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$1,000,000 To Start or Expand A Business
The SBA (office above) guarantees the loans given threw banks and other lending institutions and private lenders. The 504 Certified Development Company Loan provides businesses with long term-fixed rate financing for major-fixed assets, such as land and buildings. A Certified Development Company is a non profit corporation set up to contribute to the economic development of its community. CDC's work along side of the SBA and private sector lenders to provide financing to small businesses. CDC's are listed geographically online at:
{www.sba.gov/gopher/Local-Information/certified-Development-Companies/}. Maximum loan is $1.3 million dollars. Rates are pegged to an increment above the current market rate for 5 year and 10 year U.S. Treasury Issues. Maturities of 10 and 20 years are also available. Eligibility is as follows; businesses with a net worth of less than $6 million and does not have net income in excess of $2 million after taxes for the preceding 2 years. Loans cannot be made to businesses engaged in speculation or investment of rental real estate. There are public policy criteria that need to be met as well, they are explained in the website for the 504 loan itself and can be discussed with contact listed below for the SBA. Contact your SBA (office below) to be directed to appropriate and compatible lenders. Application and instructions for the 504 loans is available online at: {www.sba.gov/library/forms.html}. U.S. Small Business Administration, Baltimore District, Office SBA, Frances Hensen, Chief, Finance Division, City Crescent Building, 6th Floor, 10 S. Howard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; 410-962-4392; Fax: 410-962-1805; {Frances.Henson@sba.gov}; {www.sba.gov/financing/frcdc504.html}.

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$1,000,000 To Start or Expand A Business
The loans are from banks but the SBA guarantees the loans to the banks. CapLines finances small businesses short term, cyclical working capital needs. Under the Caplines guidelines, there are five distinct short term working capital loans: Seasonal line, Contract line, Builders line, standard asset-based lines, small asset based line. The loan generally guarantees up to $750,000.00 and in special circumstances up to 1 million. Eligibility is based on a case by case basis it is determined by 4 factors: Type of business, size, use of loan funds, special circumstances. The rate of the loan is negotiable with lender and can be up to 2.25% over prime rate. Each five lines of credit's Maturity is up to 5 years, and because each is tailored to an individuals businesses needs, a shorter initial maturity may be established. Contact SBA (office below) to be directed to compatible lender. There are numerous other guidelines, interested parties can either check online at {www.sba.gov/financing/frcaplines.html} or speak with contact person listed below, or both. Contact SBA (office below) to be directed to compatible lender. There are numerous other guidelines, interested parties can either check online at {www.sba.gov/financing/frcaplines.html} or speak with contact person listed below, or both. U.S. Small Business Administration, Baltimore District, Office SBA, Frances Hensen, Chief, Finance Division, City Crescent Building, 6th Floor, 10 S. Howard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; 410-962-4392; Fax: 410-962-1805; {Frances.Henson@sba.gov}; {www.sba.gov/financing/frcaplines.html}.

