July, 2018

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The Best Small Business Loans and Grants for Immigrants

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Here’s a staggering stat: 48% of overall growth of US business ownership in 2000 to 2013 was attributed to immigrant business owners. Pair that with the statistic that the percentage of self-employed immigrants in the US more than doubled between 1994 and 2015, and it seems to follow that there’s limitless potential for the impact that immigrants can make on the small business landscape.

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Pricing 101: A guide for accountants

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Pricing models explained and top tips for a winning pricing strategy.

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8 Unusual and Unexpected Ways to Increase Your Credit Score

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We’re going to tell you something that you likely already know, and if you do, it’s worth saying again: Nearly all of America’s financial infrastructure is based on credit. Credit allows people to purchase or finance items that they can’t pay for in cash upfront. Credit is what allows you get a home loan, car loan, or business loan. So, in a credit-based economy, if your credit score isn’t strong, you’ll find it hard to qualify for financial products or will have to pay more.

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Should I Finance My Business With My 401(k)? 3 Good Options

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We don’t have to tell you that financing your business is one of the biggest challenges of entrepreneurship, whether you’re just starting out or looking to grow an existing company. Business loans work for many, but you might not like the idea of taking on debt, especially if you have funds of your own that you can bring to the business.

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The Most Important Social Media Statistics Small Business Owners Need to Succeed

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If you’ve done any research on digital marketing for your business, then you’ve likely realized you need to be on social media. You’ve probably also learned that simply having social accounts isn’t enough to execute a successful social media strategy and drive people to your brand. But what should you really be executing on with your social media strategy to make a difference?

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3 Secrets for How to Open a Liquor Store and Be Successful

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When Moishe Mayer of The Wine Cave isn’t next to the wine he loves, he loves the wine he’s next to. This kind of passion is exactly what’s needed if you’re considering swapping a life of stable, recurring paychecks for an arduous, entrepreneurial path complete with razor-thin profit margins. But learning to swallow down grim statistics is among the first lessons on your path toward learning how to open a liquor store.

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How 4 Food Truck Owners Got the Money to Start

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If you think you’re seeing more food trucks lately, your eyes don’t deceive you. In the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s “ Food Truck Nation ” study, researchers found that mobile food enterprises accounted for an impressive $2.7 billion in revenue in 2017. That’s up from a mere $650 million in 2014—more than a 400% increase over three years. Although that figure accounts for only a small percentage of prepared food sales nationwide, analysts predict continued growth throughout the industry.

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The Best High Yield Business Savings Accounts to Cash In On Now

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The 6 Best High Yield Business Savings Accounts. Capital One Spark Business Savings Account. BofI Business Premium Savings Account. Community Bank of Pleasant Hill Business Premier Money Management Account. Goldwater Bank Savings Plus Personal & Business Account. First Internet Bank of Indiana Money Market Savings. Live Oak Bank Business Savings Account.

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8 Best Low-Cost Ways to Promote Your Business

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Once you’ve jumped all the hurdles involved in starting a business , you have to make sure people know about the business you worked so hard to launch. Promoting your business is the next hurdle, but it’s an important one. Getting the word out about your services or product is obviously key to drawing people in—and, hopefully, becoming profitable. And finding the best ways to promote your business will make the whole process a lot easier.

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The 6 Best Indicators of Business Growth

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6 Best Indicators of Business Growth. Demand. Profit. Revenue. Sales. Personnel. Market share. Small businesses, like people, don’t necessarily grow all at once. Just as we use many measures to show a person’s growth—in height, weight, age, and accomplishments—we evaluate business growth using both external factors like customer demand and sales trends, in addition to financial records, and more qualitative inputs like employee headcount and company culture.

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The Best Small Business Bank Account Comparison Guide

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With your entrepreneur’s infinite to-do list, dropping everything to perform a small business bank account comparison isn’t likely a top priority. But as much as you might want to ignore the process, choosing the best bank for your business is crucial, and i t’s vital to conduct a small business bank account comparison that keeps the interests of your company at heart.

