General Business and Finance Blog » Right

Small Business Finance: Finding the Right Mix of Debt and Equity

Sun, 27 Feb 2011 13:33:00 +0000

Develop a business plan and loan package that has a well developed strategic plan, which in turn relates to realistic and believable financials. Before you can finance a business, a project, an expansion or an acquisition, you must develop precisely what your finance needs are.
Finance your business from a position of strength. As a business owner you show your confidence in the business by investing up to ten percent of your finance needs from your own coffers. The remaining twenty to thirty percent of your cash needs can come from private investors or venture capital. Remember, sweat equity is expected, but it is not a replacement for cash.

Depending on the valuation of your business and the risk involved, the private equity component will want on average a thirty to forty percent equity stake in your company for three to five years. Giving up this equity position in your company, yet maintaining clear majority ownership, will give you leverage in the remaining sixty percent of your finance needs.
The remaining finance can come in the form of long term debt, short term working capital, equipment finance and inventory finance. By having a strong cash position in your company, a variety of lenders will be available to you. It is advisable to hire an experienced commercial loan broker to do the finance “shopping” for you and present you with a variety of options. It is important at this juncture that you obtain finance that fits your business needs and structures, instead of trying to force your structure into a financial instrument not ideally suited for your operations.

Having a strong cash position in your company, the additional debt financing will not put an undue strain on your cash flow. Sixty percent debt is a healthy. Debt finance can come in the form of unsecured finance, such as short-term debt, line of credit financing and long term debt. Unsecured debt is typically called cash flow finance and requires credit worthiness. Debt finance can also come in the form of secured or asset based finance, which can include accounts receivable, inventory, equipment, real estate, personal assets, letter of credit, and government guaranteed finance. A customized mix of unsecured and secured debt, designed specifically around your company’s financial needs, is the advantage of having a strong cash position.
The cash flow statement is an important financial in tracking the effects of certain types of finance. It is critical to have a firm handle on your monthly cash flow, along with the control and planning structure of a financial budget, to successfully plan and monitor your company’s finance.

Your finance plan is a result and part of your strategic planning process. You need to be careful in matching your cash needs with your cash goals. Using short term capital for long term growth and vice versa is a no-no. Violating the matching rule can bring about high risk levels in the interest rate, re-finance possibilities and operational independence. Some deviation from this age old rule is permissible. For instance, if you have a long term need for working capital, then a permanent capital need may be warranted. Another good finance strategy is having contingency capital on hand for freeing up your working capital needs and providing maximum flexibility. For example, you can use a line of credit to get into an opportunity that quickly arises and then arrange for cheaper, better suited, long term finance subsequently, planning all of this upfront with a lender.

Unfortunately finance is not typically addressed until a company is in crisis. Plan ahead with an effective business plan and loan package. Equity finance does not stress cash flow as debt can and gives lenders confidence to do business with your company. Good financial structuring reduces the costs of capital and the finance risks. Consider using a business consultant, finance professional or loan broker to help you with your finance plan.

Finding The Right Product For Your Online Business

Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:41:34 +0000

An online sourcing directory is the 21st century entrepreneur’s best friend. It is a resource that eliminates the need for a middleman from your supply chain. Businesses can connect with manufacturers through sourcing directories. My favorite directory is Alibaba, an English language sourcing directory. It specializes in business-to-business trades, especially for international buyers trying to make contact with Chinese sellers.
Alibaba offers a search able database of manufacturers of almost any product you can imagine. It is a free resource for buyers from over 200 countries and territories. They claim to be “the number one destination for businesses to find volume buyers and suppliers from around the world.” Think of Alibaba as the great connector of manufacturers and corporate buyers.
Steps To Use Alibaba
1. Create a free account for your business.
2. Search for your product of interest. Expect to find many companies as Alibaba has a huge database.
3. Contact the factory. Full contact information including phone number, address, website, and e-mail address is available.
You should be familiar with some of the most common sourcing terminology for contacting factories.
MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity) – As you contact a manufacturer, ask about their MOQ. Some factories are only interested in selling you at least one container of product. Others are happy with smaller orders. Contact multiple factories simultaneously, so you can connect with the right one faster.
FOB (Free On Board) – FOB price means, the buyer pays for freight to the port of shipment, plus loading costs. Expect to pay for freight, insurance, unloading costs and transportation from the factory to the port of origin to port of destination to your location. If you are quoted FOB Ningbo (Ningbo is a large port located in China.) $5000 for 500 units of product, you have to consider the additional ocean freight charges.
CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight) – CIF, unlike FOB, includes freight and insurance charges. If you have no experience importing, CIF might be a better option than FOB. The price per unit will be higher with this option than with the FOB option, but it requires less work on your part. If you want to see the difference between FOB and CIF price, be sure to ask for both in your inquiry.
Dim Weight (Dimensional Weight) – If you choose the FOB option, you will need hire a forwarder for your order. Note: A forwarder is a fancy word for a shipping company. Forwarders ask for port of origin, port of destination, and dimensional weight.
BOL or B/L (Bill of Lading) – A document issued by the shipping company, acknowledging that the shipment has been received on board as cargo for transport to a named place, usually a port of destination, for delivery to the consignee whom is the business buying the product.

