Family Funding, Marketing Diversification, and $0 Startup Cost

Your Sister Offered You a Small Business Loan - Should You Take It?

When in the throes of starting a small business, many entrepreneurs are presented with a very enticing option - a small business loan from a close friend or family member. Often, these loans are small but can make a BIG difference to a business that needs a little boost to get off the ground. Although it sounds enticing, the question of whether you should accept a family member's offer is a difficult one to answer.

The pros of accepting a small business loan from your sister, uncle, or best friend down the street is that you aren’t subject to interest or loan origination fees. There is no application to fill out, and your approval doesn’t depend on any past financial decisions (good or bad) that you have made.

Despite all of the benefits, however, there can be significant drawbacks to accepting a small business loan from a family member. Some of the most common include strict requirements on how you can spend the money, accounting for tax purposes can become complicated, and the biggest one of all - if you are unable to pay back the loan you risk putting a strain on your relationship.

The bottom line? Unless you have laid out clear terms for accepting a small business loan from a family member and can guarantee you are able to pay them back on time (based upon hard facts, not intuition) sourcing an actual small business loan from a funder is a better choice. Although it may cost you more in the long run, it won't cost you your most valuable assets - your relationships.

SOURCE: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaredhecht/2019/03/12/should-you-accept-a-business-loan-from-a-family-member/#69c0ba185ceb

Invest in a Diverse Marketing Plan to Secure the Future of Your Business

Last week, Facebook and Instagram went dark. If you are part of the entrepreneurial world (or just have the apps on your phone), you already know this. For nearly 8 hours, the business world was in sheer panic because their main marketing platforms had seemingly disappeared overnight. People who depend on the social media sites to drive sales to their business and engage with their customers were left wondering how much money they would lose if the sites continued to be down and how they would rebuild their momentum if this were a long-term situation.

Of course, by the end of the day, both Facebook and Instagram were up and running, and all was right with the world again. But, those who were panicked learned a valuable lesson - putting all of your eggs in one basket is a dangerous choice especially when it comes to marketing.

While Facebook and Instagram are both essential components of an excellent digital marketing plan, they should not be the only way a business is connecting with their audience. Investing time and resources into other sources of engagement such as email marketing, online ads, and SEO is always a good choice. If a business is not investing in these other avenues, they are likely missing out on sales and running the risk of losing their entire business if their one and only marketing platform tanks.

The lesson learned here? Acquire the resources it takes to diversify your small business marketing plan. If Facebook ever goes dark again, you’ll be a few steps ahead of the game.

SOURCE: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/330200

What Everyone Wants To Know - Can You Start a Business Without Any Funding?

With so many small businesses popping up all over the internet, it’s easy for everyone to think they have what it takes to make it work. And, although there are plenty of great small business ideas out there, there is always one thing that people get hung up on - funding.

There are so many options for small business funding available with a myriad of requirements that many aspiring entrepreneurs find the entire process to be too overwhelming. As a result, they give up the search altogether or look for loopholes to make the process easier.

For those who are overwhelmed by small business loans or sourcing startup money, beginning a small business without any funding might seem like an enticing option. However, doing so is not the easiest or the smartest route.

To start a business without any funding, you are going to need a solid foundation of high paying customers that you can use as a springboard to catapult you into success. To acquire such a foundation requires time, patience, and a lot of organization. Furthermore, there is no room for error or loss because, without small business funding, there is no safety net to fall back on.

So, before you try and go it alone and build your business from the ground up with next to nothing, remember the hard work is worth it, and there are resources you can use to make sense of it all!

SOURCE: https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2019/02/21/what-to-know-about-starting-a-business-without-funding/#544600373d0d