Since the recession started, most people have focused solely on keeping what wealth they have.

In an economy where jobs are scarce and budget cuts run rampant, few people have realized that this is the time to grow financially.  Opportunities abound in this economic climate for people who are willing to take an active approach to their financial situation.

Why You Need an Attitude Adjustment

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 decreed that retirement decisions need to be made by individuals.  This began the elimination of pensions; it forced employees in the U.S. to open 401(k) s and IRAs on their own.  This legislation should have ushered in a monumental change in American society, where individual success is lauded above all else.  The ability to control your own outcome had never been so accessible.

Instead, more than 35 years since the passing of this act; most people are taking a passive approach to their long-term financial investments.  Approximately 99% of the working population still has an apathetic relationship with their income.  The abundance of credit availability over the last 20 years has amplified this passivity – most families can afford to live well beyond their means, so becoming more financially literate isn’t required to sustain their immediate lifestyle.

In reality, most people are broke and feeling insecure trying to keep up with the Jones’.  They don’t know how to produce income without involving a third-party employer or a bank, so they are financially co-dependent on these institutions for their well-being.

This insecurity has created another consequence: the boom of the financial services industry.  Hundreds of thousands of financial planners and brokers are currently selling pre-packaged investment vehicles for the masses. Compound interest may be the 8^th wonder of the world, but inflation and the cost of living are growing far faster than risk free savings rates.

Thus, the traditional model of investing and saving leaves you vulnerable to market shifts, job loss, and cost of living increases without a strong residual base of cash flow.  You’re feeding the machine that’s put you where you are.

Why Your Comfort Zone Hurts You

When you’re looking at investment opportunities, avoid anything that keeps you in your comfort zone.

The reality is that there is no opportunity inside your comfort zone.  What’s next for you in the way of opportunity lies somewhere outside of what you find natural.  It’s a myth to think you can act like 99% of the population but have the financial independence of the other 1%.

You’re going to make mistakes as you grow; it would be a mistake to think you won’t.  You can reduce your chances of failure by focusing on investing in items that people consider staples.  Products that are regularly consumed and need to be restocked are good income earners.  Offering a competitively priced staple of high quality causes people to view your product as a brand switch.  This means you’re more likely to earn referrals and expand by word of mouth.

Other areas to consider investing in are network marketing or online distribution businesses.  These carry the least risk and have the highest return potential.  They’re also the quickest for the average person to get established.

How to Succeed on Your Own

The simple formula is to make more than you spend each month.

The information age has made it possible to start a business with less than $1.000.  The way to create passive income that becomes substantial is to think of it like a plate-spinning act at a carnival.  Treat each income-producing investment like a plate.  Get it up and running quickly, at a low cost to you (in time and money).

Once the first plate starts generating cash flow, you can maintain it with less effort; your overhead will stay fixed in proportion to your growth.  Now, you can get another plate spinning.

The idea is to get several plates spinning simultaneously, generating passive income – regardless of whether you’re watching them every minute or not.  The fastest way to fail at generating your own income is to start five plates at once.  Focus on one plate and build your skills so you can leverage them to expand.

Five Things You Need to Get

When starting your own source of income, it’s important to follow these 5 tips to ensure you’re actively boosting your chances of a successful outcome.

1. Get excited.

You have decided to create wealth.  The Latin root decisio literally signifies you’ve cut off all other outcomes.  You are making yourself accountable and effective, and therefore, more responsible.  That’s exciting.

2. Get committed.

Being committed is doing what you said you would do, long after the excitement has worn off.  Without a concrete resolution to stick with it, the inertia of your old comfort zone will pull you back in.

3. Get a coach.

Every world-class performer has a coach, not to do the work for them, but to see what they can’t see themselves.  (The gold medalist doesn’t get to the Olympics by himself!)  You need to find someone who’s successful at coaching others in business-building; he will keep you on track and help you see the big picture.

4. Get capitalized.

The best business idea is just a car without gas if you don’t have enough capital.  Free up liquidity by sacrificing a little of what you have today for the future you want tomorrow.  Capital takes on three forms: time, energy, and money.  Bolster each by taking simple steps: hold a garage sale, turn off the T.V., and exercise.  You can’t be successful in building income when you’re not investing in it in other areas of your life.