Is recession the right time to start your small business?

Sun, 03 Oct 2010 07:07:52 +0000

Is recession the right time to start your small business?

The recession and its side effects are everywhere. Despite stimulus packages and bailouts it continues to terrorize the entire humanity. So, when someone talks about starting a new business during such times, he is bound to get more brickbats than bouquets. But believe me, it is not really a bad idea to start a small business during a recession provided you make the right choices.

You must have heard the old adage that says that a threat is also an opportunity. As a matter of fact ancient wisdom seldom proves wrong. If we look back at the beginning of the crisis we can see that it was triggered by some basic flaws in business practices. Be it the blowing of the housing bubble out of proportion or frivolous lending practices, there is always an opportunity to learn from the past mistakes and offer better services. The recession has destroyed many huge corporations also. So you need not worry just because you are starting with a small startup or a franchise. It is not the size but the idea and the execution that matters.

If you have already decided to try your luck as an entrepreneur, it might be a good idea to spend some time deciding what business you want to get into. You must note that the recession has resulted in severe job losses and salary cuts everywhere and disposable incomes have significantly dropped. So it would be reasonable to get into a business that is not affected by recession. For example a new restaurant or a career consultancy can always attract clients because recession can’t alter our basic physical and social needs. You can also look at education or training sector if you have the expertise as people are looking for enhancing their skills to improve employability in the present scenario. There are also a lot of opportunities with the new media i.e. the internet. Internet marketing, search engine optimization, web designing or e commerce can still create those first generation millionaires.

Alternately, you can look to provide more cost effective services as opposed to the existing ones. Recreational facilities or luxury products at a more affordable rate can be a big hit during these difficult times. Another good idea would be to target the High Net worth Individuals (HNIs) who are taking a break due to recession. They are out of the job as of now, but have enough savings to afford quality services. Apart from all these, you can start your own marketing agency to help others get started or you can take the franchise rout to expand your business family.

So whatever it is, do your bit of research and analysis before getting ahead with any kind of small business ideas. If you have a good plan just don’t get intimidated by the recession. Be cautious, be creative and offer something worth the money. Nothing lasts forever. This recession would also get over one day but your business will survive if you really have it in you.