}. Maximum loan is $1.3 million dollars. Rates are pegged to an increment above the current market rate for 5 year and 10 year U.S. Treasury Issues. Maturities of 10 and 20 years are also available. Eligibility is as follows; businesses with a net worth of less than $6 million and does not have net income in excess of $2 million after taxes for the preceding 2 years. Loans cannot be made to businesses engaged in speculation or investment of rental real estate. There are public policy criteria that need to be met as well, they are explained in the website for the 504 loan itself and can be discussed with contact listed below for the SBA. Contact your SBA (office below) to be directed to appropriate and compatible lenders. Application and instructions for the 504 loans is available online at: {}. U.S. Small Business Administration, Baltimore District, Office SBA, Frances Hensen, Chief, Finance Division, City Crescent Building, 6th Floor, 10 S. Howard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; 410-962-4392; Fax: 410-962-1805; {}; {}.}. Maximum loan is $1.3 million dollars. Rates are pegged to an increment above the current market rate for 5 year and 10 year U.S. Treasury Issues. Maturities of 10 and 20 years are also available. Eligibility is as follows; businesses with a net worth of less than $6 million and does not have net income in excess of $2 million after taxes for the preceding 2 years. Loans cannot be made to businesses engaged in speculation or investment of rental real estate. There are public policy criteria that need to be met as well, they are explained in the website for the 504 loan itself and can be discussed with contact listed below for the SBA. Contact your SBA (office below) to be directed to appropriate and compatible lenders. Application and instructions for the 504 loans is available online at: {}. U.S. Small Business Administration, Baltimore District, Office SBA, Frances Hensen, Chief, Finance Division, City Crescent Building, 6th Floor, 10 S. Howard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; 410-962-4392; Fax: 410-962-1805; {}; {}.}. Maximum loan is $1.3 million dollars. Rates are pegged to an increment above the current market rate for 5 year and 10 year U.S. Treasury Issues. Maturities of 10 and 20 years are also available. Eligibility is as follows; businesses with a net worth of less than $6 million and does not have net income in excess of $2 million after taxes for the preceding 2 years. Loans cannot be made to businesses engaged in speculation or investment of rental real estate. There are public policy criteria that need to be met as well, they are explained in the website for the 504 loan itself and can be discussed with contact listed below for the SBA. Contact your SBA (office below) to be directed to appropriate and compatible lenders. Application and instructions for the 504 loans is available online at: {}. U.S. Small Business Administration, Baltimore District, Office SBA, Frances Hensen, Chief, Finance Division, City Crescent Building, 6th Floor, 10 S. Howard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; 410-962-4392; Fax: 410-962-1805; {}; {}.


If you are trying to find venture capital and are having difficulty in trying to obtain the funds that you need for your Venture then please contact us about our grant matching program.  Let us see what we can do to help you.

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The Top 6 Ways to get Home Business Financing

1. SBA Loans: The Small Business Administration is a government organization working towards promoting the small and home business segment in the US. Though SBA doesn’t issue grants or make loans directly, it is still one of the best sources of funding for the home business owner. The reason is that SBA guarantees loans made by private lenders to you as a home business owner. One of the biggest problems you will face as a home based entrepreneur looking for funding is trying to prove you are not a fraud and have the capability to return the investors’ money. So the SBA guarantee reduces or eliminates the risk inherent in a new business venture, gives credibility to your business and makes it easy for moneylenders to forward money to you. For more information visit the SBA site at:
http://www.sba.gov
http://www.sba.gov/financing/index.html

2. Commercial banks: Taking a loan from a bank is a good option because banks don’t require you to turn over equity or company control. However, you must have the confidence and a strong plan to make your business start making profits regularly or else it can get sticky paying the bank loan back. To get access to bank loans you have to have collaterals and must be able to prove your capability in your start up area.

3. Personal Saving: This is a favorite with a large percentage of first time entrepreneurs because it is the easiest way to get money (if you have it!), and you have no liability to any outside lenders. So if you’ve been planning for your home business all along and have set some money aside, use that to kick start your venture. An ex-colleague who turned a home business owner recently decided to have a garage sale of all the stuff they didn’t need in the house anymore. I kid you not…they raised a sizeable sum in just one weekend!

4. Family and friends: Borrowing from family or friends is a good idea when the amount you need is relatively small. It can be clubbed with part of your own savings and novel fund raising ideas like a garage sale to help finance your business. This is an easy way to raise funds, as these are the people who know you well and need fewer assurances. It is also unlikely that they will drag you to a court if your business takes longer to get profitable and repayment is delayed. But take care that money does not sour your relationships; be professional in your dealings with them and get a formal agreement drawn up in order to put the terms of the loan in writing.

5. Venture Capitalists: Venture capitalists are professional investors who may be in charge of a large pool of capital gathered from a range of sources. These firms invest in new, even high-risk or speculative businesses without a proven track record, with the potential for rapid growth and high returns in a short time. Take a look at www.vfinance.com to get you started on this line of credit.

