What are the top trending business ideas for 2019?
There are countless developing industries and ripe new business spaces developing throughout the world. However, as the Internet matures, certain industries, skillsets, and spaces stand out above others as unique opportunities based on one or more factors.
As is the overarching trend in the 21st Century, most of the business ideas below can be home-based and many can even be started with little startup capital.
Here are the top 10 trending business ideas for 2019.
1. Skill trade
In an unexpected 21st Century resurgence, many of what were rare and obscure trade skills are now not only profitable but their goods desirable.
Sites like Etsy and Amazon have made it possible to take a trade skill and build a successful business around it:
Here are some examples of skills which are now in demand:
Carpentry
Woodworking
Welding and metalworking
Construction
Masonry
What’s better than being able to create a business around a trade you have a passion in while being your own boss at the same time?
2. Software development
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, demand for software development will increase by 17% annually until at least 2023.
Considering it’s one of the most in-demand skills, that makes any business attached to software development and engineering a great choice for the foreseeable future.
Examples include:
Software development and engineering
Network engineering
Hardware or software technician
If you already have experience as a software developer or engineer you can start your own company and begin offering your services on sites like UpWork.com as a freelancer while growing your client base and expanding your team:
With countless skills and services relevant to software development being in high demand for the foreseeable future, and the high rates those services command, software development and related fields are not only one of the safest bets out there but one of the most profitable.
3. Subscription box services
In 2018, subscription box services exploded in popularity. Amazon even began offering subscription boxes and marketing them prominently:
A business model rather than a particular industry, many businesses can make use of the subscription box model, and even be entirely based on a subscription box model, to create a more secure, recurring income that the business might otherwise not have.
Here are some example product categories that make for great subscription boxes:
Makeup and other beauty products
Pet
Toys and collectibles
Food
4. Amazon FBA
The largest online retailer in the world is growing faster than ever and they’re giving you the chance to get in on a piece of that pie through their Amazon Seller program:
On Amazon, you can sell an original product or inventory of products which Amazon already has listed.
In addition, while you can pack and ship orders yourself, by opting in to Amazon’s Fulfillment-by-Amazon (FBA) program, Amazon will take care of shipping, packing, and returns for you for a small fee. This makes the process of selling on Amazon surprisingly simple and straightforward.
5. Virtual reality
While many industries have yet to feel the effects of virtual reality (VR) technology, experts believe that virtual reality will become a primary form of communication in the near future, making this a potentially highly lucrative business to get a foothold in before it explodes.
In fact, according to a report from Statista, by 2020 the global VR industry will exceed $40 billion.
Because VR is expected to change so many aspects of communication and entertainment, there are a nearly endless amount of businesses which can and likely will spawn from the use of VR tech.
Some of these include:
Digital tools for social and business communications
VR workplace training programs
VR product showcases
Platforms for VR education
Theatres for VR films
VR gaming software and hardware
Apps which utilize VR tech for a variety of uses including wardrobe fitting, meditation, gaming, communication, sightseeing (VR travel)
The possibilities are nearly endless and not all businesses based on VR tech need to know how it works. As more companies develop their VR tech that tech will be made more readily available and easier to afford for businesses who want to use it (such as in the case of apps).
6. Online education and consulting
Have something you’re great at? Someone else might be interested in learning what you know or paying you for your advice.
Online education has become a hugely profitable space and isn’t slowing down anytime soon. According to Stratistics MRC, the online education market has now grown to over $165 billion and will continue to grow to a projected $275 billion by 2022.
Sites like Udemy and Teachable allow you to take what you know and build a course around it, making money from teaching what you’re good at.
And if that doesn’t interest you, consulting is another booming space that is worth looking into.
For a fee, companies and individuals may pay you for your advice on a variety of topics, assuming you have experience and a track record of results.
Common consulting-related industries include:
Health and fitness
Business and marketing
Branding
7. Senior care services
The first baby boomer hit retirement age in 2011. From then and until the end of the next decade in 2030, the remaining baby boomers will all enter retirement, who make up an astounding ¼ of the entire U.S. population.
According to a survey by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), 90% of seniors plan to continue living at home well into retirement as opposed to living in assisted living centers.
That might sound like wishful thinking, but baby boomers are much more well-off financially compared to previous generations. Plus, when you consider the number of seniors who suffer from a variety of health and mobility-related conditions, the opportunity of senior care services becomes clear.
8. Home renovations
If construction is your forte, home renovations and remodeling is a niche that is worth looking into.
Home renovations are slated to boom due to the increasing number of retiring baby boomers. In addition to this, if you’ve ever been in a position where you needed a renovator, you’d know that finding a good one is difficult and they often keep booked schedules, so getting the one you want when you want them is tough. This means the space is always open for new talent to swoop up those extra clients.
The only difficulty with construction-related businesses is the need for startup capital. Fortunately, you don’t need much for home renovations and obtaining a construction business loan to get you off the ground is easier than ever.
9. Food trucks
Food trucks have enjoyed a hot streak for more than a decade now.
What once seemed like a food lover’s fad that was destined the sputter out has now been cemented as a natural development of the food and restaurant industry that is here to stay.
Food trucks are great for a few reasons, the most important being that they allow aspiring restaurateurs the chance to start their own food joint without the heavy investment.
Food trucks, by comparison, typically require $50,000 including supplies, as opposed to the $275,000 which the average restaurant requires, and this cost can quickly rise:
If you’re lucky enough to be able to secure a business loan for your restaurant, congratulations. However, most young chefs and home cooks who have dreams of opening their own restaurant don’t have the resources necessary to generate that amount of capital.
Plus, by building a successful food truck business, you’re far more likely to be able to acquire investors who see what you’re doing and are willing to invest in you venturing from food truck to bonafide restaurant (after all, you now have a customer base and a proven menu), making it the perfect first step towards starting your own restaurant.
10. Social media management
What was once a collection of familiar advertising strategies business owners could use to market their business has now become an entirely foreign landscape which requires different strategies and a new set of skills.
The Internet era has brought a lot of wonderful things to the world. However, it’s also left many businesses in the dust of newer, younger organizations with team members who grew up in the social media era.
Countless businesses aren’t taking full advantage of their social media potential, even a decade after the Facebook era began. This has created an incredible opportunity for anyone looking to learn social media marketing and management and offer those services to small businesses.
The world is changing quickly, but the opportunities are ripe
As new technologies are developed that look to change the way we work and communicate, new opportunities and trends will continue to develop.
Fortunately, while challenges exist, so do opportunities for you as a business owner to take something you’re great at or have a passion for and build a business around it.
Nowadays, everyone’s trying to get in on the opportunity to gain exposure for their business on the world’s largest retailer.
In 2018, Amazon reported over $11 billion in profit, their greatest number to date. As still the sole standing behemoth in the Internet retail space and growing rapidly, any business that sells a physical product who isn’t on Amazon is likely to be left behind over the coming years (if they haven’t been greatly affected already).
If you’re an established business with a proven product, you’re in the best position to make the most from selling on Amazon.
All you need to do get started on Amazon is set up your Amazon Seller Central account, put up your listings, and learn how to market and fulfill orders and you’re good to go. And that’s exactly what we’re going to help you with today.
In this guide, you’ll learn:
How to create an Amazon Seller account
How to list your products on Amazon
How to market and get paid
Including bonus sections where you’ll learn how to get funding for your Amazon store as well as tips for selling on Amazon.
So, if you’re interested to learn how to make money on Amazon by listing your products, you’ve come to the right place.
Let’s get started!
How to Sell on Amazon: A Step-by-Step Guide
In this section, we’ll take you through everything you need to know to sell on Amazon.
This includes three primary steps with several sub-steps:
Step 1: How to create an Amazon Seller account: We’ll talk about setting up your Amazon Seller Central account and your Amazon Seller profile.
Step 2: How to list your products on Amazon: Here we’ll show you how to get your listings up plus help you choose how to fulfill orders by comparing Amazon’s FBA program vs. merchant fulfillment.
Step 3: How to market your product and get paid: Here we’ll break down everything you need to know to maximize your earnings from Amazon including advertising with Amazon and getting paid.
First, let’s start by creating your Amazon Seller account so you can get access to Amazon Seller Central. Once there, we’ll walk you through listing your products.
Step 1: How to create an Amazon Seller account
Selling on Amazon can be a time-consuming process, though well worth it. However, setting up an Amazon Seller account takes only a few minutes.
Once there, you’ll be asked to fill in some basic information including your:
Business name and address
Phone number
Credit card
Bank account
And tax information
Begin here by entering your legal business name and fill in the abovementioned information on the proceeding pages:
Once sign up is complete, you’ll be asked to complete your Amazon Seller profile.
Set up your Amazon Seller profile
Your Amazon Seller profiles both current and potential customers a place to access information about your business including your:
Business description
Shipping, return, and refund policy
And provide feedback
Make sure to fill in as much information as possible. More than just being thorough, a full-fleshed out Seller profile looks more professional than a profile page with very little information.