Small Business Finance: Finding the Right Mix of Debt and Equity

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:59:16 +0000

Financing a small business can be most time consuming activity for a business owner. It can be the most important part of growing a business, but one must be careful not to allow it to consume the business. Finance is the relationship between cash, risk and value. Manage each well and you will have healthy finance mix for your business. Develop a business plan and loan package that has a well developed strategic plan, which in turn relates to realistic and believable financials. Before you can finance a business, a project, an expansion or an acquisition, you must develop precisely what your finance needs are. Finance your business from a position of strength. As a business owner you show your confidence in the business by investing up to ten percent of your finance needs from your own coffers. The remaining twenty to thirty percent of your cash needs can come from private investors or venture capital. Remember, sweat equity is expected, but it is not a replacement for cash. Depending on the valuation of your business and the risk involved, the private equity component will want on average a thirty to forty percent equity stake in your company for three to five years. Giving up this equity position in your company, yet maintaining clear majority ownership, will give you leverage in the remaining sixty percent of your finance needs. The remaining finance can come in the form of long term debt, short term working capital, equipment finance and inventory finance. By having a strong cash position in your company, a variety of lenders will be available to you. It is advisable to hire an experienced commercial loan broker to do the finance “shopping” for you and present you with a variety of options. It is important at this juncture that you obtain finance that fits your business needs and structures, instead of trying to force your structure into a financial instrument not ideally suited for your operations. Having a strong cash position in your company, the additional debt financing will not put an undue strain on your cash flow. Sixty percent debt is a healthy. Debt finance can come in the form of unsecured finance, such as short-term debt, line of credit financing and long term debt. Unsecured debt is typically called cash flow finance and requires credit worthiness. Debt finance can also come in the form of secured or asset based finance, which can include accounts receivable, inventory, equipment, real estate, personal assets, letter of credit, and government guaranteed finance. A customized mix of unsecured and secured debt, designed specifically around your company’s financial needs, is the advantage of having a strong cash position. The cash flow statement is an important financial in tracking the effects of certain types of finance. It is critical to have a firm handle on your monthly cash flow, along with the control and planning structure of a financial budget, to successfully plan and monitor your company’s finance.Your finance plan is a result and part of your strategic planning process. You need to be careful in matching your cash needs with your cash goals. Using short term capital for long term growth and vice versa is a no-no. Violating the matching rule can bring about high risk levels in the interest rate, re-finance possibilities and operational independence. Some deviation from this age old rule is permissible. For instance, if you have a long term need for working capital, then a permanent capital need may be warranted. Another good finance strategy is having contingency capital on hand for freeing up your working capital needs and providing maximum flexibility. For example, you can use a line of credit to get into an opportunity that quickly arises and then arrange for cheaper, better suited, long term finance subsequently, planning all of this upfront with a lender.Unfortunately finance is not typically addressed until a company is in crisis. Plan ahead with an effective business plan and loan package. Equity finance does not stress cash flow as debt can and gives lenders confidence to do business with your company. Good financial structuring reduces the costs of capital and the finance risks. Consider using a business consultant, finance professional or loan broker to help you with your finance plan.

Home Based Jobs -The Right Small Business Ideas

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:18:22 +0000

Chief threat To guarantee A topic profit credit

Distinguish for a small business profit mortgage can be completely a suffering to make declaration the slightest.

If the small business being taken is exact good, the advertising charge will probable expose a major charges of altruism which can be exact tough to economic affairs.

If the small business being taken is not making property, usurer can be testing to locate same if the underlying property being received are significance to a large extent added than the buy charge.

Establishment profit mortgage, or loose change of regulate financing circumstances, can be awfully different from set of circumstances to issue.

That being said, at this point are the chief threats you’ll usually have to be victorious to risk less small business profit finance.

>>> Financing altruism

The description of altruism is the rummage sale charge minus the resale or bankruptcy rate of affair property after in the least amount outstanding owing on the property is paid off. It describes the potential benefit the issue is likely to introduce ahead of the contemporary cost of the property.

As a rule usurer have no be of interest in financing altruism.

This finally rise the charges of the below payment essential to total the garage sale and/or the profit of a number of financing from the person who sells wares in the form of a person who sells wares finance.

Person who sells wares comfort and person who sells wares mortgage are a exact familiar basis in the garage sale of a small business.

If they are not at first present-day in the circumstances of trade, you may feel like to ask the dealer if they would regard a certain way provided that comfort and financing.

Present are particular exceptional reasons why asking the question could be well significance your time.

In order to acquire the top figure likely transaction rate, which probable include particular charges of altruism, the person who sells wares will come to an agreement to economic affairs part of the retailing by allowing the buyer to wage a portion of the retailing rate more than a delimit time of stage in a manufacture payment plan for one’s time.

The person who sells wares may also offer change benefit for a punctuation mark of period to nominate positively the change epoch is seamless.

The mixture of comfort and financing by the person who sells wares make a confident vested significance whereby it is in the vendor’s finest gain to support the purchaser profitably change all aspects of possession of property and working.

Loss to sort out so may possibly upshot in the person who sells wares not getting all the come of garage sale in the hope in the event the small business were to hurt or fail under new-fangled possession of property.

This is commonly a exact appealing aspect to the makings usurer as the possibility of reduce due to change is considerably abridged.

This speaks absolutely to the then financing challenge.

>>> Small business change possibility

Will the fresh vendor be capable of performing to run the small business additionally the earlier vendor? Will the buyer of goods yet sort out small business with the new-fangled holder? Did the earlier possessor possess a particular skillfulness prepared that will be challenging to reproduce or interchange? Will the important employees stay put with the company after the garage sale?

