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Class 101 Small Business Opportunity- The Real Facts From Harvard Professor

Small Business Opportunities…Research for People That Want to Get Started But Are Afraid of Getting Scammed .

Finding the best small business opportunities could mean eliminating that long metro ride commute…shoveling out knee deep snow…(unless you love it) getting home just in time to eat and passing out just to do it all over again tomorrow.

Thousands are now looking for work from home programs, the idea has caught on like wild fire.

More and more professionals are looking for a way out. Those high-paying professions are taking a toll on many professional’s health and life. Many are turning to class 101 small business opportunity solutions for advice.

Speaking of classes, read below as Dr. Charles king gives his opinion about what you should look for in home based business opportunities.

Let’s hear from Dr. Charles W. King, a PHD from Harvard , and a professor of marketing at the University of Illinois at Chicago; also Author of “The New professionals.”

One of Dr. King’s students asked him what did he think about network marketing (MLM) AKA the home business opportunity industry as being a viable alternative to a traditional business.

Dr. King’s response was, “I don’t know anything about network marketing and I don’t want to know anything about network marketing”. His student looked him in the eye and said, if I responded like that you would have given me a “F” for a grade.

After realizing that he knew very little about the work from home industry; he proceeded to research the business model.

What he found was astounding and shocking.

We will reveal Dr. King’s top 4 characteristics of what a home-based business opportunity must possess later.

Years ago most people thought the only persons that joined MLM opportunities were people that were uneducated and was not business savvy.

According to the Direct Selling Association over 65 percent of the direct marketers are college educated. This fact is attracting more professionals into entrepreneurship than ever before.

Here are 4 major desirable components of a stable non traditional business . (according to Dr. King’s findings)

1. Consumable product or service

2. Unique product or service

3. Integrity and strong leadership in top management

4. At least 18 months in business

There you have it Dr. Charles King’s vital components of a non traditional home based business opportunity.

Can You Imagine?….not having to do a darn thing everyday and not even doing that until 12:00 noon!

We hope this information assists you in moving forward to your dreams.

Your attention on this small investment of time can be huge. Sooner or later, you will have to participate in your very own future’s rescue …Why not Now. Take action on what you have learned by reading, Class 101 Small Business Opportunity.

How to Get Small Business Loans When Disapproved by the SBA Program

Many small business owners have been disappointed when their applications for small business loans were disapproved by banks under the Small Business Administration’s program for America’s Recovery Capital. According to an article written by Robb Mandelbaum in the August 12, 2009 edition of The New York Times Online, “the program is off to a slow start.” It seems that most banks are reluctant to approve applications for small business loans.

Mandelbaum reports that the Small Business Administration’s program has 5 million to give away, enough to give small businesses 10,000 loans reaching as much as ,000 each. However, two months after the program was launched, there have only been 1,127 small business loans released, with a total of .8 million.

Sources are saying that banks are not very keen on participating in the Small Business Administration’s program because giving the small business loans would not be very profitable for them. Paul Merski,.chief economist of the trade association Independent Community Bankers of America, said, “There’s not a lot of profit motive in a ,000 loan stretched over six years.” Bob Seiwert from the Center for Commercial Lending and Business Banking at the American Bankers Association reveals that, because of strict underwriting standards, servicing the small business loans becomes even more expensive.

The banks have also found more ways to restrict the approval of small business loans with the Congressional restrictions on loan eligibility. According to Congress, in order to qualify for the Small Business Administration loans, small businesses need to be both struggling and viable. That means the business should have had an “immediate financial hardship” such as a 20 percent decrease in revenue. However, the business must also be at least two years old with proof of positive cash flow in one of the previous two years. It should also submit a two year cash-flow projection proving that it will be able to afford loan payments.

Because of the Congressional restrictions, banks are more likely to approve small business loans from their existing clients. Merski said, “From a financial perspective, it really is a loan that makes sense for an existing customer. You’re not going to have to put out a lot of resources to do a very costly underwriting. You know the business.”

Those who are working in support of small businesses are very much disillusioned. An example is Alex Cooper who is a counselor at the Pima Community College Small Business Development Center in Tucson. He said he had assisted almost 30 small business owners with their loan applications but none of them had been approved. “It’s a disappointment. I thought the banks would be more interested in the community and try to help small businesses,” he said.

When the applications for small business loans are disapproved by banks under the Small Business Administration’s program for America’s Recovery Capital, small business owners still have another option. They can get the equivalent of small business loans from their credit card services.

Credit card services provide their clients with the ability to accept payments through credit cards or debit cards in person, online or through the phone. Clients who have established a certain minimum in average monthly credit card sales are qualified to apply for cash advances that are like small business loans. Payments are automatically deducted from future credit card sales.

If you are a small business owner, you do not have to go through the hassles of applying for small business loans with banks who are reluctant to participate in the Small Business Administration program. Get your trouble free small business loans from your credit card services instead.

St. Louis Missouri Small Business Grant

The State of Missouri assists the small businesses and individuals to get necessary funding for starting a new business or expanding the existing one by way of state grants.  These grants are highly competitive and even the technology grants are available for small businesses.  