Once all information has been entered, you’ll now have access to Amazon Seller Central and be able to list your products.
Step 2: How to list your products
Now in Seller Central, it’s time to start adding your products information. Once you’ve done that, all that’s required before your products show up on Amazon.com is to submit the listings for Amazon’s approval.
Listing your products with Amazon is pretty straightforward. If the product is already located on Amazon.com (if you sell office supplies, for instance), you’ll only need to upload a few basic pieces of information such as inventory and the condition the product is in.
For most Amazon sellers, you’ll likely be creating a new listing. In which case, there are a few pieces of information you’ll need to add/upload:
UPC number: This is a unique identifier typically used by retailers to track inventory.
SKU: The SKU is a unique number you create to identify each individual listings.
Product title: Here you’ll decide what you want your product to be titled. This is how your product will be titled on Amazon.com when customers search and view your listing.
Product description: Amazon offers several sections for product description including one section that appears at the top of every Amazon listing as bullet points:
And another area further below that for a larger section of text:
Product images: High-quality images and, if possible, video are essential for a quality Amazon listing.
Amazon search terms: These terms are specific to Amazon’s search function and will help increase your exposure when visitors search for a relevant product. It’s suggested that you test relevant search terms out in Amazon’s search bar first to find terms with the most relevant product listings.
Alternatively, if you already have products listed on an ecommerce site such as Shopify and rather not have to retype much of the information you already have there, you can link that account and pull in several pieces of information including your product descriptions automatically.
Once you’re done filling in all relevant information and submitting, it may take up to 24 hours for the upload to process. But, once done, your listing will be live and you can view it in all its glory!
In addition, if there’s anything not to your liking on your listing page, provided it’s your own unique product, you’re able to edit your listing information at any time.
Choosing how to fulfill orders: Amazon FBA vs. Merchant fulfillment
Arguably the most important decision you’ll make when setting your products up on Amazon is deciding how to fulfill your orders.
Fortunately, for most business owners, it’s an easy decision that requires the least amount of effort from you compared to much of the rest of the work involved in getting set up.
There are two ways you can fulfill orders with Amazon:
Amazon FBA: FBA, or “Fulfillment by Amazon” is the ideal option for most vendors. Amazon retains stock of your products in its warehouses and will automatically fulfill orders when they arrive. All you have to do is ship the product to Amazon and handle post-order tasks such as managing reviews, returns, etc.
Amazon FBM: FBM, or “Fulfillment by Merchant” requires you to fulfill orders when they’re received. Essentially, you’re doing everything you’re used to when shipping orders to a customer outside Amazon but with a few more requirements in terms of packaging and other options.
When it comes to deciding which fulfillment system you use, for most sellers it’s a no-brainer. Merchant fulfillment has some benefits, most notably the fact that you keep more of the profit by not having to pay fees associated with Amazon’s FBA program.
In addition, you can more easily slip in flyers and discount codes to try and get customers coming back. This is something you can do through the FBA program as well, but depending on your product that may be more difficult or impossible. These two benefits, combined, make FBM a good choice for small businesses or those who already have a very small profit margin (however, as we’ll talk about in a moment, FBM can cost you sales).
However, the benefits of Fulfillment by Merchant essentially stop there. FBA is preferred by most sellers because Amazon takes much of the work off your hands, which you can use to turn around and invest in more marketing or something else worthwhile.
How Amazon FBA works
The process with Amazon’s FBA program works as follows. First, your part of the process involves just two steps:
Pack your items using Amazon’s packing guidelines: Multiple copies of a single product can be packed together, you simply must notate the quantity when packing based on Amazon’s guidelines.
Ship the items to Amazon’s designated warehouse: These will be provided in the shipping guidelines.
Once your part is done and the product has arrived in Amazon’s warehouse, Amazon takes over. They will:
Check your shipment and activate your product so that it’s now available for sale on Amazon.com.
Store your product in their warehouse
Ship orders as they’re submitted using the product in stock
Process a payment to you based on your collective Amazon sales every 2 weeks
To summarize, with Amazon’s FBA program they not only activate your product but store your inventory and ship your orders, both of which can save you a considerable amount of time and money.
However, another benefit of Amazon’s FBA program is the increased Prime availability they offer all products which you fulfill through FBA.
Amazon wants to control their shipping process, which allows them to maintain their stellar customer satisfaction levels. By shipping your product themselves they’re able to do this, hence why they offer such a big incentive to use the FBA program versus fulfilling orders yourself.
Because so many of Amazon’s customers opt for the free 2-day shipping made available to Prime members, this benefit can lead to a great increase in sales which can outweigh Amazon’s FBA program fees.
Amazon FBA pricing
While Amazon’s FBA program has many benefits, there are also fees attached to the program which Amazon collects in exchange for 1) storing your inventory and 2) shipping your orders.
Monthly inventory fees: The first of two major types of fees, Amazon will charge you to keep your inventory in their warehouse.
Amazon fulfillment fees: Amazon fulfillment fees are also charged based on the weight of your product for everything attached to fulfillment including packing, shipping, and customer service inquiries.
However, it’s important to note that there are other general fees associated with selling on Amazon which all sellers must pay, whether using Amazon’s FBA or FBM fulfillment program. These fees include a listing fee and subscription fee if you’re signed up for Amazon Pro.
To know exactly how these fees break down, all you have to do is review your seller’s report after making a sale. With that, you can add your cost to advertise, calculate your profit margin, and adjust from there. We’ll talk more about that in the next section.
Step 3: How to market your product and get paid
Now that your products are live on Amazon.com, it’s time for the real work: marketing and maximizing your profit.
Amazon is a huge site with a ton of traffic, but that potential for massive sales also comes with a ton of competition. And because of the heavy competition you face selling on Amazon, you need to be smart about how you market your product.
Most importantly, don’t just expect your product to sell because it’s on Amazon. It doesn’t work that way. Without a quality listing and the proper marketing, your product will get drowned out among a million other listings that outperform yours.
However, with the proper marketing, selling on Amazon can be extremely worthwhile.
Market your products
Marketing your products on Amazon and generating sales comes down to 3 major points:
Creating a quality listing that converts
Generating customer reviews
Using quality, frequently tested and optimized ads
(Long-term) building an email list
There are several sub-points and strategies that can help you sell better on Amazon, however, when it comes down to it these are the cornerstones.
A quality listing that converts
Without a quality listing, all the advertising dollars and general listing exposure in the world aren’t worth much.
Amazon has already worked endlessly to create a well-structured page that convinces people to buy. However, you need quality conversion-minded copywriting and great photos (and video, ideally) to maximize your conversion rate and stand out among your competition.
Ample customer reviews
Before you freak out, know that you don’t need a million reviews to compete against other brands.
If another brand has several hundred or thousand reviews, it helps, but all you need to really get rolling and start competing is a few reviews with a preferably 4 ½ star average (preferably, 10 or more).
Getting reviews for your listings can be a slow process. However, if your product is of a high quality and you commit to great customer service, you’ll begin to gather steam in time.
Keep in mind that Amazon’s sellers policy is constantly changing (and they’re very serious about enforcing it), so it’s important to check Amazon’s documentation if you’re unsure whether a method for getting reviews is against their TOS.
Optimized ads
Advertising is more important than ever on Amazon. With recent changes to critical “suggestion” (AKA “also bot”) sections being changed to new advertising real estate, Amazon is more pay-to-win than ever.
However, this can be a great opportunity for you as a new Amazon seller because this gives you the chance to compete sooner, provided you’re willing to invest in advertising with Amazon.
Amazon’s advertising program is vast. There are banner ads at the top of most searches:
Banner ads within search listings themselves:
In addition to this, on product pages there are now several places you can advertise, giving you the chance to pay to be featured prominently on the product pages of your competitors, similar products, or products which are frequently bought along with your product.
One example is just below your bullet-point description near the top of the listing:
Another is in the right sidebar of every listing:
And another which was previously populated using an Amazon algorithm that showed you similar products you’d like is now strictly sponsored advertisements as well:
As with Facebook, YouTube, and Google advertising, the only way to find out what works best is to test your ads regularly and consistently optimize. However, by investing time into advertising effectively on Amazon, you can greatly increase your sales.
In fact, nowadays it’s very difficult to get your sales ranking up to page one (where the best-selling products are and, therefore, where you want to get to) without advertising, making it all the more important.
Building an email list
Speak with any major seller on Amazon (particularly small businesses), and they’ll tell you that building an email list is the single most important thing you can do to increase your Amazon sales long-term.
As noted, this is a very long-term strategy. However, to have a group of current and previous customers which you can market to on a regular basis through an intimate format such as email can’t be beat in terms of revenue vs. work invested.
Additional strategies and marketing points
By no means is this all you can do to increase your sales on Amazon. However, these are the evergreen, major areas you need to invest the majority of your time into.
For example, many brands like to launch their products with a bang to trigger Amazon’s algorithms and quickly bump their product up to the first page within days.