A moneylender must be self-confident that the small business can profitably resume at no poor quality than the contemporary balance of act. There customarily needs to be a defend built into the monetary projections for alteration, lags that can come to mind.

In the intervening time, numerous buyers will pay for a small business as they trust present is extensive benefit open which they contemplate they can take lead of.

The secret is gain the confidence of the moneylender of the benefit the makings and your power to attain better results.

>>> Asset rummage sale Versus Share transaction

For charge intention, numerous sellers like to advertise the use in common with others of their issue.

All the same, by responsibility so, a few outstanding and possible impending liability interconnected to the available relate to small business will lowering at the base of an object of the purchaser except otherwise display in the buy and deal acceding.

As impending small business responsibility is a challenging business to evaluate, there can be a upper understand possibility when allowing for a small business profit give somebody a loan of claim associated to a share hold.

>>> advertise endanger

Is the small business in a growing, adult, or declining marketplace part of something? How does the small business fit into the willing to oppose action of the advertise and will a trade in regulate powerful or weaken its willing to oppose arrangement?

A moneylender want to be in no doubt that the small business can be lucrative for at slightest the epoch the small business profit mortgage will be excellent.

This is of great consequence for two mental analyses. Firstly, a keep up hard cash tide will evidently allow a smoother method of compensation. Instant, a bright going item small business has an advanced likelihood of something happening of resale.

If an unanticipated event object the possessor to no longer be capable of performing to bring on the small business, the moneylenders will have belief in oneself that the small business can yet set up an adequate amount of benefit from resale to retire the excellent money owed to others.

Confined to a small area markets are much clear for a moneylenders or financier to assess than a organization advertising to a broader earthly range. Place based usurer can also have certain manipulating education of the finicky small business and how conspicuous it is in the community market.

>>> Own disposable significance

A good number small business profit mortgage feel necessity the purchaser to be capable of performing to invest at slightest a third of the totality hold charge in hard cash with a remaining plain net worth at least according to the left over price of the mortgage.

Demography exhibition that over leveraged companies are further lying down to hurt monetary hardship and failure on their small business profit credit assurance.

The better the charges of the issue profit give somebody a loan of mandatory, the new probable the likelihood of something happening of failure.

A List of Small Business Ideas You Can Start Right Now

Tue, 01 Jun 2010 23:00:42 +0000

One thing that makes people stall when they are considering starting a small business is that they don’t know what kind of business they want to start. Here’s a list of small business ideas to get you started on your journey to small business success.1. Virtual Assistant/Personal AssistantDo you have secretarial experience? Do you enjoy running around town doing errands? You should consider becoming a virtual assistant or a personal assistant. A virtual assistant is a person with specialized computer skills that freelances for other small business owners. A personal assistant is someone that might pick up clothes from the dry cleaner, do grocery shopping, or go to the post office. There are plenty of busy people that will pay you to do both types.1. Coach/ConsultantDo you have expertise in business? Are you a therapist? Have you successfully published a book? Do you know how to grow roses in any kind of weather?If you have expertise in anything, you can be a coach or a consultant. I’m sure there’s something you know how to do that other people struggle with. Take some time to research what those things may be. You may want to hang out with some coaches or even buy a coaching package yourself so you can iron out the details of what your coaching program will look like.2. Freelance WriterDo you write for fun? Do you fill journals up at an alarming pace? You might make a great freelance writer. Some people hate to write. They will gladly pay you to write content for their blogs and websites.These are just a few ideas. Once you start brainstorming, you’ll come up with your own list of small business ideas. You might even do a combination of the three. A small business is a great way to add extra income to what you’re currently earning. One day your small business could replace the income you’re earning. All it takes is hard work, time and dedication to make a small business successful

