Tweet

Tracy Eden Articles

Written by: Tracy Eden

Asset-Based Lending: The Post-Crisis Landscape - Click To Read Article
The post-financial crisis lending landscape of today is far different from what existed before 2008. This is true for all types of lenders, including both commercial banks and asset-based lenders. Since the onset of the financial crisis more than three years ago, virtually everything about commercial lending has changed. This includes much stricter credit criteria and more risk aversion on the part of lenders, as well as enhanced regulatory scrutiny on lenders.

Current Trends in Working Capital Management - Click To Read Article
Three years ago, as the depth of the financial crisis was just beginning to be felt, banks started tightening the reins on credit, resulting in a severe credit crunch. In this environment, cash conservation became the name of the game. But today, U.S. businesses are flush with cash, and the emphasis on wringing every dollar out of working capital has dissipated. But do improved corporate balance sheets, a brighter business lending picture and an improving economy mean that CFOs should adopt a new mindset when it comes to working capital management? Not necessarily.

Why Cash Flow is King - Click To Read Article
One of the biggest financial mistakes many small business owners make is focusing too heavily on profitability at the expense of cash flow. There’s an old saying that sums it up well: “Profit is Queen, but cash is King.” It’s critical that you understand the difference between profit and cash flow: Doing so may be the difference between whether your business survives, much less thrives, in today’s challenging business and economic environment.

Alternative Financing Can Help Offset Cash Flow Challenges Presented By Slow-Paying Customers - Click To Read Article
There are various reasons for the slow pace of economic recovery among small businesses, but one is becoming increasingly apparent: A lack of cash flow caused by longer payment terms instituted by their vendors. To help them cope with the resulting cash flow challenges, more small and mid-sized businesses are turning to alternative financing vehicles. These are creative financing solutions for companies that don’t qualify for traditional bank loans, but need a financial boost to help manage their cash flow cycle.

The (R)evolution of Factoring - Click To Read Article
Factoring was a hot topic at the Association of Financial Professionals (AFP) Annual Conference this past November in San Antonio, Texas. Sarsha Adrian, a senior consultant with Graber Associates, led a lively discussion on what she calls “the (r)evolution of factoring” over the past couple of years. “Factoring has evolved considerably, especially over the last 18 months or so, and there are many nuances you need to understand,” notes Adrian. “Factoring today is far more than just selling invoices at a discount.”

Factoring and Leasing: A Powerful One-Two Commercial Financing Punch - Click To Read Article
Most owners and entrepreneurs understand the power of financial leverage: spending as little out-of-pocket money as possible on expenses, thus preserving cash flow for the actual operations of the business. When used properly, financial leverage helps companies do just this. Two particular kinds of financial leverage can be especially beneficial: factoring and leasing. When used together, factoring and leasing provide a powerful one-two commercial financing punch.

Commercial Financing: The Benefits of Off-Balance-Sheet Financing - Click To Read Article
There are two different categories of commercial financing: on-balance-sheet financing and off-balance-sheet financing. In the continuing tight credit environment, off-balance-sheet financing can offer significant benefits to any size company, from large multi-nationals to mom-and-pops. These benefits arise from the fact that off-balance-sheet financing creates liquidity for a business while avoiding leverage, thus improving the overall financial picture of the company.

Asset-Based Lenders: Serving a True Need in Today’s Marketplace - Click To Read Article
Most business owners will tell you that it’s still pretty rough-going out there when it comes to obtaining commercial financing. This is true despite improvements in the economy and efforts by the federal government to jump-start business lending among community banks. In such a tight credit environment, the importance of the role played by asset-based lenders has increased exponentially.

Outsource Your Accounts Receivable Management With Factoring - Click To Read Article
One of the biggest business trends of the past 20 to 30 years has been the move toward outsourcing. Companies usually decide to outsource functions that aren't part of their core competencies, or in other words, those that don't lie at the heart of their ability to manufacture a product or deliver a service. One particularly time-consuming task that gobbles up untold hours of many employees' time is the management and collection of accounts receivable (A/R). By outsourcing their A/R through factoring, businesses can help employees spend less time on this non-core task and more time doing things that help differentiate themselves from their competitors and make a real difference for their customers.

Financing Alternatives in Today’s Tough Credit Environment - Click To Read Article
With the credit crunch in full force, many small businesses are finding it harder and harder to obtain financing. Even business lines of credit are being squeezed tighter-often yanked right out from under companies that have long established histories with financial institutions. There is hope, however, for companies in this predicament. A creative financing alternative known as asset-based lending (ABL) can be a virtual lifeline for these types of businesses.

Surveying the Small Business Financing Landscape - Click To Read Article
Over the past month or so, there has been a noticeable shift in the dialog coming out of Washington, D.C. with regard to economic priorities, with a stronger emphasis on job creation. As part of this emphasis, the federal government has proposed and launched several initiatives to help increase access to capital and grow small business financing. But I'm not sure that a lack of access to capital is what’s really holding community banks back from doing more small business financing. Only 11 percent of respondents to a recent survey said they had sought new lines of credit or small business financing over the past year in an effort to help improve their cash flow. Read on for more interesting results from this Forbes Insights-CIT study.