5. Get the right vehicle.

Picking the right opportunity makes all the difference.  If you’re spending an extra 20 hours per week building a business, then you need to get the most return for your time and money.  Pick something that pays you back more for a $1 or 1-hour investment than anything else would.  If you’re new to building a business, find a turnkey opportunity, where the structure has already been created for you.

You can take control of your financial future by simply choosing to take action.

Refuse to let others determine your outcome. Create it yourself.

About the author: Chris J. Snook has spent more than 11 years as an author, entrepreneur, and venture catalyst and has spent the last 5 years in the investment community incubating media start ups as the Managing Partner of TLEC Ventures. He co-authored three international best-selling books entitled WealthMatters 2007 and 2011 (2nd Edition) and Burnout: How to Transform Frustration to Fortune in 2005. 

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The credit card landscape has changed significantly since the Credit Card Act  took effect in February 2010.

Overall, this piece of reformatory legislation increased transparency and consumer rights in the general-use (personal) credit card space, curing many of the ills that pervaded prior to the Great Recession. Perhaps it’s most important provision brought debt stability to personal credit cards by prohibiting issuers from increasing interest rates on existing debt unless a cardholder becomes at least 60 days delinquent on payment.

The CARD Act does not pertain to small business credit cards, however, which makes it more important than ever that business owners answer the following questions in devising their companies’ payment strategies:

• Which are the best and worst business credit card issuers?
• How do I garner debt stability?
• What’s the most optimized payment strategy for my company?

Which are the best and worst business credit card issuers?

The best and worst business credit card issuers fall in line based on their proactive adoption of the most important CARD Act rules, which are as follows:

• No universal default (i.e. you cannot be considered in default on your credit card account because of a missed payment on a separate credit card, loan or bill)
• No double cycle billing (i.e. finance charges cannot be determined by your average balance over the past two billing cycles)
• Issuer must give 45 days’ notice prior to changing key account terms
• All payment amounts above the minimum must be applied to the balance with the highest interest rate
• No interest rate increases on existing balances unless the account holder is at least 60 days delinquent (a key provision that ensures debt stability)

A recent Card Hub study ranking the 10 largest credit card companies in the U.S. based on these criteria found that only Bank of America adopted all of the key CARD Act protections on its small business credit card offerings.

After BofA, followed Capital One, Citibank and American Express, in that order. Each applied at least one, but not all, of the major CARD Act protections. Chase, Discover and HSBC did not extend any of the aforementioned protections to their business credit cards, while U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo declined to participate in the study, indicating a lack of organizational transparency.

While you undoubtedly want as many CARD Act protections on the side of your small business as possible, given the positive effect the legislation has had on the personal credit card market, the most important is certainly that which prevents arbitrary interest rate hikes. Without debt stability, it’s impossible to budget, allocate funds, develop your business, or feel confident in its financial future.

That’s why, if you are going to use a business credit card to fund your small business venture, it must be from BofA or a smaller local bank/credit union that has taken similar pro-customer measures.

Are there any other ways to garner debt stability?

Getting a business credit card from a forward-thinking issuer is merely one of the ways to achieve debt stability for your company. Another option is to simply use a personal credit card.

A personal credit card for business?

Yes, the trite old adage that “this is business, not personal,” used often in film and television, has become less relevant to actual business, at least as far as credit cards are concerned. Not only do all major credit card companies hold both you and your company liable for business credit card use, according to a Card Hub study, but most also report business credit card use to your personal credit reports.

As a result, you are free to use a personal credit card for your business spending and thereby garner the full suite of CARD Act protections.

What is the most optimized payment plan for my business?

By now, it’s clear that you have three options when it comes to devising a credit card strategy for your small business: 1) Using only a personal credit card; 2) Using only a business credit card from an issuer that has proactively extended all of the key CARD Act protections; 3) Using a combination of the two.

It’s ill-advised to use only a personal credit card for small business spending because business credit cards provide tools and services that personal credit cards do not. For example, they allow small business owners to easily track and manage company spending, set personalized spending limits for each employee card, and earn rewards on all company purchases. They also tend to offer more lucrative rewards than personal credit cards.

Now, if you choose to use only a business credit card with issuer-applied legal protections, then you will, of course, be sacrificing variety for simplicity. A single credit card is easier to manage, yes, but the number of business credit cards that boast the required CARD Act protections is relatively small, which means the odds of finding the best possible terms within this crop will also be slim. Trying to find a single card that both offers attractive interest rates and rewards is difficult enough without paring down your options.