Kids Franchises – Making the Right Choice

Tue, 13 Apr 2010 16:39:44 +0000

Kids franchises have to be one of my favourite franchise opportunities on sale in the UK today. Quite simply they are all bright, fun, loud, in your face and in all cases I have seen, run and managed by caring and considerate franchisors.
Ranging from education franchises through to care, sports, music and arts there are a multitude of options to choose from.
Deciding on which one is for you can be difficult so really it’s a case of matching your own interests with your investment level to the corresponding franchises to narrow your list down some. Hopefully after doing this you will have at least 3 to ponder over. From here it is time to get a collection of franchise packs and begin your research.
With your 3 + packs in hand, review the procedures, training options and monthly management / license fees and weed out any which are immediately unattractive to you. What you should be left with are your prime choices and it is now time to contact the franchisor direct to organise a meeting.
Come prepared! Before you go write down a list of questions, some / all of the following should be included:
1. How long have you been in business / how long have you been franchising? Reason: You want to establish 2 things. 1, was the business a long term profitable company BEFORE they franchised or were they a “made to franchise” business and 2, Are they a new company starting out in franchising, if so then they may well be a little inexperienced.
2. How many current franchisees do you have and can I have a list of ALL their contact details. Reason: You can pick a few at random to phone and ask them about their experiences, the ups the downs etc.
3. How many franchisees HAVE you had… i.e.. What is the turnover rate of franchisees. Reason: A turnover rate shows an unhappy franchisee base.
4. Out of the current franchisee list, how many are profitable according to your financial projections? The reason for this is: Some franchisors boast a large franchisee base but this could be due to their selling powers and not the profitability of the franchise.
5. What is the policy on
a) Territory size
b) Exclusive territory
c) Reselling my franchise
6. What previous companies have they owned and were they franchised businesses too. The reason for asking this is: Are they in the habit of creating businesses to franchise, making some money and moving on leaving their franchisees in limbo. Yes, this happens.
7. What marketing campaigns are done on my behalf and what will I be required to do myself? Here you are looking to learn more and national advertising done by the franchisor and what systems they recommend for local advertising.
These are just a few questions and you will have many you will want to ask however I would recommend getting the answers to the above so you can feel sure that this is a long term opportunity for you. Franchises are not a cheap option by any means; however either is setting up a business from scratch. You are going to be spending anywhere from £8,000 to £250,000 of your hard earned cash or loans so you really want to be sure you are spending it in the right place.
All that said – I could not recommend more a sector of the franchise industry to get involved in that kids / children based franchises. Definitely a respectable, fun and profitable option

Put The Right Attitude Among Your Internet Home Business Ideas

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:23:05 +0000

When I think this issue, I always wonder why the training courses are full of techniques, but the attitude factor is not mentioned. Maybe somebody thinks, that to run internet home business ideas is totally a technique and does not require any mental abilities from the marketer.
1.The Attitude Makes Or Breaks The Whole Effort.
To start running internet home business ideas requires entrepreneurship, i.e. a certain attitude towards the new business. It is really a business, not a work. The difference is clear, the work is given to you but you have to create the business by yourself again and again.
The entrepreneur attitude must be positive but at the same time realistic, because the business comes from serving other people, i.e. the target market. The funny thing is that there is always great chances to make a decent income.
An entrepreneur has just to find the way to operate, this is the route to success. It is not easy and no outsider can give it to you, you just have to learn to follow the market so well that you can respond to whatever changes in the user behavior.
2.The Attitude Creates Your Internet Home Business Ideas.
Yes, the attitude is like an engine, which is rolling without breaks. It really can create lots of ideas about different aspects of the marketing. And if your attitude will change into negative, you will see that the business will suffer a lot.
3.How To Maintain A Good Attitude?
It is very simple: think positively. Okay, in the real life, when you will meet obstacles, it will influence on your attitude, which means that you must create an ability to see over to new positive chances.
Studying is a great way to maintain it too, because the more you know, why things go as they go, the surer you are, that you can manage the business in all circumstances.
4.You Can Train To Maintain The Attitude.
I think it is possible to train to do so, like you can train your skills in sports or studying. And this do not mean, that you should believe whatever hype ads, because they seem to be along the positive attitude.
On the contrary, to keep the positive attitude, you have to be very careful, on what you believe. Your internet home business ideas must be working ones, that kind which you can run for years.
The best combination, what I know, is to learn the internet marketing well, to do the business plan well and to keep it. The success comes with a long term work, which follows a narrow strategy during a long period of time.

How to Choose the Right Bookkeeper and or An Accountant that is suitable for you and your business!

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 05:22:39 +0000

Ok so you’re either thinking about starting your own business or have already got it up and running and have managed for a while to get by managing your own books by yourself and are now finding all too much to keep on top of the paperwork.