6. Angel Investors: Angels investors are relative to venture capitalists and usually less demanding in the returns they expect. These are private investors who expect their investments to make more money than through the traditional markets. An angel investor could be your doctor, accountant or attorney who seek out new businesses to invest in return for equity ownership. Also see: www.angel-investor-news.com

Some other good sources of funding are Industrial banks, home equity loans and loans on credit cards. Some other not so obvious ways of raising capital can be equipment leasing and advertising. Another area, which you can explore, is personal grants from corporates. For more information take a look at http://www.fdncenter.org/funders/grantmaker/index.html

So arm yourself with a solid business plan, determination and the right kind of information on what investors are looking for. You will hit the ground running with some of these ideas above.

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Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information.

How to create multiple revenue streams for your home business

WHY DO IT

In the new entrepreneurial era where most businesses are aligned to the World Wide Web, a smart wealth building strategy is diversification. With multiple revenue streams you not only avoid putting all your eggs in one basket but also create several sources of income so that when there is a slump in one the other one is still around to keep the cash flow healthy. When you offer a host of related and complimentary products and services to customers you are offering them more value and opportunities for repeat business. Not only that diversifying also means you spread out your risks and minimize the cost of marketing and acquiring new customers. Offering multiple products and services gives your business a challenge and the friction required to keep moving ahead.

Last but not the least, creating a multifaceted business is also good for the creative spirit of the owner

GETTING THERE

Let’s start with an example. Say you are a small business owner-manufacturing pet grooming tools. You set up a great website to offer your products online to an existing and potential base of customers but want to expand your sales and maximise profits. Diversifying into related product and service fields is just the idea for you. Here are some thoughts to get you started:

1. Sell your own products: you can sell your own product (pet grooming tools), earning the largest profit margin. This should be your main source of income, so make sure you focus on this first.

2. Sell related services: You could also sell a service that complements your products or that your customers might need before or after using your product. Your pet grooming tools sales site, for example, could offer grooming service and consultation with professional pet care providers.

3. Drop ship products: Next, you could find products available to drop ship that complement your main product. Maybe your new pet grooming tool owners will need other items for their pets. Find a drop shipper that offers leashes, collars, food bowls and pet toys and arrange to offer those products for sale on your site.

4. Recommend affiliate products: Why not recommend affiliate products that your customers will be interested in? You could set up a "Pet care Resources" page on your site and use it to promote affiliate products related to pets and pet grooming, such as books or magazines about pet care, dog food, expert advice on pet care, an “ask the vet” button or just about anything else pet owners would be interested in. (Remember, though, keep your focus and avoid turning this page into a general flea market or you'll end up losing traffic.)

5. Sell ad space: Try selling ad space to advertisers who are interested in your target market. A site that sells specialized pet services like a kennel or a pet hostel might be interested in advertising to pet owners since it is usually a big question for a family going on a vacation to leave their pet in safe hands.

6. Create a joint venture with like-minded businesses: Another option would be to create a joint venture with other businesses. Align your services with, say, a dog-training agency. You could set up an arrangement where you earn a portion of the profits on any sales you send his way. Then, write a quick e-mail promotion about his service and send it to all of your customers who live in his area.

7. Start an affiliate program: Finally, start an affiliate program to promote your site. You could do all your selling yourself . . . but why would you? Think about it--you boost your visibility when your affiliates start publicizing your site, you gain credibility with your affiliates' customers, and you simply make more sales!You can get some more ideas at:
http://developers.evrsoft.com/article/web-development/miscellaneous/how-to-leverage-your-curr.shtml

This is not all. You can pull additional sales from existing customers by investing in customer relationship management and data mining. Data mining systems allow companies to target a broad range of customers with common buying characteristics as well as narrow the target down to individual customers. Targeted e-mail, for instance is more effective than broadcast email. Companies such as Amazon.com do a great job of suggesting choices based on past product purchases.

Another major source of new revenue for an online company is “Digital Content”. Digital content is basically kind of information that can be downloaded by the user for a certain fee. Digital content ranges from music, movies, photographs, news and information, interactive multiplayer games, books magazines and almost anything else that can be digitised. Revenues may come from pay per use of subscription or purchase for downloads.

For an imaginative business owner the possibilities for creating new revenue streams are limitless. Diversifying is great; diversifying is fun, but a word of caution here. You must make extra sure that your revenue channels are complimentary to each other and that you never, never forget your core customer base. These were the first people to buy from you and these are the ones who are still most likely to come back with repeat orders.