Using a single credit card to both revolve debt and make everyday purchases will be prohibitively expensive anyway.  When you revolve a balance, you no longer have a grace period for new charges, meaning interest will begin to accrue as soon as you make them.

This brings us to the third option: a two-card strategy.

By using a personal credit card for business funding (i.e. company purchases that you won’t be able to pay off in full in a single billing period) and a business credit card for everyday expenses (i.e. purchases that you do pay for in full on a monthly basis), you’ll not only garner debt stability, but will also have the opportunity to get both the lowest interest rates and best rewards possible.

You could, for example, open both the 0% credit card with the longest introductory term on the market and the most lucrative rewards business credit card. This strategy is based on the Island Approach to credit card use, which preaches using each credit card for a distinct purpose, playing on the notion that there is generally a trade-off when it comes to a credit card’s terms: When one area (e.g. rewards) excels, others (e.g. rates, fees, etc.) tend to suffer.

Final Thoughts
Around 80% of small business owners use credit cards for funding purposes, according to the National Small Business Association.

In light of the overhauled credit card landscape, this figure indicates two very important things: 1) a significant portion of the small business community needs to rethink its credit card strategy; 2) those that come to this realization quickest will indeed have an advantage over the competition.

Photo credit: loansafe.org

Odysseas Papadimitriou is CEO of Card Hub

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Having worked with businesses of all sizes, I’ve seen tactics work as often as I’ve seen them fail.

Big businesses and corporations have usually grown to their current stature because of intelligent decision-making, endurance, and a willingness to think outside the box.  Small businesses may have more modest budgets and markets, but they can still learn a lot from their larger comrades.

 1. Strategy is king -

It’s easy for companies to get caught up in putting out fires.  It’s harder to force yourself to focus on long-term strategy, but this is where you should be devoting most of your time and resources.  Failing to get buy-in from key internal groups is one area where many people fall short.  Many times, a group publishes its new “blueprint for success” and it fails miserably, because the people who can make the plan work were never consulted on the front end.  If your plan involves operations and sales, they had better be at the table when you create it.  If they feel ownership, your chance of succeeding increases dramatically.  In addition, strategizing involves reviewing your choices, determining how your methods are performing, and considering the market’s reactions.  If you’re not satisfied with what you’re seeing, make a change.  As a small business, you have the benefit of being agile; you can react faster than the big guys.  Take advantage of this flexibility.

2. Do your homework -

If you don’t have the information to help make strategy decisions, GO GET IT!  Spending your time and money on quality research always costs less than taking a risk that fails because you didn’t anticipate the outcome.  We had a great new concept for the mattress industry, but we wanted to check some consumer research to make sure we had it right.  It turned out that our idea finished dead last when we asked consumers to rank several different concepts.  We spent $75,000 on that research, but it saved us the $250,000 we would have spent in a failed launch. We also tested the concepts with 6 top retailers in the U.S. without telling them the consumers’ favorites. They all got it wrong, too. You should be guided by good data; as a small business owner, you can’t afford to make decisions based on bad or missing information.

3. Don’t follow the leader -

One very common mistake that small businesses make is following the leader in their market.  I recently interviewed staff from a small company in Chicago and as I was reviewing their advertising, I asked the owner why he consistently gave consumers the exact same incentive to buy, week after week.  His response was that the biggest retailer in his market did it, so he assumed it was right.  News flash: the guy you’re keeping up with may not be very bright, or he may not have done his homework (see #2).  People generally follow someone else because they are lazy and don’t take the time to think creatively, they are risk-averse, or they assume that everybody else must be right.  Don’t downplay the value of being original.  The truly great companies out there achieved success by plowing the road, not by following the one already laid out.

4. WOW somebody -

Having a small budget can be a wonderful thing; it forces you to be creative.  Call your top 5 staffers together and ask this question: how can we wow our customers today?  If you answered “great prices” or “great service,” congratulations – you are giving the same boring answers everyone else is!  How do you really impress them?  Southwest Airlines and Zappos.com are excellent examples of companies who make inspired decisions regarding their customers.  Do you make emergency service calls at 3:00 a.m. so night shift production doesn’t halt?  Do you meet your customer at his loading dock when he’s short-handed?  Do you send handwritten notes to customers to express how important they are to your company?  (Emails don’t count!)  All of these things let the people who keep you in business know just how important their business is.  Smaller businesses have the ability to be personal, and people expect it.  Don’t let them down.

