silver bullet is the aspect of your business plan that proves your company can grow quickly.  For example, perhaps youve proven that 100 customers are willing to pay $99 for your newly developed product.  If all you need is additional cash to build 1,000 more items to sell more at that price, youve got a silver bullet.</p>
<p>Investors are compelled to make investments in startup companies that have proven some aspect of their business model works and that what they really need is more capital to make it work better, or to sell more products.</p>
<p>Many entrepreneurs, on the other hand, wander around in search of business start up funding to find the silver bullet in their business plan and thats a less attractive proposition.  In this case youre asking an investor to put money into a treasure hunt, and not into a business.  Until you demonstrate you can sell something (at a profit), you dont have a business worthy of investment.  Therefore you need to re-focus your efforts on finding your silver bullet.</p>
<p>Investors Love Paying Customers</p>
<p>Every business model is different, and as a consequence the silver bullet of one business may look somewhat different than another.  The common thread, however, is that each of them show your investors you have found a facet of your business that works well and simply needs business start up funding to be exploited.</p>
<p>A great place to start is with paying customers.  Even a few customers create proof that that there is an active buying market for your product that could be even bigger if you had the capital to reach more of them.</p>
<p>Notice that here youre not telling an investor, if we build it they (customers) will come.  What you want to say here is we built it, and they already came. This puts you in a much stronger position to suggest that if you are capable of repeating the process provided you have more business start up funding.</p>
<p>Understanding Conversion Works, Too</p>
<p>Maybe you dont have a 10,000 paying customers but have found, on a more modest scale, that for every $1 you spend in marketing you can earn $2 back.  This information is a silver bullet too.  In this case youve proven that you understand how to acquire a customer for less than they are spending, which is a big deal.</p>
<p>This may seem like an obvious necessity for any successful business (let alone one looking for business start up funding), but there are plenty of companies that overlook this point.  If you havent proven that you can profitably acquire a customer, perhaps this is a good place to start.</p>
<p>Analyze the costs involved in acquiring your first batch of customers and try to project this cost out to the next round of new customers and the round after that.  Try for those next customers and see if your results match up with your predictions. Once you feel comfortable that you understand your cost to acquire customers you can begin identifying specific capital needs to accelerate that process.</p>
<p>Speed Things Up</p>
<p>Speeding up time can also be good reason to ask for business start up funding.  If you find that it takes you two months to service a customer now, but with additional capital you could service a customer in two weeks (and therefore earn revenue in a shorter time) youve found another silver bullet.</p>
<p>Investors are always hungry for businesses that could be even more profitably or grow faster if just a little more capital was applied.  Creating a strong case for this use of capital will make it easy for investors to understand your needs.</p>
<p>Read, Aim, Fire!</p>
<p>Perhaps you only have one of these silver bullets ready to present to investors.  Thats fine, as long as you have prepared a strong argument for why this one single factor will have such a great influence in your growth.</p>
<p>Presenting your case to investors isnt about coming up with as many reasons for investment as possible.  Its not about quantity, its about quality.  What you want to demonstrate is that you have key factors in your business that have a demonstrated track record for growth, but need capital to accelerate that growth.</p>
<p>If youre in the process of raising business start up funding right now, step back and take a second look at your PowerPoint presentation.  Does it clearly articulate the fact that you know how this investment is going to ramp up the value of your startup?  If not, try taking another pass with the focus on finding your silver bullet.  Thats the type of ammunition your investors are really looking for.</p>
<p>Author: <a href="http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Will_Schroter" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/EzineArticles.com/?expert=Will_Schroter&amp;referer=');">Will Schroter</a><br />
Article Source: <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?Business-Start-Up-Funding-Silver-Bullet&amp;id=341942" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/ezinearticles.com/?Business-Start-Up-Funding-Silver-Bullet_amp_id=341942&amp;referer=');">EzineArticles.com</a><br />
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		<title>401k Retirement And Withdrawals</title>
		<link>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/401k-retirement-and-withdrawals/</link>
		<comments>http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/401k-retirement-and-withdrawals/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 15 Nov 2009 07:48:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blog.smallbiztoolbox.org/?p=113</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[401k retirement plans are the most well known way to save for your golden years. With the way the system is set up, American workers stand to gain the most by making regular contributions to their plan and not taking out any money until they are older than fifty-nine and a half. By leaving your [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>401k retirement plans are the most well known way to save for your golden years. With the way the system is set up, American workers stand to gain the most by making regular contributions to their plan and not taking out any money until they are older than fifty-nine and a half. By leaving your money alone until you have reached retirement age you are fulfilling the purpose of the 401k retirement plan. Taking money out earlier is not what the plan was designed for and so there is usually a financial cost for doing so.</p>
<p>The standard withdrawal from a 401k retirement plan occurs when an individual has reached the age of 59 and a half or over. Once this milestone has been reached, the government will not impose an early withdrawal penalty of ten percent on whatever you take out. The 401k accounts are there to provide Americans with money when they retire, and the tax breaks that are involved are only available for those who use the account for retirement purposes. If money is withdrawn earlier, then there will be penalties.</p>
<p>Though 401k retirement plans are just that, for retirement purposes, it is understood that sometimes people will run into financial difficulties over the course of their lives that can only be solved by having access to the funds in their 401k account. It is not something the plan is particularly designed for, but the government will sometimes accept a hardship withdrawal from your 401k in certain situations. You really have to demonstrate that those funds are all that you have and that there is an immediate and pressing need to have access to a significant amount of money in order to avoid a bad situation. Usually, a 401k withdrawal because of a hardship is allowed in cases where the loss of property could occur.</p>
<p>There are a few other withdrawals that can be made from your 401k investment account before you actually retire that will not necessarily incur penalties. Most of these situations are special exceptions, such as when you die and the money from your 401k is distributed to your beneficiaries or your estate; when you have medical expenses that are more than 7.5 percent of your gross income; or when distributions are made to the IRS to pay for any levy that may be on the plan.</p>
<p>There is no point in saving a lot of money in your 401k retirement plan and then losing some of the profit you have made by making an early withdrawal. The plan is there for retirement purposes, not for any other reason. In the event that you have to have access to funds to prevent a worse financial situation, talk to a financial advisor to see what options may be available to you to avoid penalty fees.</p>
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