Generating multiple revenue streams is the most logical solution to turning your online investments into a profitable and sustainable business. Let your imagination run lose, plan in detail and be prepared to work real hard; having 3 sources of income compared to one never hurt anybody!
Also see: http://www.powerhomebiz.com/vol116/revenue.htm

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Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information.

Quick & Easy Tools for You to Effectively Market Your Home Business

For the home business owner who has just put most of his eggs in this basket, you'd think it would be twice as tough to market his products and services. Well, think again! It does not have to cost an arm and a leg to put your business on the high road; all you need is some basic rules, some sound thinking and a lot of imagination.

Give these low cost strategies and marketing tools a try and you will be amazed at the results:

1. Network: a cardinal rule of marketing is to Network, Network, Network! You never know from where a good business lead will come your way. The question is, with whom do you network? That's easy…Use your contacts! Even before you started your business you knew at least a couple of hundred people. They in turn would know a couple of hundreds themselves and so on and so forth. That's a good database to begin with. Spend time developing relationships with the people you already know. Ask them to refer business your way and educate them about the products and services you sell.

2. Use the Internet: One of the most cost- effective and easily accessible marketing tools available to the home business owner is the Internet. Marketing through the Internet cuts across geographical boundaries and creates a high impact in a much lesser time. So, it would do you a world of good to employ email as a key marketing tool. Spend some time in crafting out a business letter that clearly spells out the Why, Where, How, What and When of your business. Flesh out a mailing list of your current and prospective buyers and start hitting the send button.

3. Publicity: Use the power of the written word to your advantage. Advertising costs a lot of money & time, PR is more cost effective, gets you recognition and lends instant credibility to you business. Focus on local dailies, relevant magazines and trade magazines. It would not be a bad idea to also target web- based publications and ezines. You don't need to hire an expensive PR firm to do this job for you. You could write the article yourself or enlist the help of a friend or family member who has some experience at newspaper writing. Two keys to a good press release are a succinct headline and making sure it doesn't read like ad copy.

4. Jump "Out- of -the- box": Get creative. The best ideas are the ones that catch the customer by surprise. A small Non-profit organization, which raised funds through its events, created a painting contest for kids and called it "Colors of Concern". The paintings sent for competition could only be in shades of blue; which was the organization's corporate colors. A challenge like that got them entries in thousands and caught the attention of the local papers and news channels as well. A winning idea does not necessarily have to get you praying for a fortune; just some creative, lateral thinking would work wonders.

5. Follow up: Follow up on sales calls made earlier, on emails sent out and with your contacts to see if they have any new references for you. Go all out keeping in touch with your contacts. It not only allows you to keep a sales lead hot, but also gives you the opportunity to talk about the new developments at your company, fill in any communication gaps and well, just stay in touch!

6. Talk to your existing clients: More often than not, one of the biggest mistakes business owners make is to get complacent about existing customers. A rule of thumb to go by here is: "80% of your business comes from 20% of your customers". It is anybody's guess that the 20% of the big business generating customers are the ones that you've already been selling to for some time. Don't ignore them. It is easier to retain old customers than to make new ones. Build a system to get regular feedback from existing customers on products, services, new requirements, post-sales support and new requirements that they may have. Remember, that in the end it is more about how much your customers value your services than about how satisfied they are.

Success is not a function of size. Success is all about being an effective marketer and a creative one at that. So get out of the box and get smart about your marketing with these simple, time tested rules, and watch your business break into a faster pace.

Also see: http://www.powerhomebiz.com/vol109/cashcow.htm

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Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information.

The Idiot’s Step-By-Step Guide To Blogging & Profiting

There are millions of bloggers in the world today blogging away to glory. But blogging can be more than just chatter in the cyberspace. It can be a great tool for boosting your online business’s profitability once you’ve understood how it works and what are its limitations. Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblog#Corporate for some more information.

How to become a Blogger?