5. Challenge everything -

If you’re in a leadership position in your company, set your ego aside and allow – scratch that, encourage! – your people to disagree with you in a healthy way.  Don’t be the fool in the room who insists he always knows more than anyone else.  Real magic happens when people are comfortable suggesting alternatives.

Conversely, if you are working your way up the ladder, be bold.

Strive to be the person constantly coming up with new ideas.  Early in my career, I was reluctant to do this because the culture didn’t encourage it.  If the ideas you propose are well-developed, thoroughly researched, and sold with passion, you have no reason to doubt yourself.  Take inspiration from a guy from Zimbabwe I met at a coffee shop.  He was finishing his dissertation; once he finishes his doctorate, he is going home to a country with 92% unemployment.  He is going to challenge his people to think like large countries with big economic engines.

All you have to do is challenge your small business to think like a big company.  That puts your challenge in perspective, doesn’t it?  Remember that selling anything, whether it’s a product or an idea, is nothing more than the transfer of enthusiasm. The people in your company hired you to make a difference; fulfill that promise.

Above all, challenge your thinking.

Consider the ideas utilized by your larger counterparts; don’t be afraid to think big.  Small businesses aren’t limited to small ideas; don’t let yourself be, either.

Photo credit: getentrepreneurial.com

Mark Quinn is the VP of Marketing for the Residential Segment at Leggett and Platt. He also blogs on his experiences and opinions on his blog Q’s Views.

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Layoffs are hurtful to everyone involved. Dedicated employees lose their jobs and employers have to let go of people they respect.

For a small business layoffs can be tragic, yet it may often seem necessary to keep a realistic budget. “For most small businesses, personnel-related costs are among the most significant, and with sales remaining flat at many businesses, it’s tempting to look to layoffs as a way to cut costs,” according to comments from Bankrate.com.

With mass layoffs falling in 2010 from the year before, The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that they were still common throughout every industry.  In 2010 there were 7,247 company layoffs. The fourth quarter alone ended in the termination of 295,571 employees.

With layoff numbers still lingering at an alarmingly high rate, small businesses have begun to look at various other options.

Although layoffs can bring costs down in the immediate moment, the price of rehiring when the economy inevitably comes back are overseen. The cost to hire and train is, in itself, enough to find a better solution.

Include Employees in Layoff Alternatives

Many small businesses become a family, and companies have been cutting every possible cost before pink slipping a valued employee. The benefit of a smaller business is that there are various ways you can keep layoffs at bay, and still keep invaluable workers:

• Be honest with your employees. Share with them the reality of the business’s financial burdens. Employees will often work harder when they can see the black and white bottom line.
• Present your employees with alternatives to layoffs. This is a creative way to keep your important employees and ease nervous tension within the group. SEI Industries faced possible layoffs, but allowed their employees to vote on how to avoid this. As a group, they decided to go down to a four day work week. Everyone was able to keep their job, and cut costs at the same time, according to Avoiding Small Business Layoffs.
• Involve your employees in brainstorming more creative resolutions to layoffs.  Allowing people that you trust present valid ideas for cutting costs can keep morale high within the office, and bring more solutions to the table.
• As the CEO of your business, consider asking yourself and upper management to take a pay cut, or forgo bonuses. If only temporarily, this can keep the business afloat for a short period. Small businesses can often make it through the rain with temporary payroll cuts that are reinstated as financials get back on track.

The key to avoiding layoffs within your small business is to think about the future.

Finding ways to keep employees will not only benefit them, but the business as well. Trusting longtime employees to assist in coming up with other solutions will add value to their position, and avoid costly rehires down the line.

Take advantage of being a small business. Your trusted employees are a priceless, untapped resource of ideas and solutions.

Photo credit: seekingalpha.com

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Seeking adequate funding for a start up enterprise can be a daunting task, especially in this trying economic environment, but have you wondered why individuals attending a critical funding presentation began to look the other way, look at their watches, and edge for the nearest exit?

It may not be that your proposal does not have merit, but it may come down to your “story” not being as complete as they would like.

The investment community today is more “numbers-driven” than ever before. A slick marketing pitch is not enough. Your financial history and projections must also tell a tale that correlates well with the marketing side of your business model.