Looking at Factoring in a Whole New Light - Click To Read Article
In the post-financial-crisis world in which we now live, most business owners and entrepreneurs view commercial financing in a completely different light than they did before. With traditional bank loans getting harder to obtain, many owners have had to look “outside the box” for the capital they need to sustain and grow their firms. In doing so, many have discovered (or sometimes rediscovered) the potential benefits of asset-based lending and factoring. Sarsha Adrian, a senior consultant with Graber Associates, a marketing and research firm that specializes in financial services, made this observation during a recent webinar. Read on for more details on her thoughts and comments.

Small Business Financing Options-Despite the Credit Crunch - Click To Read Article
There's no question that the financial crisis and ensuing credit crunch have made it more difficult than ever to secure small business financing and raise capital. This is especially true for fast-growth companies, which tend to consume more resources in order to feed their growth. If they aren't careful, they can literally grow themselves right out of business. Amidst all the gloom and doom, however, it's important to keep one thing in mind: There are still options available for small business financing. It's simply a matter of knowing where to look and how to prepare.

The Credit Crunch Myth: Financing Options to Consider - Click To Read Article
Over the past couple of years, the term “credit crunch” has taken its place in the popular vernacular alongside other now-common phrases like “mortgage meltdown” and “bank bailout.” But is the supposed credit crunch that we keep hearing so much about (go ahead and Google it-I did and got more than 12 million results!) real? While most of the media would have us believe it is, from my perspective, I’m not so sure. In general, community banks are in better financial condition than big banks, so these are often a good place for small businesses to start their search for financing. In addition to traditional bank loans, there are alternative forms of financing for companies that might not qualify for loans in today’s more stringent credit environment. One of these is factoring.

Focus on the Fundamentals of Your Business - Click To Read Article
Here’s one thing about a recession or economic downturn that most people don’t think of: It forces most business owners to focus like a laser on the fundamentals of their business, especially their business finances. When the good times are rollin’, it can be easy to let the financial side of things slip a little. But when times get tough and sales start slowing down, most companies find it beneficial to go back to the basics of sound financial management. Here are five key areas you might want to go back and reexamine if you haven’t lately.

Supply Chain Strategies: Utilize Factoring Services to Strengthen Links - Click To Read Article
Things have changed pretty drastically in the world of commercial financing over the past couple of years, forcing drastic changes in small business financing as well, both yours and the companies you sell to. Just as importantly, the business of your suppliers has also changed. A strong supply chain has always been important in business, but it's absolutely crucial today. Many B2B entrepreneurs are finding that factoring services are a great way to help them build a strong supply chain. Here are four crucial ways factoring services can support your supply chain.

Factoring: A Commercial Financing Alternative to Venture Capital - Click To Read Article
In today's difficult credit environment, companies are turning over every stone and looking in every nook and cranny in their efforts to obtain the commercial financing they need to grow and prosper. Many owners think that venture capital is going to be the solution to their financing problems, but VC investors are very cautious even in the best of times, and especially so today. In the current credit environment, many companies are finding that factoring services are often a better and cheaper way to obtain commercial financing than venture capital.

Factoring Services Can Help Ease Your Cash Flow Crunch - Click To Read Article
In a slow economy, the cash flow crunch caused by slow receivables collections can literally bleed your business to death. While offering open account terms to customers may be part of your cost of doing business, have you ever thought about what it really costs you? If you're waiting 30 days to be paid, you can only turn your profitability into more business 12 times a year. Of course, another risk involved in open accounts is the risk that you won't be paid at all. One solution to both of these challenges is a long-established process that has received renewed attention of late as the bank credit crunch has taken hold: factoring.

Accounts Receivable Factoring: It’s More Than Just the Money - Click To Read Article
The concept of "core competency" refers to the things done by a business that lie at the heart of its ability to manufacture a product or deliver a service. From a management standpoint, employees should spend as much time as possible working on tasks that contribute directly to the business's core competencies. Since managing accounts receivable isn't a core competency for most companies, many rely on accounts receivable factoring companies to handle their accounts receivable functions. Read about how one company began factoring its accounts receivable in order to improve cash flow and soon discovered that factoring services offer additional benefits as well.

Use Factoring Services To Take Advantage of Prompt-Pay Discounts - Click To Read Article
In many industries, an important cash flow strategy is to take advantage of prompt-pay discounts, also known as "2/10, net-30 discounts." These allow companies to subtract 2 percent from the invoice amount if it is paid within 10 days instead of the normal 30. Prompt-pay discounts can really add up, especially for companies with thin profit margins, but the challenge for many is managing cash flow in a way that enables them to take advantage of them on a regular basis. One manufacturing company discovered a unique solution: factoring services.

Referred by: http://donsadlerwriter.com



Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Build Corporate Credit for Your Small Business

Let's Skip the Offshore Horror Stories

Fighting the Saw-Tooth Affect

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.