However, the strategies which allow you to do this are constantly having to be modified as Amazon alters its policies and how it operates, so take that with a grain of salt and be careful about doing anything that could put you at risk of violating Amazon’s TOS.
How to price your product effectively
Now that you have a better idea of what it takes to get started and successfully launch your products on Amazon, it’s time to make sure you’re priced effectively.
There are a lot of tools online which you can use to compare prices across different products, however, they’re not required. All you need to make sure you’re pricing your product properly is to do a quick search directly on Amazon.
First, compare prices across the entire first page of your product and jot them down. This is a search for manila file folders, letter size, 100-packs:
Depending on your product, you’ll have a mix of premium and lesser-known brands and low and high price points. Generally, lower price-point items will sell faster while higher price-point items will sell slower.
Across the first page of the above search, there were price points from roughly $10 to $30 for the exact same item (give or take differences in quality between brands).
Typically, it’s better to start at a higher price point so you can maximize profit as opposed to thinking you have to put the price at rock bottom from the get-go just to be competitive. That might be the case depending on competition and the product, but start high first and test your results.
It’s more about a quality listing and great advertising than a low price, so if you’ve got those two boxes checked off and you’re generating reviews, you can still sell with a higher price point and come away with a much higher profit margin.
Review your profit margin
Because selling on Amazon incurs additional fees you don’t typically have to pay when selling something in-store or on your business’s site, it’s important to review your profit margin and continuously work to widen that margin.
There are two primary ways you can maximize your profit margin:
Optimize your advertising to reduce cost while maintaining or increasing results
Reduce the cost to produce the merchandise
The likelihood is, you’re constantly working to reduce the cost of production. So maximizing profit typically comes down to reducing ad spend.
This can be done by continuously optimizing your ads over time. Given enough time, it’s common to be able to reduce the CPA (cost per ad) while at the same time increasing results.
To review your current cost breakdown and calculate your profit margin on Amazon, use Amazon’s Seller dashboard or, similarly, the Amazon Seller app. By reviewing your individual product sales, you can see your entire cost breakdown. Add in your production cost and you’ve got your profit margin.
Get paid
Getting paid with Amazon is easy. Amazon will process an ACH payment on a bi-weekly basis automatically. Nothing is required on your end.
However, for those who prefer or need more frequent payments, there are services which offer daily or weekly payouts in exchange for a fee for added flexibility, such as Payability:
Payability collects a 2% fee based on your Amazon sales in exchange for expediting your bi-weekly payouts to daily transfers. There are no additional fees or repayment terms attached to the service.
The only conditions required for being approved for Paybility and other similar services is 90 or more days of history selling on Amazon and more than $2,000 monthly revenue.
Amazon Seller fees
We talked about Amazon FBA fees and calculating your profit margin earlier.
If you’ve already reviewed your detailed product sales reports, you’re likely already aware of most or all of the fees listed below.
However, they’re important to take into consideration when calculating what you’ll be taking home.
The basic (Non-FBA) Amazon Seller fees are as follows:
Monthly seller fee: This fee varies depending on if you’re on the Pro plan or the basic individual seller plan. For Pro plan owners, you pay $39.99 per month. For basic plan owners you pay $0.99 per sale.
Monthly storage fee: Each month you’ll be charged a nominal fee based on the inventory Amazon holds for you in their warehouse(s).
Pick and pack fee: This is the fee Amazon charges for them to pack your product and ship them to your customers.
Referral fee: Generally the largest of Amazon’s fees charged in exchange for levying Amazon’s customer base, this is typically 15% or less of the product sales price.
Return processing fee: A fee charged to sellers in exchange for Amazon processing order returns.
Most of the above fees are nominal, however, they can add up. Despite this, the sales potential that Amazon affords more than makes up for the cut they take in your profit.
How to get funding for your Amazon store
Selling on Amazon requires you maintain a consistent stock of inventory.
Worst case scenario, you get stuck without inventory and not only miss out on sales but your sales rank which you’ve worked so hard to build up gets hit in the process.
Fortunately, there are several options available which can serve as useful back ups in case you’re ever low on inventory and won’t get paid quickly enough to purchase more before running dry, including Amazon’s own Amazon Lending program.
Amazon Lending
Established in 2011, Amazon Lending offers loans to Amazon sellers for as little as $1,000 and as much as $800,000 with competitive interest rates based on your sales volume and repayment term.
The only downside to the program is that it’s by invitation only. You’ll know if you’re eligible for the program when you receive a message in your Amazon Sellers inbox like this:
With Amazon Lending, the funds you receive can only be used to purchase inventory which you’ll sell on Amazon. They cannot be used for any other business expense or purpose.
However, if that’s what you’re in need of, and you have enough history and sales volume on Amazon to receive an invite, it may be the ideal funding method when you need capital to produce inventory.
Alternative lending options
I know what you’re thinking: what if you’ve just started on Amazon and haven’t received an invitation to Amazon Lending?
Even if you have an established business history, you won’t be able to use Amazon Lending, so you’ll need to look elsewhere when you need funds to cover inventory expenses, whether due to seasonality, an unexpected spike in sales, or any other reason.
Here are a few alternative financing options that are ideal for product-centric businesses needing access to funds for inventory expenses:
Business line of credit
If you have a recurring need for capital for a reason such as seasonality, a business line of credit may be the perfect solution.
With a business line of credit, you get access to a continuous pool of credit which you can tap into any time you need it, assuming you pay off what you borrow.
Short and medium-term loans are very much like a traditional loan: you receive a lump sum and pay that sum back with interest, with the only difference being whether the repayment term is 3 months to 2 years (short-term) or up to 5 years (medium-term).
Short and medium-term loans are ideal if your need for funding is not recurring such as due to a sudden influx or spike in sales from an increased product ranking or high-profile exposure.
Amazon might be a profitable platform for most business owners, however, it also takes a lot of work to make the most of your time and marketing dollars spent as well.
That’s why we’ve provided a few tips below to help get you started:
1. Keep up on the latest trends and changes
Setting up an account on Amazon takes patience (but can be handsomely rewarded). However, even more patience is needed to keep up with the frequent changes that Amazon makes to its platform as a whole.
Amazon is constantly refining its system, to the point of frustration for many of its sellers. They change how sales pages are structured, how marketing works (they recently revamped how ads work and where they appear in the most recent shakeup), and what they require of its FBA merchants.
However, investing the time to keep up with these changes is almost always worth it. Amazon only continues to grow and shows no sign of slowing down, making your efforts to sell on Amazon more valuable over time.
2. Experiment, experiment, experiment
Amazon provides a ton of great features to its merchants as part of is Amazon Sellers program. This, in conjunction with the complexity of the platform, means you’re rewarded for frequent experimentation.
Things you can experiment with include:
Listing copy and descriptions
Product pricing
Imagery and video
Ad price, location, copy, and imagery
Review generation strategies
Make sure you’re not only experimenting frequently but keeping tabs on what works, what doesn’t, what has worked for other currently successful Amazon sellers, and what future improvements you might be able to make based on all this.
3. Provide “Wow” customer service to maximize the power of reviews
Warren Buffett himself has said that providing the kind of memorable experience that your customers can simply describe as “Wow” is one of the major keys to business success.
When selling on Amazon, you have the opportunity to generate feedback and reviews from buyers. A lot of it will be positive and some of it will be positive. No matter what the feedback, you need to have a system in place that both generates customer reviews and handles negative reviews during the rare occasion that you review them.
For most sellers, this means following up with customers a week or two after purchasing. Amazon does this automatically, however, these automated emails are typically ignored by buyers who are used to seeing them in their inbox.
Many suggestions for dealing with negative feedback exist, but one of the best is simply to respond to that negative feedback or review immediately and offer a resolution based on what they state the problem is.
Representing your brand on Amazon is critical for business success
On the Internet, websites act as real estate and digital retailers as something akin to major malls or department stores. By comparison, if Amazon were a department store, it would probably take up a space equivalent to a small state– and it’s getting bigger.
Learning how to represent your brand and make money on Amazon is critical if you hope to be successful moving into the future. We hope this guide serves you in helping get your Amazon presence off the ground and doing just that.
Running a business takes stamina, gumption, meticulous planning, and (of course) money. You have many fixed and variable costs, such as rent and utilities, inventory purchases, professional fees, and employee wages. Are your business expenses leaving you high and dry?
Whether you have a negative cash flow or want to take precautions, here are some steps you should take to decrease your current small business expenses.
How to cut business expenses
If you want to increase business profits, you likely can’t depend solely on increasing revenue. Focus your efforts into reducing costs to improve cash flow and encourage small business success.
Here are six relatively easy ways to cut expenses in your small business today.
1. Analyze your current expenses
Before you can make changes to your spending strategy, you need to know where to cut back on costs. Analyze your current expenses and look for areas you can either decrease spending or eliminate.
Reference your records, such as accounting books or receipts, to examine your expenses. Small business income statements also list out your expenses. Create and analyze your income statement to see where and how you are spending money.