It is true that the first thing investors like to see in a new venture is that the leader has an extensive marketing background, well-grounded in all phases of distribution, product packaging, and sales management. These skills must be present to ensure that the “revenue” side of the equation will be addressed with focused solutions.

As for the “expense” side of the ledger, investors want to see detailed numbers that make sense to them related to market sizing, competitive profiles, customer acquisition costs, direct cost of goods sold, discretionary spending, and overhead. The focus will be on trends and operating ratios that demonstrate that increasing revenues equate to increasing profits.

These investor groups have seen more business presentations in a week than you will see in your lifetime. They know what “good” is, but they are quick to judge the “bad and the ugly”. The latter is almost always lacking in financial information that matters to the people in the room. Typically, a five-year projection that dramatically displays revenues growing to the magic $100 million mark is the only “numbers” slide.

In the absence of anything else, the entrepreneur is asking the “room” to “trust me,” highly unlikely when other business plans are more professional in their content and create an impression that the management team is focused on all the right priorities.

Unless you have substantial capital or collateral of your own in “the game”, most potential investors or lenders will not be accommodating if their immediate impression is unfavorable. They expect to see numbers derived from experience, not “guesstimates” of how you think things will play out. The days of investors throwing money at just an “idea” are long past. An operating business model with paying customers and predictable margins in a fast-paced and growing market is the basic expectation at “Square One”.

These expectations are not that difficult to understand if you look at your own decision-making process.

If you were in the retail business, whether store front or on the Internet, you would take your time researching merchant account reviews before ever committing to a merchant processor. Cost would be an issue, and you would want to know how fees would change over time, based on volume and transaction sizes. A merchant account review might point you to a small group for consideration, but you would want to see more number-oriented information before making your final choice.

Investors are no different than this simple example of business decision-making. The best way to answer number-related questions is to present the “answers” before the questions are ever asked.

Here are a few pointers:

1. Size of Market: Don’t just say it is $1 billion and growing. Take the time to detail size and growth rates from other industry reports, competitor press releases, and general news articles. Cite your sources, since there will be heavy scrutiny in this area;
2. Costs of Distribution: What is your sales cycle? Sales pipeline? Customer acquisition cost? Commission compensation structure? Marketing and advertising plans with response rates given?
3. Operating Margins: What are your current operating profits after cost of goods sold? What are the historical trends? Are margins predictable and improving over time? How can this trend be improved upon?
4. Other Ratios: Is overhead manageable? Are there other key expenses and how do they relate to revenue? Are there capital asset requirements? How quickly do clients pay their bills? Any debt issues?

You have one chance to make a good first impression. Use it wisely.

About the author: Tom Cleveland is a writer for MerchantSeek.com. He has over 30 years of
experience in executive management, corporate governance and business
development

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Slow-to-pay and no-pay customers can be a real headache for small business owners.

Those outstanding invoices often create havoc with a small business’ cash flow and can bring operations to a grinding halt- especially if the company is working on tight profit margins. But collecting on outstanding consumer debt does not have to begin with a bottle of aspirin.

Here are a few strategies to help small business owners get the most money from those outstanding invoices:

Develop a credit policy: Business owners should make sure to clearly outline the terms and conditions customers must fulfill to establish credit with the company as well as the actions that will be taken when accounts are overdue. This policy should be made available to customers and can be submitted with any invoices on overdue accounts so that these customers know what to expect.

Keep good records: Along with a credit policy, businesses need to maintain clear, accurate, and up-to-date credit files and payment histories on each of their customers. There are numerous accounting software suites, such as those offered by Quickbooks, Peachtree, MYOB, and Microsoft Office and even some decent free, open source options, such as GnuCash and NolaPro, that can help small business owners stay on top of their accounts receivables.

Be assertive, yet sensible with collection efforts: Trying to collect on overdue accounts is a delicate balance. On one hand, a business can often ill afford to be lax with collection calls and demand for payment letters. On the other hand, to keep loyal customers business owners should also take into consideration any external circumstances, such as economic conditions, that may affect a customer’s short-term ability to pay and make adjustments to the credit policy where it is feasible. Moreover, when deciding how to collect on an overdue account, a business owner should weigh the cost (in terms of money and other resources) of any collection efforts versus the actual amount that can be recovered.