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The Best Accounting Methods for Small Business (and How to Choose)

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Most small business owners don’t give the accounting method they use much thought. Your CPA might have told you your tax return is filed on cash basis, but you might not know what that means. Or, maybe you noticed your client billings don’t show up on your financial statements, but you don’t understand why. There’s a reason your paperwork looks the way it does—and it’s because, at some point, whoever runs your books picked been the two main accounting methods for small business.

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Selling to Millennials Isn’t Hard: 5 Secrets From a Millennial

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Millennials: Just the word alone is enough to stoke ire, confusion, condemnation, or fear in the hearts of even the most hardened marketers. Whether millennials are bringing down fast-casual chain eateries , redefining the very existence of shopping malls , or spending a supposed down payment’s worth of money on avocado toast , they seen to confound small business owners and entrepreneurs.

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How to Check Another Business’s Credit Score (and Why You Should)

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Most of us are familiar with the concept of checking our credit score—and, luckily, it’s a fairly simple process these days (for instance, you can do it right here). And although you almost certainly know how important it is to understand how to check your own credit score, did you know that it’s also just as vital to know how to check another business’s credit score?

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What’s a Charge-Off, and How Does It Affect My Credit?

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What’s a Charge-Off? A charge-off is when you’re so late on your credit card or loan payments that the lender expects you’ll never pay, so they remove the anticipated income from their ledger and document the loss as bad debt. Technically, that bad debt is “charged-off.” That demerit is considered a final status indicator on your credit report that the account is no longer active.

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5 Different Kinds of Collateral Business Lenders Might Want to See

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5 Common Types of Business Loan Collateral. Real property. Inventory. Cash. Invoices. Blanket Liens. As you likely know from your research on small business loans , pledging collateral is critically important when attempting to secure financing for your company. But why is that? And, further, what is collateral in business? On that first point, collateral is just one form of security for lenders.

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6 Most Effective Marketing Decisions You Can Make with $50

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You’ve poured your heart and soul into building your business. And, when time permitted, you’ve done your best to create a coherent marketing plan for your business. But unless you’re a modern Don Draper in addition to being a busy entrepreneur, you likely aren’t totally satisfied with what you’ve come up with. Or, even worse, you have no idea where to begin, and don’t have the money to make mistakes.

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Looking for Ally Business Checking? What Small Business Owners Should Know

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If you’re excited about online banking, then you certainly know Ally Bank. In the handful of excellent online-only checking accounts on the market, chief among them is Ally. Ally Checking is not only fee-free, it also actually accrues monthly interest at rates that are comparable to those of a savings account. Plus, Ally offers class-leading customer service.

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3 Important Reasons Why Small Businesses Should Invest in Hiring Gen Z

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Many millennials, now in their late twenties to early thirties, are making up more of the workforce every day. But Gen Z , a generation with birth dates that started in 1995, are just getting started. Much like previous generations before them, they are ready and hungry for the experience—and it’s time to save them a seat at the table with intern and entry-level positions.

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5 Important Legal Considerations to Know When You Work with Freelancers

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The costs of launching a business can be steep for any entrepreneur—especially if you’re looking to hire additional help. Businesses that hire traditional W2 employees to fill this need will also need to take into account extra costs that can impact their business development plans. They’ll often have to factor in health and benefits plans, FICA and withholding taxes, training, and more.

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Top 5 Luxury Business Credit Cards for Indulgent Perks

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When you think of a business credit card , the first word that comes to mind is probably something like “bill” or “plastic”—but probably not “luxury.” Which, well, fair. But if you think about your business credit in a savvy way, all of those bills you pay on that little piece of plastic in your wallet can actually amount to some real indulgences. You just have to spend on one of the best luxury business credit cards.