The key to learning how to become a blogger is to start blogging! Easier said than done? Not really. There are several websites that can give you information on how to be a blogger. Blogger.com is one of them. You have three options here to choose from:

- Have a hosted service like Blogger allows you to set up an account and fire away in a matter of minutes.
- A remotely installed blog like movabletype allows you to install on a server for a small fee.
- Desktop blog programs like Radio Userland are installed on your desktop and then uploaded to a host. These are usually desktop programmes that include hosting and upgradation for a certain period of time and charge you a small fee.
- You can get more information on blogging resources from http://www.blogroots.com/resources.blog.

Also see: http://www.blogger.com/start

Once you have decided what option you want for setting up your weblog/ blog you are ready to start blogging. It is that easy. It could take a while before anyone will notice your little blog in the corner and take you seriously. But you can cut down this time with some great ideas at: http://help.blogger.com/

offers some great ideas on increasing your blog’s readership. There is a Chinese saying, “ It’s a wise man who learns from others’ mistakes”. Read others blogs to see what works and what doesn’t, what are their writing styles etc. It’s a great way to teach yourself and fun too…. you are learning on some one else’s expense.

Guidelines for the greenhorn blogger

Here are some simple guidelines for a newbie blogger. Take a chance with these to increase your chances of success.

1. Get Blogging: Like I said earlier, the best way to learn blogging is to start blogging.
2. Recognize your motivation: Why are you blogging? What do you hope to achieve?
3. Link to other blogs: the best way to popularise your blog is to link to other blogs. So link you must!
4. Develop a unique style of writing: Developing a writing style is an evolutionary process. Try different approaches and formats until you find one that fits your message, audience, and personal motivations.
5. Express your personality... let your humour, your perspective on life, and your values shine in your writing.
6. Be regular with your posting: readers will quickly wander away from blogs that are not updated regularly. So this is very important.

How to profit from Blogging?

Now that you have understood what a blog is and how to get blogging, its time to make it pay. Blogging is a great way to enhance your online company’s bottomline. It is a popular and an easy medium and has potential of reaching millions.

Here are some tips for you to turn blogging into a serious profitable strategy.

1. Customer Interaction: A blog is a good means to keep in touch with your customers regularly. You can keep them updated on new events, happening in your company, new products and services and other developments. the best part is that you can do it more cost effectively and in much less time than other methods like newsletters, customer updates and customer meetings. The elements of interactivity, community and collaboration are key here. Your blog can also serve as a platform for advertising, promotion and even internal communications. One well-known business example is software company Macromedia's use of blogging to keep customers updated on what's happening with its products.

2. Query management: With a blog you can receive and answer to customer queries more quickly than an email. For potential customers it is very important to have a sharp turnaround and you can do that easily with a blog.

3. Link to other sites: Linking your blog to other similar, but not competing, sites is a great way to get some free publicity and traffic for your online business. It is also one big reason why Search Engines will grab your site in their result pages. Ask any online entrepreneur what getting quality traffic to a website means and you’ll know what I am talking about.

4. Get Feedback: Getting feedback from your customers on your products and services, on your company practices and other things is one of the most valuable resources you can build. With a blog, it is not just easier but also time saving for customers to leave feedback for you without filling complicated and mile long forms.

5. Get Google to work for you: Selling ad space is one of the most popular revenue streams for online businesses. With Google’s free AdSense service it just got easier www.google.com/adsense. AdSense allows bloggers to display up to three content-specific "ad units" (boxes that can hold up to four ads each) per page. Each time a visitor clicks these ads, you get paid. Need more convincing?

6. Become an affiliate: Your blog can become a cash cow by using the simple idea of becoming an affiliate for other websites. An affiliate basically carries a link to the other site and each time some one clicks on that link, you get a small commission for it.

7. Donations: If you are running a blog that people love to read and keep coming back in hordes, why not ask them for some monetary appreciation?

Put on your thinking cap and let your imagination run unbridled. You will surprise yourself with the number of ideas that will make your blog less of a personal e-diary and more of a digital cash cow. Blogging is a relatively new marketing arena for webpreneurs, but has immense possibility and potential. Be sure to get on to the bandwagon early in the game and reap your benefits later.

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Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information.