Don’t stop the communication: Once the communication stops between the business and the indebted customer, the likelihood that the business will receive even some if its money is much less. All communication should be firm, yet clear and respectful.

Know what action to take and when: Business owners should be familiar with the different options available for collecting on outstanding invoices or reducing the loss.

• Send the invoice to a factoring company. If the outstanding account fulfills certain requirements, it can be given over to a factoring company. With accounts receivables factoring, the business will receive a significant percentage of the amount owed on the invoice up front from the factoring company and also be able to hand over the collection process.

• Find a good collection agency. For a fee, small business owners can enlist the expertise and services of a collection agency to nudge customers into paying on the account.

• Take the customer to small claims court. Though going to small claims court may not be such an attractive or even worthwhile option, there may be certain situations that warrant this course of action. A business owner, for example, may want to begin the process in order to influence a customer into reaching some kind of settlement.

• Claim the loss for a tax deduction. According to the Tax Code IRC 166, Reg. 1.166, business owners may be able to claim part of the loss on their subsequent tax return.

In short, with a little effort, know-how, and sensibility, small business owners can significantly improve their chances of collecting on outstanding invoices, and keep their heads clear for more important matters, such as running their business.

Photo credit: findgreatlawyers.com

Gary Barzel is the manager of business development for Fastupfront, which offers small business loans for existing businesses in need of working capital.

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For many small businesses, one of the incentives that can help draw good employees is having a 401 (k) plan which to offer them following their probationary period.

According to a recent report from Plan Adviser, close to 40 percent of small business workers claim they would depart their current employer for one that offers a 401 (k). A recent study from AARP indicates that retirement plans rank among one of the major reasons why workers select their employer.

With a 401 (k) plan, employees can invest for retirement, and in many instances, get a company match (percentages vary) along the way. Among the different 401 (k) plans are the traditional one, a safe harbor plan, and lastly the automatic enrollment option.

Even though the trend in the last 10 years has been for businesses to add to the number of investment options with their 401 (k) plan, a number of companies are changing their original train of thought and decreasing the number of choices, along with streamlining and simplifying their investment options.

If your small business is thinking about setting up a 401 (k) plan for its employees, there are a number of factors to take into consideration.

Among them are:

• Employers are able to receive a tax deduction for those funds contributed to employee accounts;
• Funds contributed can accrue through investments in things like bonds, money market funds, mutual funds, savings accounts, stocks and more;
• In most cases, the contributions and earnings will not be taxed until the time they are handed out;
• In many cases, employees can take their benefits with them and/or transfer them to a differing account when they leave a business. By doing so, the company is then free of responsibility of the plan.

Lastly, there will always be some unintentional gaffes that come with providing 401 (k) plans for one’s workers.

Both the U.S. Department of Labor and IRS have available correction programs to assist those sponsoring plans, making it all the more important that employers continuously review their programs to better avoid mistakes.

If your small business is considering instituting a 401 (k) plan in the New Year, get the necessary information to put things in motion.

Photo credit: entmoney.com

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Did you know that the average American small business could save as much as $5,000 per year by becoming 25 percent more energy efficient?

That’s what a study by the National Small Business Association discovered. It also found that if all small businesses made this effort, greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced by 259 million tons — or the equivalent of 51 coal-fired power plants.

No matter what type of green your business is counting, everybody wins with energy efficiency.

But the upfront costs of acquiring more energy-efficient equipment can often be a hurdle for small businesses. If you’re a small business owner looking to cut costs and do your part for the environment, your local utility may have innovative energy-efficiency programs and varying incentives to help.

For instance, in San Diego County, where 95 percent of businesses are small businesses, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) launched a no-cost program targeting small to mid-sized commercial customers in February 2011, and many are taking advantage of it.

Called Direct Install, it’s also available from California’s other major utilities with a similar initiative offered through several New York State utilities. You can visit http://www.dsireusa.org to find out what incentives apply for small businesses in your state.

While the program may go by different names elsewhere and have various levels of costs associated with it, a call to your local utility should get the ball rolling. In San Diego, more than 2,000 sites have acquired state-of-the-art energy-efficient equipment before the end of the program’s first year. This includes the latest in energy-efficient lighting, refrigeration improvements, LED ‘open’ and ‘exit’ signs, and occupancy sensors.