It is an all too familiar position; most people have found that they keep telling themselves that they do it tomorrow or later or at the end of the week, and before you know it your deadline is upon you and your all stressed out to get it in on time, It’s time to get help!

Affordable professional help

Being a small and/or at home business owner are you tired of the lack of affordable professional help available? So you need to find professional help whom are able to offer such things such as:

· Free and up to date accounting advice

· Realistic solutions to card payments and cash flow issues,

· A good supply of Bookkeeping/Accounting forms for the small business readily available

· Advice with managing online card merchant accounts.

· What sort of Accounting software is suitable to your type of business

· Tools & Resources helpful to your Business, those that are current and up to date, to know today, what others will find out tomorrow.

· Where you can access free spreadsheet bookkeeping templates

· Who run forums where Like Minded people, like you, can discuss online business issues that are not just financial issues?

· That have links to other useful sites

· Where you can also advertise your own business.

· The ability to Use the latest of modern technology to effectively manage your accounts from the other side of the country without massive Technical costs to your or themselves.

Certified And Accredited

Bookkeepers:

It is important that you find a bookkeeper that is certified and accredited Accounting technicians. There are many governing bodies but the two most, well known governing bodies are:

1. The AAT (association of accounting Technicians)

o The Association of Accounting Technicians, or AAT, is an accountancy organisation with over 108,000 members worldwide. The AAT is a technician level qualification which entitles those who have completed the exams and obtained relevant supervised work experience to call themselves associate accounting technicians. The AAT is based in London but there are branches all over the UK and the rest of the world.

The body is sponsored by four of the UK chartered accountancy bodies. These are:

· The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA);

· The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW);

· The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS); and

· The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

· The one UK chartered accountancy body which does not sponsor the AAT is the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). This organisation used to be a sponsor of the AAT but broke away in order to form a rival body which offers the Certified Accounting Technician (CAT) qualification. The ACCA implemented this policy as it wanted a technician level qualification which followed the same business model which it did, ie. one with a global presence.

· Whilst the AAT is recognised as a professional qualification by the Department of Trade and Industry in the UK, the accountancy professions there, the USA and existing and former British Commonwealth countries, CAT is not. CAT is a professional academic qualification within the ACCA examination structure. AAT is both a recognised academic and vocational qualification in its own right.

2. The ICB (Institute of Certified bookkeepers)

The Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (“ICB”) is a not for profit organisation that promotes and maintains the standards of bookkeeping as a profession, through the establishment of a series of relevant qualifications and the award of grades of membership that recognise academic attainment, working experience and competence.

Started in the United Kingdom in 1996 the ICB has grown rapidly and now has a world wide presence in over 50 countries.

· to promote bookkeeping as a profession

· to enable bookkeeping to gain recognition as an integral part of the financial profession

· to promote training in the principles of bookkeeping

· to develop personal study skills and improve confidence of those persons who undertake a course in bookkeeping

· to enable the achievement of a qualification, which may be used to enhance prospects for progression into higher levels of study

· to improve the career prospects of its members

The ICB is the largest bookkeeping body in the world, with over 150,000 members and students. By offering career advice and support to bookkeepers the ICB has helped many throughout the world set up a successful practice.

You cannot buy your way into any of these associations, like most trade governing bodies, but have to take stringent examinations and also to keep memberships you must also keep up your CPD (Continual Professional Development), and also have current professional and Indemnity Insurances.

A professional Bookkeeper should be able to answer most of your day to day financial questions, before you need to start thinking about a Chartered Accountant, which is when the price will jump up dramatically. They should be able to process personal tax returns and give you basic help with corporation tax calculations.

In most cases a Bookkeeper should, if unable to answer your questions, then know exactly where to find the answer or to put you in touch with the right person.

Accountants:

Now be careful here as there are many people out there that can call themselves an accountant, but what you are really looking for is a chartered accountant. There is often some misconception as to the type of accountant needed, or indeed that there are more than one type and below are just two of the main types of Chartered accountants there are:

1. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is a British chartered accountancy body with a global presence that offers the Chartered Certified Accountant (Designatory letters ACCA or FCCA) qualification worldwide. Since Chartered Certified Accountant is a legally protected term, individuals who describe themselves as Chartered Certified Accountants must be members of ACCA and, if they carry out public practice engagements, must comply with additional regulations such as holding a practising certificate, being insured against any possible liability claims and submitting to inspections.