Two main expense areas you may want to examine are your overhead costs and cost of goods sold (COGS). Overhead costs are expenses that support your business but don’t directly generate revenue, such as rent. Analyze your COGS (e.g., raw materials) to determine how much you spend to produce goods or provide services.
Compare your current and past data to see whether your expenses are increasing or decreasing between accounting periods. Pay attention to seasonal trends and brainstorm ways you can cut back on costs.
2. Get rid of costs you don’t need
After you have an idea of where your business spends money, you can cut back costs or eliminate unnecessary expenses. Some areas you might reduce costs in are utilities, labor, advertising, and professional fees.
Better manage your utilities to eliminate unnecessary costs. Check out ways to prevent wasting electric, gas, and water consumption. For example, you may notice that your electric bill skyrockets in the summer because of air conditioning. Consider relying less on the air conditioning. If you usually set the AC to 67 degrees, you could try setting it to 72 degrees to save money on your utility bill.
For many businesses, having employees is a top expense. You can cut labor costs by reducing employee hours. Or, you might give employees more responsibilities instead of hiring additional workers.
Instead of spending thousands of dollars on small business advertising campaigns, take advantage of social media marketing. Social media is generally free, with paid options that might be less expensive than other advertising methods. Use social media to engage with customers and potential customers, promote your small business, and place targeted ads.
Lastly, examine your professional fees and determine whether you can use less expensive alternatives. If you exclusively use bookkeepers and accountants, consider using software to manage simple payroll and accounting tasks.
3. Shop around for new vendors
Another way you can cut back expenses is to compare what your current vendors charge you to other vendors. A new vendor might be eager for your business, making them more willing to offer you a deal.
When shopping around for new vendors, consider buying wholesale. Wholesalers can offer you items in bulk at lower prices than individual products. But before buying wholesale, verify that you will use large quantities. Otherwise, you could end up wasting products and your money.
4. Practice life cycle costing before purchasing
Getting used equipment might be a way to save money upfront, but will it cost you down the line?
When it comes to cost-cutting, one of the top pieces of advice centers around purchasing used, inexpensive equipment. Although buying used equipment is a great way to save money upfront, you should also take its other costs into account.
To avoid purchasing an asset that’s inexpensive upfront and costly over time, practice life cycle costing.
Life cycle costing estimates how much you will spend on an asset over time. Life cycle costing looks beyond an item’s purchase price and considers other expenses like installation, maintenance, and disposal fees.
If you’re trying to cut back on costs, it might be easy to look at two price tags and choose the lowest option. Instead, compare your options and forecast how much they will cost overall.
5. Consolidate or refinance your loans
Did you fund your business by taking out loans? If so, you know how expensive monthly loan payments can be. Consider debt consolidation or refinancing to reduce business expenses.
If you have multiple loan payments per month, consider consolidation. Business debt consolidation combines multiple, smaller loans into one large loan. By consolidating your loans, you can lower your monthly payments. You can make one monthly loan payment instead of making multiple payments.
Refinancing loans is the process of taking out a new loan to replace a current loan. Loan refinancing can get you lower interest rates and better payment terms.
6. Better manage your inventory
Failing to track your inventory accurately can lead to poor purchasing decisions and money down the drain. Not to mention, damaged or stolen inventory (shrinkage) can be costly for your small business.
To avoid inventory shrinkage and overstocked shelves, you must effectively manage your inventory. Record inventory in your accounting books when you make purchases and sales.
If you lose high amounts of inventory to shrinkage, consider implementing a new production process and being proactive against employee and customer theft.
Do you order too much inventory? If your shelves are always overstocked, consider purchasing inventory in lower quantities. You can monitor which items take longer to sell to help guide your purchasing decisions.
Gone are the days when a business owner would default to taking their taxes to a professional.
Now, sophisticated tax software can, in many cases, perfectly handle all of your tax needs, requiring less time and money than if you were to go with an accountant or other tax professional.
That’s not the case for everyone, as a more complicated tax situation may still require the careful hands and knowledge of an expert, whether that includes writing off the interest you’ve paid on a loan (whether a secured or unsecured business loan) or filing for multiple businesses at once.
However, if you have a straightforward tax situation you can get a lot of mileage from using software instead.
Still, as a business owner, you know how important it is to make sure you’re doing things right.
Not just for the sake of getting Uncle Sam everything he’s owed so you stay out of trouble but to make sure you get every break and deduction possible.
That’s why we’ve gathered a list of the absolute best in small business tax software.
But first, a few important points to note.
Things you should know about self-employed taxes and tax software
As a small business owner, it’s important to know everything that’s required of you with regards to tax filing and the implications on your small business tax rate.
For example, if you’re listed as a sole proprietor, you need to report your profit and loss where you report your income.
The cool thing about most tax software options is they help you do this automatically without more than a few minutes of extra work on your end.
However, it is important to note that this might require you to purchase a higher level package– basic might just not cut it for your tax needs.
And a higher level package means more money.
In many cases, though, this will pay for itself in the form of time saved not having to complete this extra work manually.
Again, your case may be unique. So keep that in mind.
TurboTax is easily the most robust of any small business tax software. If you’re unsure of what to go with, you can’t go wrong with TurboTax.
The software is incredibly simple and easy to use and they offer personalized assistance directly from the software of their SmartLook app.
TurboTax is generally the most expensive of the options on this list, however, if you have a bit of a more complex situation, you really want to use software to do your small business taxes, and you don’t mind paying a little more, this is probably your best option.
Cost breakdown:
Online version: (Schedule C return filing available for all versions below)
Deluxe: $59.99*
Premier: $79.99*
Self-employed: $119.99* (Get this if you’re filing personal + business at the same time)
Desktop version:
TurboTax Basic (for Schedule C): $49.99*
TurboTax Business (for C corporations, S corporations, multi-member LLCs, and partnerships): $119.99*
Audit services:
TurboTax offers free audit guidance. However, for $44.99 (at the time of filing your taxes, not available after) you can purchase their Max Assist and Defend add-on for audit defense.
TurboTax and Quickbooks work together
It’s important to note that Quickbooks users can import data to the desktop version of the Home & Business edition of TurboTax, which can save you a lot of time and headache.
A (Quick) Note on Online vs. Desktop Software Versions
Keep in mind that not all software on this list will have a downloadable desktop version of the software.
Online software offers a lot of flexibility and no real downside, so there generally isn’t much need to get the desktop version unless you’re partial to keep your tax filing data in your own files.
While a bit harder to use, H&R Block’s tax software is noticeably cheaper than TurboTax.
However, the software offers the unique benefit of having easy access to countless local H&R Block offices, which you can stroll into if you prefer to speak with someone in person about properly filing your taxes using the software.
And as with TurboTax, H&R Block offers both an online and desktop version of the software.
Cost breakdown:
Online version: (All returns)
Self-employed: $74.99*
Software download/CD version:
Premium (for Schedule C): $64.95*
Business (C corp, S corp, multi-member LLCs, and partnerships): $79.95
Audit services:
H&R Block tax software doesn’t offer full audit defense, however, it has a unique audit assistance program for $19.99, including live one-on-one contact with a tax professional who will guide you through the process.
TaxAct lies in the middle range of pricing for tax software. It has a basic interface compared to some of the cleaner options such as TaxSlayer and TurboTax, and nothing the more robust tax software doesn’t have, however, there are a few notable benefits.
TaxAct guarantees your refund amount in case of potential errors in addition to offering import capability for your previous year’s taxes to streamline the process and useful planning tools.
Cost breakdown:
Online version: (For all returns)
Freelancer: $59.95*
Premium: $69.95* (Only version with audit defense)
Software download/CD version:
Freelancer: $99.94*
Audit services:
TaxAct offers comprehensive audit defense by purchasing its Premium version for $69.95.
TaxSlayer is one of the most affordable small business tax software on the list and it has a very clean, easy to use interface. Like TurboTax, you can also submit questions to tax professionals to make sure you’re dotting all your i’s.
The one big downside of TaxSlayer is that it only supports Schedule C. So, so there are no options for C corps, S corps, or multi-member LLCs.
Cost breakdown:
Online + Software download version: (All returns)
Self-employed: $47*
Audit services:
Like TurboTax, TaxSlayer offers free audit assistance with every return. However, no audit defense option (add-on or not) is available with the software.
Drake Tax is easily one of the most robust software available. With a comprehensive autofill system that reduces the work on your end, several comparison report tools, and multi-state filing ability (without paying extra to file your state taxes), there are several reasons to consider Drake Tax.
However, most will find Drake Tax’s software a bit complicated to navigate compared to the other options mentioned
Also, their pricing tiers are a bit confusing (their cheapest option allows you to pay in bulk for 15 returns at a time, see below) and require you to pay more in the beginning compared to other software.
So, only consider it if you’re already very familiar with filing your business taxes and don’t mind investing in one software now which you’ll use into the future.
For $44.95, Drake Tax offers one of the most extensive audit assistance options available. If you have a more complicated tax situation but you’re resolute about filing your taxes yourself, this could be one of your best options.
