Month: November 2018

The holidays can be absolutely crazy, whether you are self-employed or working for a company, but the latter can at the very least offer you some paid down-time to recoup. Self-Employed Professionals have to hustle to make sure their income is constant by taking care of existing clients and actively seeking out new business. But, with everyone around you relaxing in nostalgic bliss, and guilting you into doing the same, how do you handle of holidays?

Plan Ahead

This may seem like common sense, but many self-employed professionals will find themselves wrapped up in festivities, or juggling all the holiday rush work, and forget to stop, sit down and plan it out. Creating the “Plan of Attack” for the holidays is just one thing that should be determined ahead of time. It is equally important to start mapping out your vision for the new year, major goals, and how to accomplish them.

One of the biggest reasons that self-employed professionals become so stressed out and anxious during the holiday season is worrying about the work that needs to get done. Which clients will you need to contact, come January 2nd? What leads should you be following up on? What does your budget look like? Will you need a Small Business Loan or a Start-Up Loan ? Setting aside time to create a strategy ahead of time will not only decrease your amount of stress, but allow you to enjoy the holiday season.

Learn to Say, “No”

Everyone, family especially, will be tugging at your sleeves, trying to get you to take some additional time off, come to all sorts of holiday parties, celebrate out late, or just come early and prep. Be realistic about your time and how to budget it. Don’t be afraid to say, “No”, when you have business to take care of.

The holidays can be a lovely time to pause and spend moments by the fire or at the table, surrounded by those you love, but as a self-employed professional you must know when attention needs to be paid to business matters first. Let your friends and family know that you are also essentially “on call” when it comes to urgent business matters. Sometimes it’s necessary to keep an eye on incoming calls or emails, in case a fire needs to be put out. Explaining this upfront to your friends and family will cut back on the side-eyes and comments when you have to take a business call.

Don’t Wait to Start the New Year

While many companies are allowing the first couple of weeks for their staff to recoup and spend time relaxing, self-employed professionals do not have that luxury. The new year begins January 2nd, with scheduling follow-up calls for existing and potential clients, executing new strategies, aligning your financials and so on. While the temptation to stretch out your holiday vacation is real, so are your responsibilities as a business owner. However, despite all the extra work, the upside to being a self-employed professional and the advantages are many – but of course, you already knew that when you chose this path, didn’t you?

Best of luck over this holiday season, and may you find a balance that will allow you to enjoy precious moments with friends and family, while hustlin’ like a pro.  

 

Unsecured Finances has over 10 years in the consulting business! We specialized in educating and assisting clients on acquiring Unsecured Business Loans and Start-Up Business Specialty Loans including; Unsecured No Documentation (No-Doc Stated Income) Loans, Unsecured Business Loans, and Unsecured Start-Up Business Loans and Lines of Credit from $10,000 to $500,000 without Assets.

Apply on our website to find out if you qualify, or call today for a free consultation: 1-888-294-2584

There are so many things to contemplate when it comes to running a business, whether you are self-employed or the owner of a small business. Learning what mistakes have been made by other business owners is one of the best ways to map out your own business strategy in an effort to run flawlessly. We have done some of the digging for you to discover 4 mistakes that many small businesses and self-employed professionals commonly make.

Being Mediocre

When potential clients seek out a small business to do their bidding, they are looking for innovative and efficient work. Small businesses have a reputation for working hard to offer something that bigger companies do not, and in most cases this is a level of customization. Not only can smaller businesses focus more time on their clients, but they also have to really work to distinguish themselves from the competition. Bigger companies become robotic when dealing with clients and their work is generally mass produced.

When you are a small business, you must be wary of getting into a rut, or just following the motions when it comes to producing goods or services. In any business, big or small, there is the temptation to just fall into your routine and forget to focus on delivering personalized, custom work. Larger companies can get away with it more so than self-employed or small business owners can, because they already have a reputation and an abundance of publicity and business. Smaller companies and self-employed professionals have to fight to stay ahead of their competition and earn their following by demonstrating an ability to think innovatively and produce work that is anything but run-of-the-mill.

Pricing Too Low

Determining price points is difficult for many startups. There is an ocean of research to perform, in most cases, that leads to the final decision in pricing for goods or services produced by a self-employed professional or a small business. The thought process adopted by many small business owners is that if you run discounts and promotions from the beginning you will get more clients “through the door”. While occasionally running promotions is a good way to rack up more exposure when properly planned and coordinated with holidays and other events, it is no way to consistently run a sustainable business.

In the beginning, more than anything, you should be pricing according to the quality of the work. Earn your dollars and reputation by supplying a level of service and substance that will not be found anywhere, or from any of your competitors. The goal is convince your audience that you have something rare of great value and delivering that level of quality to them in an efficient and time-effective manner. Your audience needs to know that what they can expect from your business is beyond anything they could receive at those big fancy and impersonal companies, and that you are worth every penny. This is how you survive the early years and build a sustainable business that will be able to keep the lights on.

Blurred Focus

Maintain your focus on your internal structure. This refers to the effort placed in constantly evaluating your business structure – retraining (if you have staff), refinancing, reengineering and reinvesting. All too often, small businesses and especially the self-employed think in the terms of “set it and forget it” when it comes to their business plan. It is assumed that they already went through the whole debacle of researching, speaking to other professionals and piecing together their plan, so why would they need to check through it again, right? Wrong.

