As a business owner, you know that putting out fires and finding solutions is a part of the job. When the unexpected happens, emergency business loans are available to help bridge the gap. Whether large or small, emergencies happen, and when they do a quick injection of working capital may be exactly what you need to avoid catastrophe and keep things running smoothly. In the past, getting this kind of fast funding was impossible. Fortunately, with the evolution of fintech and alternative lending, small business owners can avoid the lengthy approval process associated with traditional bank ..read more

Construction Business Loans: Everything You Need to Know As a  general contractor, you know that obtaining construction business loans is important to running a construction business and operating in a fluid fashion. Full payment for a project does not typically come until at least 90 days after the project start date, but construction costs don’t wait around,  which makes construction loans a necessity to function. When a new job is taken on you receive a small down payment upfront as well as progress payments or tiered payments as the job hits certain milestones. This delayed ..read more

Table of Contents: What is an online business loan? Online business loan rates and fees How to be approved for an online business loan Business loans by industry Frequently asked questions What is an online business loan? And how is it different from a traditional bank loan? An online business loan is the same as any traditional business financing option, with one difference: you can apply, get approved, and be funded all online, without ever having to step into a lending office.  However, while that is the only true technical difference, the reality is that online lenders tend to provi ..read more

Table of Contents: What are private business loans? What types of private business loans are there? Why get a private business loan? How to get a private business loan Frequently asked questions What are private business loans? Private business loans don’t refer to a specific type of business loan. Rather, it refers to any alternative business loan (i.e. a business loan offered by a lending institution other than a traditional bank) offered by a private lender. Hence, the private in private business loans.  Private funding can include several different lending types, including: Crowdfu ..read more

What is an ABA routing number? An ABA number, more commonly known as simply your routing number, is the nine-digit code that identifies which bank you do business with (see bottom left): So, what is it used for?  Chances are you’ve already used your own bank account’s routing number to do an automatic bill pay transaction, transfer money to an acquaintance, or set up direct deposits at work. Where did ABA routing numbers come from? ABA numbers have now been around for more than a century, having been created in 1910 by the American Bankers Association (or ABA).  ABA numbers were cre ..read more

What is LegalShield? Founded all the way back in 1972, LegalShield is a pioneer in affordable legal services. Instead of paying exorbitant hourly rates for legal advice with the typical law firm, you can pay a low fixed monthly fee to get advice and legal representation from one of LegalShield’s many participating law firms.  LegalShield is available in all 50 states and offers a variety of legal services through their monthly subscription including: Legal consultations (for both general and more specialized legal issues)  Legal document reviews Phone Debt collection assistance Tri ..read more

Free accounting software comes in all shapes and sizes. There’s the simple and intuitive kind with a user-friendly interface.  Then there’s the more comprehensive kind which tends to be a bit dated in terms of front-end design but can do the job almost as well as premium accounting software.  Lastly, most premium accounting software offers a 30-day free trial. That allows you to dip your toes into each of the premium software before having to commit. Ultimately, whether a free accounting software or a free trial of a premium one is best for you comes down to: Are you averse to payin ..read more

Want to know the steps to franchising your business? Franchising offers a big potential return on investment, but it also comes with a big cost. Read on to learn more.  What is franchising and how does it work? Thanks to fast-food restaurants in the 1950s like McDonalds, franchising is a household term. How does it work? Franchising is a legal structure that allows businesses to sell the right to open their own franchised locations of that business.  With franchising, you can elicit the help of eager franchisees to help grow your business, with the potential to significantly increas ..read more

Stripe vs. Square: An Overview  Looking for a good payment processing solution for your business that caters to both retail and online sales? When it comes down to it, there really isn’t a whole lot to choose from that cover both types of transactions. At least, the best options are leagues better than the rest.  Which is ironic, since every ecommerce– and many other– businesses online needs one to operate. That’s why most businesses that need a digital payment processor look to one of two big hitters: Stripe and Square. Which is better? Where do they each excel, and which is best su ..read more

It might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about starting up your business, but choosing which bank to work with is a vital part of your daily business dealings.  For that reason, it’s important to invest the time and energy in finding a bank that works for you and your business.  You should consider: How many monthly deposits do you make? Do you need funding in the form of a business or real estate loan? Are the number of available physical branches important to your business? How often do you use mobile banking? The only problem is, there are a lot of banks ..read more