It’s never been easier to file your business taxes
It’s truly never been easier to file your own small business taxes with the extensive collection of high-quality tax software available to business owners.
Take the time to identify your particular business’ needs and wants and then select the tax software that best fits your needs.
And, while you’re at it, now that you’re ready to file your business taxes, check out our small business tax filing tips to get the most out of your next return and learn how you can write off the interest on a business loan and other cool tips for next tax season.
By Nathan Abadi – President and founder of Excel Capital. In collaboration with Tsheets.com
As a father of 3 and the President and founder of Excel Capital I’m no stranger to the sacrifices business owners have to make.
I have learned over the years;
It’s important in both family and business to be present and provide strong leadership, however, balancing between both can prove difficult. Neither seem to get the attention they deserve.
Sometimes, running a small business has required me to sacrifice time with my family to keep the business running smoothly.
But I’ve had to make other sacrifices as well.
When starting the company, I didn’t take a salary for an entire year to build up the foundation, which meant almost cleaning out my savings account and taking a gamble on what I believed in for the long run.
As a business owner, you have to take responsibility for not only your family but all of your employees and their families as well.
It’s a big weight that rests on your shoulders which most people never consider before going into business.
However, taking this responsibility seriously will make you a more effective leader and increase trust with your team.
As a business owner, you don’t have a set schedule. When a job needs to get done, you have to devote however much time is necessary to complete it. Overtime, weekends, and even missing special occasions becomes your norm.
And, sometimes, the time and resources you invest don’t always offer an immediate payoff.
All these things taken together, owning a business requires a delicate balance of time and other resources that can be difficult to manage. But one thing is for certain: the chance to be your own boss and pave your own way makes it all worth it.
New Data Sheds Light on the Sacrifices Small Business Owners Make to Succeed
To celebrate the hard work and dedication of business owners everywhere, April 29th through May 5th marks National Small Business Week.
And to honor the occasion and raise awareness, TSheets by Quickbooks ran a survey to discover more about some of the types of sacrifices the average business owner makes to keep their business running smoothly.
So, what did the survey find? Here are the highlights:
Long work weeks are the norm
According to the survey data, more than half of all small business owners surveyed work 50 or more hours each week. In addition, over 15% said they work 60-80 hours a week.
Many small business owners invest their own money into the business
On the side of financial sacrifices, 43% of those surveyed said they have invested some portion of their own money to help build their business.
Family sometimes has to make sacrifices for the business too
As a small business owner, it’s not just you who has to make sacrifices, sometimes, family has to come together to make sacrifices together.
That’s what the survey found, with 1-in-3 business owners saying that their family has made sacrifices for the business.
Sick days and vacations are a rarity
According to the survey data, more than 30% of business owners take a vacation every 2 years or less. In addition, more than 58% of survey takers rarely to never take days off to recover from sickness.
The funny part is that even on vacations and sick days you are still working.
Both numbers suggest that business owners have to sacrifice more than just family time and finances to build their business, but health as well.
Sleepless nights
The final piece of data sheds light on the inner life of small business owners and the mental and emotional challenges associated with building a business.
According to the survey, 62% of small business owners say their work keeps them up at night at least once a month. And 53% of business owners say they experience uncertainty about the future.
Your sacrifices build a better world
As a business owner, you’re in control. You don’t need me to tell you that because you already know, however, it can be easy to lose sight of the benefits of being in business for yourself when the going gets tough.
The word sacrifice suggests a giving up of something in order to gain something else. While many in the world work somewhere that causes them endless stress and boredom, you go to the beat of your own drum and pave your own path, finding both great joy and opportunity in the work that you produce.
As an entrepreneur, it’s your courage to strike out on your own that builds a better world; your hard work which lead to new hires and economic growth at the most fundamental growth; and your sacrifices which helps build something that not just you–but those who work for and with you–can be proud of.
Join the conversation and give your support by following @tsheets and hashtag #SmallBusinessWeek during National Small Business Week from April 29th–May 5th.
Each and every year, millions of small businesses open up for the very first time – with many of them led by veterans. That with 28.8 million small businesses in the US alone, employing 56.8 million people, it should come as no surprise that this is an engine for economic growth that needs to be supported.
According to the US Small Business Administration 82% of ALL businesses are going to fail because they have cash flow problems.
A lot of entrepreneurs (particularly veteran entrepreneurs) hear this fact and figure and immediately believe that they simply need to bring more cash into their operation. But in all honesty, the timing of the cash flow that they have to manage as entrepreneurs is just as important (if not even more important).
Any business that operates an invoicing system needs to be doing everything it can to manage current cash flow, projected cash flow, and cash flow that is coming in behind schedule.
A lot of businesses that are seasonal in nature have a real tough time with this. Landscaping companies, for example, may have zero cash flow problems in the spring and summer when business is booming. But the moment that the fall and winter seasons rolled around jobs start to dry up, cash starts to get tight, and all of a sudden these veteran owned operations are scrimping and saving just to try and get by.
This is why it’s so important to better budget and prepare how to analyze your cash flow situation, reconcile your accounts, understand your invoice timing (on average), and really dig down deeper into the specifics of your financial situation.
Thankfully, with the help of small business loans for veterans – like VA business loans, for example – all of this becomes a lot easier to manage and mitigate. Many of your cash flow situations can be resolved with strategic veterans small business loans designed to help you float through these otherwise rough, rocky, and tumultuous times while building and growing your business.
You’d be amazed at the amount of small business owners that have absolutely no idea they have a business credit score distinct and different from their “traditional” credit score – and that it has a huge impact on the kinds of financing they are able to take advantage of.
45% of all business owners (including veteran business owners) are ignorant of the fact that they have a specific business credit score, and 41% of them are unaware of the importance of this credit score when it comes to securing loans and financing packages.
As if that wasn’t bad news all on its own fully 82% of all business owners don’t know how to interpret their business credit score. It becomes a huge puzzle piece that they have to try and manage without really understanding exactly what it is, what it means, or how to improve or correct it.
That really puts veteran business owners behind the eight ball when it comes time to secure the funding they need to establish, build, or grow their new small business.
To top things off, the majority of small business owners (veterans especially) feel that the government isn’t doing everything they can to support their entrepreneurial initiatives.
Kaufman 2018 State of Entrepreneurship Study in the United States showed that 79% of entrepreneurs running small businesses believe that the government cares very little about them and is instead only interested in supporting larger, more established companies – particularly those described as “too big to fail”.
79% of entrepreneurs also reported that they received little to no support from the government to launch their business, and 60% of veterans stated that they just believe the government was interested in prioritizing the help they needed to build or grow their operation.
On top of that, the overwhelming majority of small businesses in the United States – veteran owned businesses for sure – can get started with microloans of $3000 or less.
The US Small Business Administration reports that most home-based franchises can be started with between $1000 and $5000, that 64% of all small businesses are started with less than $10,000, and with the average US SBA loan coming in at just around $13,000 veteran business owners do not need a mountain of money to get started making their financial dreams come true.
The important thing here to figure out is how to make the most of everything that small business loans for veterans have to offer.
With so many different options available to pick and choose from this can become a real tall task, but that’s why we have put together this quick guide. Use the inside information below to better understand the kinds of veterans small business loans available, how to choose the right VA business loan for your needs, and how to maximize the funding potential you have moving forward.
Let’s dig right in!
For obvious reasons, veterans very often get preferential treatment from traditional lending institutions like banks, credit unions, and other financial service organizations.
These kinds of companies love nothing more than to do everything they can to help America’s heroes that have all volunteered to risk life and limb to keep our country safe and protected in any and every way possible.
Dozens of different financing packages are available for entrepreneurs to take advantage of, many of them labeled “veteran small business loans”.
Other programs exist – including programs established by the US government, programs that can be leveraged from organizations like the Navy Federal Credit Union, and private organizations that want to conduct business with veterans first and foremost.
The odds are pretty good that if you have any military service under your belt you’ll see preferential treatment from these kinds of organizations. Unfortunately, finding the right solutions for your specific needs can still feel like a bit of an uphill battle – especially if you are brand-new to the world of entrepreneurship.
… You will not have to worry about struggling to find the kinds of VA business loans you need to get your business up and running, to take advantage of new opportunities as they become available, or to access the cash and capital necessary to grow and expand your business and make your financial dreams a reality.
Today’s financial organizations are more willing than ever before to support American veterans with the financing they need to make their business work. Nontraditional lending organizations, including government entities, nontraditional financial organization, and even crowdsourcing operation are also sources of funding you can leverage when you need to get the money to build your business.
Not all of these solutions are going to be perfect for your specific needs, your goals, or the kind of business you are looking to build. At the same time, however, the odds are pretty good that some of these programs and loan opportunities will be able to suit your needs right down to the ground – and a combination of them may be picture-perfect for the financial future you are striving to create.
As we highlighted a little bit earlier, some of these VA business loan opportunities are going to be better than others. You’ll want to do your research and due diligence to be sure that you are moving in the right direction to secure the financing you deserve – and that’s what we are going to detail in depth below.