2. The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) is a UK based professional body offering training and qualification in management accountancy and related subjects, focused on accounting for business; together with ongoing support for members. CIMA has two grades of full membership:

o Associate – designated by the letters ACMA

o Fellow – designated by the letters FCMA

To be admitted as an associate a candidate must have:

o completed a period of qualifying practice of at least three years, documented and signed by appropriate witnesses

o passed the institute’s 15 qualifying examinations

o Been proposed and seconded for membership by two individuals who have direct experience of the candidate’s work experience but who do not need to be members of CIMA or even accountants.

To become a Fellow a candidate ACMA must, in addition, have appropriate experience at a senior level.

Summary

It is very important when you look at any of these professionals to view their portfolio and testimonials to see what experience they have in what industries. For example a bookkeeper or an Accountant may have worked primarily for manufacturing companies and yours is an online business. Although they will understand the principles, it will take them a lot longer to understand your business and also may not have the contacts and resources easily available to hand that is relevant to your business.

So before you go head long into picking that all important Professional help, take the time to interview & research them just like you would with an employee or a supplier and ask for some testimonials from their current customers that are of a similar industry to yourself. Try to get it right 1st time. But don’t worry if you don’t, because you can always change!

Author: Monique Davis MICB CB Cert. MAAT & CIMA Student

Website: http://www.davisbusinesspro.co.uk Helping Your Business Grow!

Is a Home Business Right for You?

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 19:16:51 +0000

Are you one of the many people who wake up and dread the daily drive to work? One of the thousands of people who dream of the day when they are not a slave to the alarm clock? Or are you tired of being in debt? Do you dream of a better house/new car?

Every time your boss tells You! that You! must give up Your! plans as some project must be completed, but he must go because he has promised to take his wife to some dinner party. You dream of the benefits of being the owner of your own home business.

Is this you?

Thousands imagine of what it would be like to own their very own successful business, financial Independence, and with that comes personal freedom, but few think of the sacrifices that have to be made in order to make the dream a reality, don`t let that be you.

Before you embark on any home business ownership, you need to ask yourself some important questions, but more importantly you need to be completely honest with your answers.

For a home business to work as with anything, you must be willing to put in time and effort. In this world there is no such thing as money for nothing. A home business will allow flexibility with your hours, provide you with more time with your family, and a virtually unlimited income potential, but you will earn only as much as the time and effort you put into it. A home business is a great choice for parents who want to stay at home, and earn money while their kids are at school. A home business can also be the ideal solution for somebody who works, but is looking to earn some extra money. Its up to you, “you” set your own agenda!

Have you the discipline to work contentedly on your own, at home, ignoring all the distractions the home as to offer. Don`t need others telling you what to do and when to do it, if so a home business could be perfect for you, enabling you to live the life you have always dreamt of.

The most important ingredient to succeeding when you start a home business is you! Have you the self motivation you will need to be able to push yourself especially when opportunities have not worked out. But with every new sale your enthusiasm will be reinforced, remember success breeds success, the opportunities are limitless.

The speed and level of success you reach will be mainly down to the time and effort that you devote to your new home business. Three key skills will come into play, your organisational, planning, and marketing skills, which everybody possesses to some degree, as your business develops, these skills will develop accordingly. Everybody suffers from setbacks time to time in their endeavours, even the most successful people still do, but they don`t dwell on them don`t you, just move on to your next success and you and your business will be much the stronger for the experience.

Now your the boss of your own home business, it will allow you the freedom to do many things that you would never have been permitted to do whilst working for that boss. Remember the time your baby was sick he would not let you have time off. You wanted to attend some event, again he would not grant you the time off. Now you own your own home business its not a problem, personal freedom is just one of the many great benefits of owning your own home business.

Owning your own home business means that you can take care of all your families requirements what ever they maybe. Your own home business will allow you and your loved ones the kind of lifestyle that you deserve. Remember at all times to stay positive and focused on your own home business, even if sales are not up to expectations, at times you may even hear negative comments from people you know, ignore their comments, these people just accept what life as given them, but you know you do not have to accept that, just stay positive and your home business will prove them all wrong and provide you with the lifestyle you use to dream about!

Robert Pickering is webmaster of Switchonprofits Work At Home Directory providing proven legitimate Home Business Ideas. To get a free newsletter providing top tips, and a complete guide to our opportunities available visit http://www.switchonprofits.com.