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Do Short-Term Loans Affect Your Credit Rating? The Answer, Plus 4 Solutions

Fundera

It’s not always easy to find the cash you need to fund your business—and it’s even harder if your credit is less than stellar. You may have heard that borrowers with poor credit history might have an easier time getting approved for short-term loans; you may have also heard that these loans can come at a higher cost and, of course, require a quicker repayment turnaround.

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How to Find Local Business Loans

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Decades ago all across America, small business owners in looking to find local business loans would perform the same, familiar ritual. Plumbers, real estate developers, restaurant owners, and more would all get dressed up to go to a local community bank, heave manila folders bursting with financial paperwork, and hope a loan officer would approve their request for business financing.

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What’s the Difference Between Equipment Leasing and Equipment Loans?

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Equipment Leasing vs. Equipment Loans. With an equipment lease, a lender buys a piece of equipment, then rents it out to you for a monthly fee. At the end of your lease, you can choose to purchase the equipment at its fair market value. With an equipment loan, your lender will front you the capital to pay for the purchase of a piece of equipment. Once you’ve repaid your loan according to its terms, you’ll fully own your equipment.

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Business Loan Default vs. Delinquency: The Important Difference

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Default vs. Delinquency. Loan defaults and delinquencies both stem from overdue loan payments. A loan becomes delinquent as soon as you’re late on a payment, by even one day. If you miss several payments or can’t make payments for an extended time (usually 90 to 120 days), the lender will place the loan in default and can start collection proceedings against you.

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Complete Your Schedule C Tax Form: Easy Step-by-Step Help

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If your business is a sole proprietorship , or if you’re self employed, you must complete a Schedule C tax form each year as part of your tax filing process. Schedule C is used to determine the taxable profit in your business during the tax year. You then report this profit on your personal 1040 Form and calculate the taxes due from there. Although tax form Schedule C is one of the easier tax forms to understand and complete, you might find completing it for the first time a little dauntin

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15 Inspiring Podcasts to Encourage Resilience (Infographic)

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Most people define resilience as the ability to spring back during a difficult situation. Or, maybe you know it better as simply being “tough as nails.” Either way, having the grit to to recover from hardship and keep going is a valuable trait—but it’s especially important for entrepreneurs who have to deal with unique challenges. After all, there’s nothing quite like building a business from the ground up: hiring an effective team, raising capital , and leading the charge to success.

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4 Key Metrics That Define Small Business Success for Women

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What does small business success mean to you? Many entrepreneurs define it by steady-to-heavy cash flow (money, in other words) and they’re not wrong, according to a new report from SCORE. The Megaphone of Main Street: Women’s Entrepreneurship, Spring 2018 covers key findings as they relate to women entrepreneurs, including data collected on women-owned business success, financing, and the impact of mentorship.

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3 Business Survival Secrets From Winter Companies in the Off-Season

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In lots of parts of the US, it’s hot—extremely hot. And for summer-seasonal businesses that specialize when the weather is at its most scorching—ice cream parlors, beach vendors, and shave ice carts, for instance—business is absolutely booming. But not every business thrives when the temperatures soar. Specifically, winter- seasonal businesses need to make contingency plans to help with the cash-flow doldrums during their off season.

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How to Choose the Right Payroll Software for Your Business

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When your business’s payroll system is set up right, it’s actually a pleasure to use—not a burden. But for that to happen, your system should adapt to the unique need of your business and do the heavy lifting for you. That way, payroll takes minutes, not hours of your time. So, how do you choose the payroll software that’s perfect for your business?

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The Best Ways to Find a Mentor as a Solopreneur

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When you’re running a business on your own, it’s up to you to call the shots—from the biggest ones, like securing business funding , to the smaller ones, like deciding on a font for your website. For solo founders, or solopreneurs , there comes a time when having expert advice—or, really, just a little help—can be hugely valuable. A business mentor can guide you through the challenges of running your own business, and provide a sounding board that you might be missing without a co-founder.