Just know that no matter what kind of business you’re looking to build as a veteran there are going to be small business loans set up specifically for you to capitalize on. The application processes, the specific qualifications, and lending institutions you may have to leverage to get this money may be different and distinct for each individual veteran but the loans are definitely out there.
One of the biggest advantages in these specific types of small business loans for veterans is the fact that you are going to see significant discounts as well as total waving of loan guarantee fees from top to bottom when you are approved.
Just to really clarify this point, the Veterans Advantage program isn’t exactly offering a specific type of loan available only to veterans, businesses owned by veterans, or businesses operated by veterans. Instead, VA business loans instead offer a whole host of perks and benefits attached to more traditional US Small Business Administration loans that nonveterans will never have access to.
For starters, the ability to access guarantee fee discounts for all Small Business Administration Express loans as well as SBA 7(a) loans that you are approved for are not available to nonveteran individuals.
These kinds of loans can be good for anywhere up to $350,000 dollars – putting plenty of cash and capital in your business bank account to grow, expand, or start up the business of your dreams – and you won’t have to worry about paying ANY guarantee fee (a 0% guarantee fee, to be exact) the way that nonveterans looking to secure this exact same kind of loan will inevitably have to.
Through the SBA 7(a) loan program in specific, your loans will be limited to less than $125,000 – but again you’ll have that same 0% guarantee fee attached to your veteran business loans that nonveterans will not have access to. Any of the small business loans for veterans that exceed $125,000 in this particular category will have a guarantee fee limit capped at specifically 0.125%-3.75%.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that nonveterans won’t have access to that perk, either.
While traditional lenders (your big banks, your credit unions, and national lending institutions) are a lot less likely to approve small business loan – including small business loans for veterans, you won’t have that problem with the Small Business Administration.
The SBA reports that only 26.9% of all small business loan are approved by big banks, with smaller banks and credit unions really only approving 50.2% of applicants. Institutional lenders in general only approved 64.7% of applicants looking for funding for their business.
That means that if you go the traditional road to getting funding for your small business as a veteran you are almost always going to be rolling the dice with a 50-50 chance (or worse) of getting the money that you need.
When you shift gears and move forward with the SBA (particularly thanks to the advantages that your status as a veteran provide) those odds skyrocket astronomically.
All of a sudden you’re looking at a 75% approval rate or even higher. In fact, there are some SBA backed and guaranteed small business loan programs (especially those classified as microloans) that have a near 100% approval rate when you throw in the veteran status kicker of a no fee guarantee.
These are the kinds of financing packages you are going to want to pursue.
Yes, going through the actual SBA approval process can take a lot longer than most people expect or anticipate. It’s certainly going to take a lot longer than going through the loan application of process when you eliminate the SBA altogether.
But if you want to be sure that you have every chance of getting the small business loans for veterans that you deserve it’s worth a little bit of foresight, little bit of preplanning, and an application process that can take upwards of four weeks or more to move through.
We are going to dig a little bit deeper into these details right now. By the time you are done inside info we highlight in the rest of this quick guide you’ll know how to apply for VA business loan offers, SBA veterans small business loan, and other financing packages from traditional, nontraditional, and SBA backed lending institutions without having to worry about pulling your hair out along the way.
Individual rules, regulations, and specific qualifications may be added on top of the ones that we highlighted above by the individual lending institution you are actually going to be working with in the future.
The details that we highlighted above are just some of the most important core elements you’ll need to make sure that you meet, a bare minimum standard as a veteran that you will have to prove, and the general “low barrier of entry” that needs to be hurdled for you to take advantage of these kinds of lending packages.
Most institutions (including big banks, small credit unions, and traditional as well as nontraditional lenders) will go out of their way to help you as a veteran provide the documentation you need to prove that you meet these qualifications.
We have highlighted time and time again the advantages that you have as a veteran receiving the small business loans you need to build the business you’ve always wanted to – and many of the financial institutions you have the opportunity to work with are going to want to help make that happen for you.
You aren’t going to have to provide a mountain of paperwork to go through the VA small business loan application process, but you’ll definitely need some documentation to successfully complete this process.
The more you do to organize your paperwork, to get all of your ducks in a row, and the better you prepare for this application process by getting all of these key pieces of documentation (and copies of them you can present to the financing service you choose to work with) the better off you are going to be moving forward.
All of this documentation is pretty standard fare when it comes to putting together an SBA loan application even if you weren’t a veteran.
These are the documents that any financial institution are going to want to have a look at, the data and information that all financial institutions are going to want to review, and core pieces of information that you’ll want to have ready for presentation – with copies you can provide for their records – before you begin the application process.
If at any point in time you are unsure of or unclear about the documentation being requested don’t hesitate to contact the US Small Business Administration (or the loan officer you are working with) to get more details.
They do this kind of work every single day with veterans just like you, are motivated to help you secure the lending package you are after, and will almost always go out of their way to help you better organize your application for a streamlined process.
Some of this information (like your DD 214, DD 1173, and other military records) will either have been provided to you upon your discharge from your military service or will need to be accessed by contacting someone in your branch that can help you receive new copies.
As a veteran, you don’t have to be told that it can take a long time – a LONG time – to get your hands on these pieces of documentation. It’s critical that you do everything you can as early as possible to request any of the forms and records you do not already have access to if only to speed up the process as much as you reasonably can.
Don’t be shy about regularly contacting the military for this information, either. You want to be certain that you aren’t being pushed to the back burner, particularly if you are hoping to capitalize on your veteran status for funding that allows you to cash in on new entrepreneurial opportunities that may be time sensitive.
Some of these programs are going to be better suited to businesses that only need a little bit of cash and capital (those that can be built with microloans, for example), others are going to be specifically designed to help different classifications of veterans (like disabled veterans), and others still are available for any veteran to capitalize on looking for the funding to make their entrepreneurial dreams come true.
This program allows veterans a “head start” compared to nonveteran owned businesses when they are competing for government contracts.
Veteran owned operations will ALWAYS have a competitive advantage over businesses that do not have veteran ownership, and it’s critical that you capitalize on these kinds of opportunity – especially if you are in industries where lucrative business contracts from the government can change your financial future almost overnight.
More information regarding these specific programs can be found at www.va.gov.
Again, we are talking about a program that gives veterans an advantage over companies that aren’t owned by veterans – but this gives even more priority access to lucrative business contracts from the government to veterans that have disabilities.
Very often these other veterans that have paid the highest price when serving our great nation and the very least that can be done is to provide them with an opportunity to “cut to the firm of the line” when lucrative contracts are made available to US operations.
Consider Veteran Business Grants
While searching for the best financing packages available when it comes to a VA business loan is obviously a good idea you do not want to miss out on the opportunity to take advantage of “free money” set aside in the form of Veteran Business Grants.
Unlike loans, these grants have been established to provide money directly to veterans to build and grow their business without any expectation that they will ever be repaid. This is a gift to veterans (established privately or with the help of the US government) to give our American patriots the opportunity to hit the ground running building their business without having to worry about being saddled with traditional small business loans for veterans.
If you’d like to learn a little bit more about these kinds of programs it’s a good idea to look into these Veteran Business Grant opportunities in specific:
VetFran Business Grant Fund
USDA Veteran and Minority Farmer Grant
StreetShares Commanders Call Veteran Business Award
Little Caesars Veterans Program
Obviously these four programs only barely begins to scratch the surface of the financial support you can secure as a veteran through different grant opportunities.
The liaison you are working with through the US SBA to secure veteran small business loans can almost always point you in the direction of other grant programs you’ll want to dig deeper into. Again, this is free money with zero expectation that any of it will be repaid – money that can help you build your business without having to worry about whether or not you’re able to make payments on big loans along the way.
Used in conjunction with traditional veteran small business loan it can really accelerate your growth, fast-track your success, and help you capitalize on all kinds of new opportunities that just wouldn’t have existed otherwise.
If you run an insurance agency and you need fresh capital to operate or grow your business, it’s important to understand what options you have when it comes to insurance agency loans.
Below, you’ll learn what types of loans and other funding products are available for insurance agencies as well as information about how funds from these loans are typically used. We’ll also let you know why it’s difficult to access insurance agency loans from big banks.
Most traditional banks don’t offer insurance agency loans. But it’s not because of credit or financials as much as it is due to the SIC Code they’re associated with.
Many insurance brokers and agents work with us to get business loans because they have been turned down by banks and want to know what other options are available.
Once you’ve gotten the inside scoop on insurance agency loans, we encourage you to set up a free consultation with us to talk about these practical business loans and other Fintech funding products available to you.
At Excel Capital, we help business owners achieve their business goals by making it easy for them to get the cash that they need without the hurdles and red tape associated with traditional bank instruments and loans.
What are insurance agency loans?
An insurance agency loan is a business loan which may be used to operate and/or expand an insurance related business.
Whether its an agency or a brokerage, working capital is needed to operate insurance agencies as they often have cash flow problems due to the way they receive payments. In most cases, every thirty days rather than day in and day out like most businesses.