It also includes something called vending misers, which are devices that make vending machines 50 percent more energy efficient by shutting off lights when no one is around and powering down refrigeration when the sodas are cold. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a typical vending machine equipped with this technology and meeting its ENERGY STAR criteria could save your business in the neighborhood of 1,500 kWh per year compared to standard models.

Through SDG&E’s program in San Diego and Southern Orange County, offices, bar and grilles, churches, fitness centers, barber shops and more have become more energy efficient without the upfront costs.

Qualifying businesses get a free energy consultation provided by the utility’s contracted specialists. The contractors identify where less-efficient equipment can be replaced with more energy-efficient products to reduce your energy use, carbon footprint and electric bill – all at no cost to you! And they’ll work with you to identify a convenient time for the equipment installation – during regular business hours or after-hours to minimize any disruption to your business.

With businesses seeking savings everywhere they can, teaming up with your utility on programs such as these is a smart move.

Photo credit: usatech.com

Ted M. Reguly is the director of Customer Programs & Assistance at San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and previously served as director of the Smart Meter and Home Area Network initiatives for the utility. He oversees SDG&E’s energy efficiency, demand response and customer assistance programs. He is an active member of UtilityAMI, OpenAMI and the ZigBee Alliance, and also serves on the board of directions for the utility technology association, Utilimetrics.

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While the economy continues to stagger along in many different sectors, small business loans are out there for those who need them. The trick, however, is to know where to look.

Due to the Small Business Jobs Act, which was signed into law by President Obama in September 2010, the Small Business Administration (SBA) was able to sign off on $9.1 billion in small business loans between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 of 2010. According to a recent Thomson Reuters/PayNet Small Business Lending Index, lending grew by 12% this past spring, compared to one year ago.

With 2011 winding down and the New Year just around the corner, small business owners in need of loans for their business should do their research and shop wisely for a loan that is both doable and works in their best interests.

When searching for a small business loan, keep these factors in mind:

• Be positive – While many banks have tightened their rules and regulations when it comes to loaning money, there are loans out there to be had. Be sure to shop around so that you get a variety of options with which to work with. Remember, banks are in business to make money, so everyone who comes through their doors seeking a business loan is always a potential customer;

• Be prepared – Put together a good proposal as to why your business needs the loan, how it will be paid back, your track record as a businessperson etc. If you go into the loan process unprepared, your chances for obtaining the needed funds will decrease. Loan officers want to work with individuals who have all the necessary paperwork filled out, have a good credit history, and can answer any and all questions thrown at them. Expect to cover areas like how much money your small business will require, the duration of the loan, and of course how and when you plan to pay it off;

• Be professional – Just as you would not show up for a job interview dress inappropriately, be sure to dress accordingly for your interview with a loan officer. It is important to treat this process as a professional matter. Also be sure to be positive in the event you do not get the loan, as you may try and do business with this bank down the road;

• Be honest – It is also important that you are truthful and accurate in your application process and interview. Don’t stretch the truth regarding any matters, don’t lie about your business doing real well if that is not the case, etc. The last thing you want to do is have a lie or lies come back to haunt you, i.e. you do not get the loan;

• Be close to home – While not required, consider looking for a loan from your hometown bank, given that local businesses tend to want to support each other. If you go to a large franchise-type bank, they are likely not to know what you are doing as a small business to help your community;

• Be sure to mention any affiliations – Whether you served in the military or have other affiliations, make sure to bring them up during your interview with a loan officer. There are a number of different loan programs out there that are geared to assist past and current military members (reservists) with starting up or continuing a small business.

At the end of the day, there are no guarantees when it comes to obtaining small business loans other than banks are in business to make money.

If you’re a start-up and you have a strong business plan in place or are present business looking to grow, getting a loan is something you will look to want to bank on.

Photo credit: dailynewspulse.com

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Editor’s note: This article was written by Amy Fowler on behalf of  Maintel , experts in unified communications solutions for both small businesses and large corporations.

There’s an old saying, “expect the unexpected.” It may sound like an oxymoron, and in truth, it is. However, that does not mean that there isn’t a grain of common sense in there.

When it comes to business planning, trying to plan for the unexpected makes sense.

Yes, you can’t plan for every eventuality, but if you build some flexibility in your business plan there’s a good chance that you’ll be able to implement Plan B, or Plan C, when things go wrong. Read the full entry

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