As the small businesses are the backbone of the nation’s economy, the Government helps the individuals for starting or expanding their businesses by way of business grants.  State small business grants are awarded by the state government.  The money is provided to the local and state governments by the federal government as grants to be offered to the eligible business owners.  The various business needs of the small business owners are met with the help of this money given through grants.  

The government grants help the small businesses to grow, develop, expand and finally succeed also.   Although there are various grants available, the business owners should learn some useful tips so that the chances of getting the grant money increase.  By submitting the grant application in the proper way and persuading the grant panel members about the prospective business proposals, the small business owners get the grants approved.  

State grants are easy to get than the federal grants due to very less competition at the state level.   By concentrating with proper approach and focusing on the guidelines, the chances of getting the grant money enhance.  The norms for getting the state grants vary from one state to another.  Hence by searching and going through the website of the state government, the business owners can find out the suitable and appropriate state small business grants.  The grant money is a free money in the form of a grant check and this need not have to be repaid unlike the loans.

As the options for getting the funding from the traditional sources like banks and venture capital firms are very limited for small business women, the grant resources are made available to them for starting a new business or own an existing business.  There are many women grants available for starting a small business without any additional cost.  Besides the state grants, there are many private organizations and non-profit institutions offer grants to women start and grow their businesses.  

It would be better to take the help of a guide for applying for any of the government grants so that the requirements are clearly mentioned in the application without any mistakes and without wasting the time and effort.   The government offers many grants for different purposes and hence the relevant and applicable grant is to be selected from the various types of financial assistant grants. The grant proposal should be flawless, clear, readable and understandable and there should be nothing missing in it.  The free government grants are to be used only for the purpose as mentioned in the grant application.

The additional services provided by the grant givers include, free business advise to minimize the new business start up management costs, management training, business site selection, employee training, Research and Development.  .  

Small Business Grant Source:
Learn the application procedures, various funding sources for specific types of businesses and eligibility criteria for small business grants. You can find the most comprehensive information on availing of small business grants by visiting this online guide on grants here

The Trick to Starting a Small Business

While it may not be evident, Harley Davidson and Apple both have something in common. They started out in a small garage and are now two of the most recognized icons in America. If you are considering starting a small business, you may not have the idea of becoming an icon, but more than one small business has done so. The trick to starting a small business is not so much planning the start, but planning for the long term. Yes it is important to start a small business right, but just as important is having a long range vision of what you want to accomplish in six months, a year, five years, and so on.

If you have considered starting a small business, then you probably already know what you are going to do. However, have you given thought to what you are going to do once you start a small business? If you haven’t, then now is the time to give it some thought. As you give the question of where you want to go some thought consider what your long term goals are. Do you want a business that will eventually pay for your retirement? Or do you want a business that eventually becomes the dominant product in its area? The answers to these questions will help you make decisions that you may have never thought of when you were starting a small business.

Whether you just want starting a small business to lead to a little bit of extra income, or you plan to be the next Bill Gates, having a long distance vision of where you want to go is important. Once you establish you long term plan, the next step is educating yourself on what it will take to get to where you want to go. Just like starting a small business, growing one requires just as much thought and education. Luckily there are plenty of resources that address this very issue and if you take the time to search tem out you will be very glad you did so.

10 Reasons to Use Small Business Management Software

If you are a business owner or the manager of a small business you will probably have heard of small business management software. You might also be wondering whether or not this type of software would be suitable for the needs of your business. Here to help you decide are the 10 reasons to use small business management software.
1. Small business management software is web based meaning that the only thing an employee needs to access it is a PC and an internet connection. This therefore facilitates working from home or even in another country.
2. Only one application is needed to create and store documents, invoices, quotes, time sheets, calendars, projects and much, much more. So no more having to load up several applications each morning and switch between them to complete projects and tasks.
3. Leads can be turned into sales in a much more streamlined way by using small business management software as all information is held in one place. So every time a quote is created that customer’s information can be held in a leads file for follow up calls at a later date.
4. Projects can be tracked and monitored by managers by simply logging into the application. Projects deadlines will no longer be missed due to inefficient practices ever again – which will come as good news to managers and owners.
5. Any workers who are away from the business can log the times they have worked by being given a username and password for a small business management software application.
6. Customers can be tracked and their purchasing habits monitored with absolute ease. Being able to do this can help a business to anticipate customer purchases and provide them with an excellent experience with your business.
7. Up to 50 employees can be signed up for small business management software, which means that a business does not have to be tiny to benefit from using it.
8. Documents can be shared with employees without the need for an internal email system. Whilst this can be useful it also means that time is spent writing and sending emails. By being able to access documents directly a great deal of time can be saved.
9. Licenses for other applications can be ended, why spend money each month or year when one single application will allow you to run a small business with ease. In fact many business owners who implement small business management software are shocked at how much they can save in their first year of using such software.
10. Small business management software is easy to use which means that employees will not have to spend a disproportionate amount of time learning how to use it.

After seeing the 10 reasons to use small business management software it is clear to see why so many small businesses use it. Not only can it revolutionize your business it can help to increase profits, decrease inefficiency and raise customer satisfaction – something that all small business owners are looking to do.