Between monthly payments, you need sufficient cash flow if you hope to meet your financial obligations.
Most insurance agencies with cash flow problems struggle for a few different reasons:
The agency is over-leveraged
The agency is over-invested
Unpaid “withholding” taxes
Over-leveraged agency owners
Or a failure to budget
Establishing proper cash flow is essential to the profitability and longevity of your insurance business. And an insurance agency loan will help you to optimize your cash flow and realize your business goals.
What are borrowed funds used for?
When you access an insurance agency loan, you’ll be able to use the funds for working capital, hybrid equity and debt financing (mezzanine financing), agency perpetuation plans, and agency acquisitions.
Suffice it to say, there’s a lot you can do with funds from this type of loan.
Some examples include:
Paying vendors
Marketing
Buying equipment
Hiring new agents
And virtually anything else you can think of
With the right cash flow in place, you’ll have the freedom to handle current expenses as well as implement growth plans which offer long-term benefits.
Why traditional lenders won’t help
Your insurance agency may be rock-solid, but you’ll still get turned down for a business loan from a bank. Why? Because insurance agencies are considered “high-risk” by traditional lenders.
Companies are considered high-risk based on various conditions. One is that they operate in industries with “high-risk” designations, insurance being one such industry, and the other is that the threat of financial failure is present.
When a company has a high-risk designation, it severely limits funding options. If a bank does decide to grant your business a loan, you can bet the terms and conditions will be harsh.
Banks examine certain thresholds for accounts receivable (AR) portfolios and look at hard assets to see if sufficient collateral is available.
Banks want enough collateral to negate or minimize the risk. So, they often decide to deny loans because their loan officers aren’t comfortable with the risk level.
If you’re running a smaller insurance agency and looking for opportunities to grow, you may not have enough financial weight in the finance world to get the affordable loan that you need from a big bank.
However, nowadays, you have options. That’s because an insurance agency can get the business loans they need from alternative lenders.
Apply for an insurance agency loan today
At Excel Capital Management, our team of alternative lending experts understand the insurance business and why it’s unique.
We know why you need cash flow and why insurance agencies have trouble getting loans from big banks.
We also know that bank models for analyzing credit ratings and other performance factors before approving or denying loans are out of date.
That’s why we offer secured and unsecured loan options that fit the needs of modern insurance agencies like yours, no matter the size of your business, and even if your agency has a poor business credit rating or even no credit history at all (9002 credit).
Using a great customer relationship management (CRM) is extremely beneficial when it comes to running your small business. Not only does this type of software help to analyze customer interactions and data, it is also a great tool for marketing, inter-office communication, and overall company improvement. Excel Capital Management sat down with ConvergeHub’s Founder/CSO, Manash Chaudhuri to discuss their software and the benefits of using a CRM. Check out our exclusive interview below!
Excel Capital Mamagement: For business owners who may not be familiar, what exactly is a CRM?
Manash Chaudhuri: CRM is an acronym that stands for Customer Relationship Management, a technology, practice, or strategy designed to help businesses to perk up their interactions and relationships with potential and present customers. A CRM system also helps organizations to streamline business processes, stay connected to customers, and improve profitability. In general, when people talk about CRM, they usually refer to software, a tool that helps with contact management, sales and support management and more. A CRM system helps us to focus our organization’s relationships with individual peoples, which includes customers, colleagues, service users, or suppliers. It also helps in finding new customers, winning their businesses, provide customer support and other additional services throughout the relationship.
Here is an illustration ofwhat a CRM is and what it can do for an organization:
ECM: What are the benefits of using a CRM system and what kinds of industries typically use them? Can business owners of all industry-types benefit from using the software?
MC: The primary benefit of implementing CRM system in an organization is that the software can help to provide a clear 360-degree view of your prospects and customers. Using a CRM platform, you can view everything in one place- a customizable, simple dashboard that can tell you customer’s previous history with your organization, the past and present statuses of their orders, any outstanding customer issues, and more. A CRM can also help you to include information from your prospect and customer’s public social media activities- their preferences and dislikes, what they are socially sharing or saying about your brand or your competitors. Marketing personals can use a CRM system to better understand their sales pipeline activities, which makes forecasting more accurate and simple. Using a CRM, you can find a clear visibility of every leads or opportunity, highlighting a clear path from inquiry to sales. Though CRM system has traditionally been only used as a sales and management tools, customer service is also seeing great benefits in using this software, which once embedded in your business DNA can even help HR and supply-chain-management in your company. Yes, all type of companies can benefit from using CRM, such as in market verticals namely – banking, consultants, customer support, law firms, finance, merchant funding, real estate, investment banking, healthcare, e-commerce, retail, insurance, professional services, and others.
ECM: When it comes to sales and marketing, why would you suggest business owners use a CRM rather than do everything manually or staying in communication via old-fashioned email?
MC: An active sales and marketing team can generate a deluge of data. Hence, more administration works mean less time for everything else in your company. Moreover, your reps can be out of the office talking to customers or for finding out valuable business information- but too often all these information gets stored in laptops, handwritten notes, or remains inside the heads of your sales and marketing teams. However this traditional way of retaining customer and business information can make details get lost, meeting not followed-up on time and prioritizing customers can be a matter of intricate speculations, rather than a conscientious exercise based on facts. Moreover, modern day customers may contact you over a broad range of platforms including emails, phones, or social media- asking questions about an issue or for following up on orders. Even, if you have successfully collected all these data, you may often face the challenge of making sense and extracting intelligence from this disparate information on diverse platforms. Reports can be hard to create and they can waste your sales and marketing team’s valuable selling time. Managers in your sales and marketing team can also lose sight of what their teams are up to, which means that they cannot offer the right support at the right time. Hence, without a common platform for customer interaction like CRM software, customer information, details of their interactions and communications can get lost in the flood of information, leading to slow and unsatisfactory response, which is why CRM software in need for replacing the traditional method of doing everything manually or staying in communication via old-fashioned emails. To put it briefly, a good CRM system gathers information from a huge variety of sources. It gives you unprecedented insights to spot problems, improve what you offer and identify gaps in your marketingand sales processes, which cannot be performed by following legacy methods or in this world of social media just by staying in touch with your customers over email.
ECM: To get back to marketing, email marketing campaigns are a huge deal these days. Why might a business owner use a CRM, such as ConvergeHub, rather than a software such as MailChimp, which is typically used for this sort of thing?
CH: If just sending email-blasts are your key concern, then email automation software like MailChimp can serve up your purpose efficiently. However, if you are looking beyond that, for a next generation software that offers a comprehensive marketing, sales and service suit then nothing can replace ConvergeHub. MailChimp like most of the other Email marketing solution relies on email tracking and web analytics, however, when you have a prospect showing interest; all these softwares will then have to export the data and then import or manual enter the data into some form of Sales management system. This is where ConvergeHub brings a lot of value. ConvergeHub not only offers a complete Email marketing solution and it also has a very nice handshaking mechanism which seamlessly move your prospect data from Marketing to Sales by just click of a button. It is a huge time saver and it can deploy your DRIPs or customer behavior based segmentation or other related automation activities without missing a single moment. Therefore, while MailChimp offers just limited marketing automation with basic functionalities, ConvergeHub is more than just a newsletter and email marketing tool. ConvergeHub is a fully functional customer engagement platform and a reliable and far more innovative MailChimp alternative, which can also integrate email automation software like MailChimp within its scalable platform.
ECM: Tell us a little bit about your company, ConvergeHub and what makes it a leader CRM systems.
CH: ConvergeHub is a powerful all-in-one cloud CRM software that combines Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, and Billing in one unified platform, which enables businesses to attract more prospects, win more deals, and build stronger customer relationships. ConvergeHub is a fully featured CRM and does not call for expensive add-ons. It is perfect for small to medium sized businesses that have the same software needs as large enterprises but do not have the additional budget to spend on multiple standalone software applications and their integration.
Some of the features that make ConvergeHub so special to owners of businesses include:
Sales Force Automation-SFA
Marketing Automation
Customer Service / Support / Case Management
Document Management and Collaboration
Partner Management
Project Management
Invoicing and Payments
Reports and Dashboards
Customizable Modules
Social CRM
Use of minimum mouse clicks
Finally, ConvergeHub CRM for SMB is also a price performance leader, which lets you create unlimited lead, contact, account, templates, automation, and you can ask for help anytime from our support team without worrying about additional cost.
Owning and operating a motel business is no easy task whether you have one location or are in charge of a franchise. Keeping up with trends and the constant competition among other motel and hotel chains can be quite difficult at times, and some additional working capital may be needed to keep up. When it comes to applying for financing help, many motel owners have a tough time going the traditional route. Traditional banks and lenders tend to list motels as high risk for various reasons such as seasonality, low numbers of guest bookings, negative reviews, lack of collateral to pledge when obtaining financing, and more. These concerns are all justified, but it’s not the end of the road. There are many alternative funding options available to motel business owner. Let’s take a look!