Your business will evolve and so will your knowledge of business management. Each new circumstance is an opportunity to learn what works and what not to do. This is especially true of finances. You may have already invested the initial startup cost to get everything up and running, but depending on your type of business you may need to keep reinvesting in things such as; office supplies, on-hand product, rent, equipment, business insurance and licenses, marketing, etc. You can acquire a Small Business Loan or a Start-Up Loan through a variety of sources (like us!) – however another issue that could rear its ugly head is common among small businesses or the self-employed – stating your income. (Mark – if you want to correct or add anything here, please do so). We specialize in dealing with small business and self-employed professionals when it comes to these tricky matters. Issues such as your credit score can even pop up to tangle things, and we can provide guidance to help you get back on track if that happens to be your biggest obstacle. Don’t hesitate to give us a call when you are ready to invest or reinvest in your business.

Lacking in Creativity

Even if you are thinking, “my business isn’t in the creative industry”, you are required to weave creativity throughout your business, whether you do it personally or if you hire a professional. Every small business or self-employed professional relies on creativity to set them apart from their competition. Creative in the care and customization that you provide to your customers and clients; creative in the branding you use for elements such as your website, logo, social media, and perhaps packaging; and creative in the methods of marketing that you use to promote your business and grab the attention of all the eyes available out there. To make it as a small business or self-employed professional, there is no option but to utilize creativity as much as possible, and if you can’t exercise that part of your brain, hire it.

Unsecured Finances has over 10 years in the consulting business! We specialized in educating and assisting clients on acquiring Unsecured Business Loans and Start-Up Business Specialty Loans including; Unsecured No Documentation (No-Doc Stated Income) Loans, Unsecured Business Loans, and Unsecured Start-Up Business Loans and Lines of Credit from $10,000 to $500,000 without Assets.

Apply on our website to find out if you qualify, or call today for a free consultation: 1-888-294-2584

 

Wholesale businesses are an unsung hero behind many of the new companies we see popping up all over Instagram and Facebook. You know the companies I’m talking about, they constantly post meticulously posed models wearing enviable stylish outfits and donning an array of their beautiful accessories – handbags, jewelry, hats, scarves. In most of these cases, those pieces aren’t handmade and original, but rather they are mass produced and sold by wholesale companies to retailers. One of the most popular wholesalers currently is a business you have likely heard of, and even more likely have purchased their items from a retailer — Alibaba. This Chinese company has dominated in recent years, providing products directly to retailers, and even to secondary wholesale companies. Companies like Alibaba buy mass amounts of products directly from the manufacturer at low cost, and sell the products at a marked up prices to businesses with high volume purchase orders. The advantage to being a wholesale business is the profit margin, however there are obstacles on your journey to success.

3 Big Obstacles for Wholesale Startups

Accommodation

While the fantasy and draw of starting a wholesale business is very seductive, there are a few issues that many new wholesale startups will face. The first is accomodating for the mass amount of product to keep on hand at your facility. If you are asking, “What facility?”, you have your first problem. You may be tempted to dropship your wholesale items directly from the manufacturer to the retailer, but keep in mind that you may be purchasing from manufacturers overseas, which will increase your lead time and possibly decrease your reputation as a wholesaler. Keeping items on hand is one of the most effective ways to keep your retailers happy and meet demands- especially during high traffic shipping times like holidays. Finding a warehouse or facility that will adequately store your products is a high priority for a wholesale startup.

Shipping

As a wholesaler, you will require a lot of manpower, based on the amount of product you intend to move. This means including a fast and reliable staff that will be able to get large amounts of items out quickly and without error. Shipping supplies are also another necessary expense. What kind of products will be you shipping? Small items like jewelry and accessories? Or larger items like hardware and machinery? Depending on the fragility, weight and size of your products, special accommodations may be required to ensure that the products are arriving in the best condition – cutting down on the chances for returns.

Funding

When all the details are down on paper, everything accounted for, your biggest barrier will inevitably be funding. Especially for a wholesale business, you are fronting a large cost with the risk of how long it will take you to move your product. Once you have all your numbers calculated, how do you get funding for a wholesale startup business?  Well, there are several options:

• Existing Funds

If you have the ability to finance everything on your own, great! Using your savings, or selling persona assets can get you to a certain point, and depending on what is required to start your business it may be enough. However, you have to think about what is on the line if the business does not work out and where the risk may lie.

• Loans

One of the most popular options for startups is a Small Business Loan or a Start-Up Loan. Unsecured Finances offers many types of loans, as well as consulting about what is the best fit for your business. We can guide you through the steps to find a solution for you. If there are further obstacles keeping you from getting your funds (such as a low credit score), we can offer our professional advice to help you get your finances back on track so you are able to reapplying as soon as possible.

• Raising the Funds

The final option is raising the funds. Depending on the type of business, you can find a way to create a fundraising event or page. However, these efforts can be extremely sensitive to execute, and reaching your desired funding may be a lot more difficult and time consuming. Regardless, checking out options like gofundme.com and similar platforms is a good option to research to see if it will be effective for your business.

Unsecured Finances has over 10 years in the consulting business! We specialized in educating and assisting clients on acquiring Unsecured Business Loans and Start-Up Business Specialty Loans including; Unsecured No Documentation (No-Doc Stated Income) Loans, Unsecured Business Loans, and Unsecured Start-Up Business Loans and Lines of Credit from $10,000 to $500,000 without Assets.

 

Apply on our website to find out if you qualify, or call today for a free consultation: 1-888-294-2584