Motel Financing Options
Split Funding aka Merchant Cash Advance: Short-term financing transactions that are collected through a set percentage of your Visa and MasterCard sales that are accepted at your place of business. Probably the most common term used in the industry. These do not have a set repayment schedule and are based on the volume of your businesses credit card processing sales. These are usually only guaranteed by the future sales of your business.
Split Funding aka Merchant Cash Advance: Short-term financing transactions that are collected through a set percentage of your Visa and MasterCard sales that are accepted at your place of business. Probably the most common term used in the industry. These do not have a set repayment schedule and are based on the volume of your businesses credit card processing sales. These are usually only guaranteed by the future sales of your business.
Equipment Financing: Equipment Financing is a loan product used to help business owners purchase any type of equipment needed to run the business. The loan amount is dependent upon the type of equipment needed, as the repayment term is usually as long as the expected life of the piece of equipment and if it is used or new.
Term Loans: A loan that is backed by a bank for an exact amount that has a specified repayment timetable and interest rate that are adjusted accordingly. Terms mature between 1 and 10 years.
ACH Loan: These loans may need personal guarantees, and have a fixed repayment schedule that is paid either daily, weekly or monthly. These products are catered to industries that do not accept credit cards and need a fixed payment.
Business Lines of Credit: A rotating loan that gives business owners access to a fixed amount of money, which they can use day-to-day according to their need for cash. Interest is only paid on the amount of the advance actually used.
What Can Working Capital Acquired via Motel Financing Be Used For?
What’s great about all of the aforementioned motel financing options is that the working capital acquired through any of them can be used for virtually anything as long as it pertains to the business. Whether your motel has hit a rough patch and you need the capital to fix cash flow issues, or business is booming any you want to grow bigger and better, you can use it! Here are just a few popular working capital uses among motel owners:
– Business Expenses and Tax Payments
– Payroll and New Hires
– New and Additional Locations
– Equipment and Supplies
Three Crucial Steps to Take Before Applying for Motel Financing
As you would assume, there are many, many alternative lenders out there who can promise you the world when it comes to your motel financing needs. While most lenders and brokers out there are good guys, it is in your best interest to be cautious and to ask questions. Before you sign anything, make sure you fully understand the business funding solution you are applying for, how it works, and what the overall cost will be – literally and figuratively. Here are three crucial steps to take before you apply:
Identify Your Business’ Needs – First things first, why does your business need a loan in the first place? Sit down with your core staff members, financial advisers, or simply yourself to determine your business’ needs and how a quick business loan could help. Do you need to purchase inventory, hire additional staff, catch up on bills? Having a plan of execution once the loan is acquired is essential for success, as well as a plan for paying the loan back.
Do the Due Diligence – You may hear the phrase, “do the due diligence” a lot when researching quick business loans. In simpler terms, this means doing the necessary research before applying and accepting an offer with a lender. There are thousands of lenders and brokers out there – traditional and alternative. Don’t take everything at face value. Learn as much as you can about each lender you are interested in, compare pricing, read reviews, ask questions, and follow your gut if something just doesn’t seem right. You have the right to protect yourself and your business. The last thing you want to do is put your business in more of a financial bind or have setbacks. Research and knowledge is key. Do your due diligence.
Choose the Best Quick Business Loan Option – Maybe you did this when identifying why your business needs a quick business loan, but it’s a good idea to confirm again the type of loan product your business truly needs. Speak with your chosen lender to go over all of your options and get a better understanding of each financing option and how everything works.
Find Out What’s Needed To Qualify and Apply – All lenders have different business loan qualification guidelines. Depending on your business’ financial standing the amount of money you are looking to obtain, the documentation needed to be presented with an approval will vary. It is a good idea to at least have your last six months of business bank and credit card processing statements available, as well as additional financial documents like P&L and Balance Sheets and tax returns easily accessible.
The Application, Approval, and Funding Process
The great thing about motel financing is that the application, approval, and funding process is quick and simple. Generally, lenders that provide these financing options only require a simple, one-page application, four months of recent business bank statements, and four months of business credit card processing statements to get started. Once these pieces of documentation (and maybe a few others) are received, you can be presented with an approval and funded in as little at three business days!
For more information on motel financing options, contact one of our funding specialists today at 877-880-1106 or APPLY NOW!
No matter what the industry type, almost all small business run into a point over time where they need additional working capital. Whether you need the working capital to cover basic business expenses during a slow season, a little extra cash to take care of payroll, money to purchase bulk inventory, or anything else pertaining to the business – access to funding is crucial for any business owner. Today, let’s discuss on probably, the most popular, alternative funding option out there, the cash advance business loan.
What is Split Funding and How Does it Work?
Split Funding is more commonly know as a Merchant Cash Advance. This type of business funding solutions is a flexible and cash-flow friendly way to access additional working capital for inventory purchases, equipment upgrades, hiring, employee training, payroll, taxes, and anything else your business could use the money for. Split Funding is especially great for businesses whose owners value having the amount they remit fluctuate with their daily payment card receivables. In simpler terms, a flat percentage of your business’ credit and debit sales are automatically remitted daily. If your business does a large amount of sales one day, a larger payment is taken out to pay back the advance. If a small amount of sales is done that particular day, you pay less. There is no fixed payment amount or maturity date. A larger repayment amount is sent on busy sales days than on slow days, and the process stops as soon as the advance is paid back in full.
What are the Perks of Split Funding for Small Business Owners?
The primary purpose of Split Funding is to service the financial needs of small to medium sized business owners. However, there are unique advantages included in the service that tailors to a specific business owners need. Here are some of those advantages:
Unlike traditional business loans, funds from split funding disburse in as little as three to four business days.
Split Funding does not require a minimum credit score to qualify. Therefore, any company struggling with a weak credit profile qualifies for the funds they need.
Traditional business loans typically require some form of collateral to secure a loan. The collateral requirement causes many business owners to face the fact they may lose precious assets in case they cannot make their payment. However, split funding does not require any personal collateral to qualify. Business owners who have limited assets never need to worry about losing their collateral.
Since there is no fixed payment with split funding, business owners who run into financial trouble or weakening sales do not carry the burden of a fixed remittance.
Since payments come from a small percentage of credit and debit sales, a business owner will actually see their payment decrease during lean times. There is no advantage quite like this with traditional business loans.
What Can Working Capital Acquired Through Split Funding Be Used For?
As mentioned in our opening paragraph, many business owners obtain funding at some point in their business’ lifecycle to help out with various needs. The great thing about split funding is that it can be used for virtually anything as long as it pertains to the business. Here are some common uses:
Business Expenses
By acquiring working capital for your business, you will be able to pay for things that may have not been affordable in the past. You may need office supplies, new computer software, or you may have a few bills to pay. These payments can all be made possible with working capital.
New Hires and Employee Training
Once you business starts to boom, you may need some extra help. Maybe you want to hire additional cashiers for your store. Maybe your restaurant needs additional wait staff or hosts. Maybe your medical office needs another receptionist. Maybe you even need to hire a few accountants to help take care of your finances. Additionally, many of these employees will need adequate training. Working capital can be used for all of these things!
Inventory and Equipment Purchases
Many business owners choose to use working capital to take advantage of bulk pricing on inventory and equipment. Similarly, equipment such as machines, computers, vehicles, and more can reach well into the thousands of dollars. Because many vendors require a large upfront payment for this type of pricing on inventory and equipment, working capital gives business owners the funds they need to purchase the items they need before it’s too late.
Unforeseen Problems
Unfortunately, with every business, problems do arise. Equipment fails, vehicles breakdown, natural disasters occur, employees leave. The headaches are unforeseeable and can be expensive, but working capital can help to cover the costs in a matter of a few days.
Marketing & Advertising
One of the most important things you can do is market and advertise your business to the world. Website development, paid ads, and social media marketing is a big job, and hiring a team of professionals can be pricey. Having enough working capital in order to cover these expenses can help tremendously.
Research & Development
Constantly developing your products, goods, and services is essential for staying ahead of the competition in your industry. Additionally, doing the proper market research and analyzing your target audience and consumers is key to knowing what your customers want. Working capital can certainly be used to help fund this process.
Product Manufacturing
Similar to research and development, product manufacturing may be a constant need depending on your industry and business capital may be needed during slow periods or when business is so great, that you must quickly meet the demand.
Office Space & Business Locations
Maybe you need an office space or facility in order to properly operate. Working capital can be used to acquire the appropriate space during the startup face or shortly thereafter.
What’s Needed To Qualify and Apply?
Split Funding is fairly easy to qualify for! Most lenders generally only require that the business have at least two months of operating history, documented gross monthly sales of $10,000 or more, $7,500 or more in monthly credit card sales, and no open bankruptcies. As you can see, if you business is out of the startup phase, qualifying for this business funding options is simple. After this criteria is met, the documentation you must provide is simply a one-page application, four months of business bank statements, and four months of business credit card statements. Most business owners receive a call with an approval within 24 hours and are funded in as little as 3 business days!
Complete our online application and see how much you can be approved for:Apply Now
