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How BizOpp Predators Target The Desperate

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Considering the state of societal affairs following the effects of the virus, it goes without saying that there are a number of individuals out there hurting for money. After a while of living between jobs, or barely getting by from paycheck to paycheck, any opportunity that promises extra money not only sounds good but it almost seems like a godsend. These opportunities promise extra money in the bank with minimal effort on your side, which would sound appealing to just about anyone. Don’t be fooled—a number of these “opportunities” are designed to cheat you out of your money and leave you not only in the same place you were before, but worse off if you were required to pay a startup fee. If you’ve fallen for these common business opportunity scams, don’t feel bad or beat yourself up. These things happen, and these predators know how to target those who are desperate for money just to get by. [Read more…] about How BizOpp Predators Target The Desperate

Should You Quit Your Job and Start a Business?

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You want to quit your job to start a business. Nobody can blame you. There are many wonderful things about being your own boss. However, it’s a risky endeavor. It’s not all sunshine and roses. Moreover, you can lose a lot of income at the beginning of starting a business. Should you really quit your job? Or should you perhaps scale back on your regular work as you first start your business? There are a lot of things to take into consideration when you make this decision. Let’s explore the pros and cons a little bit.

Why Do You Want to Quit Your Job and Start a Business?

This is the most important question to answer before you actually quit your job and start a business. And, in fact, you should answer it as two separate questions:

  • Why do you want to quit your job?
  • Why do you want to start your own business?

Many people consider it to be one question. However, if you are honest about the answers to both parts of the question then you’ll be a lot clearer whether or not this is the right step for you.

For example, let’s say that you answer part one: “I hate my boss.” As you dig into part two, you may realize that you don’t actually want to start your own business at all. In contrast, you simply don’t want to work for that same boss anymore. Realizing this early on will go a long way towards making sure that you’re taking the next right step in your career.

Alternatively, let’s say that you don’t have a clear answer to part one. You know that you want to start your own business because there’s a particular cause that you’re passionate about. Could you keep your day job and just volunteer in a capacity that fills that need?

If you are very clear about why you both want to quit your job and why you want to start a business then you’re well on your way to making smart choices as you move forward.

Benefits When You Quit Your Job to Start a Business

When you quit your job and start a business, you do reap some benefits:

  • You immediately begin to work for yourself. This gives you a huge feeling of freedom. However, don’t discount how much responsibility it requires.
  • You have plenty of time to devote to your new business. After all, if you regularly work 40+ hours per week and then you quit, that’s 40+ hours per week to devote to your new passion project.
  • You avoid any conflict of interest. If you want to start a job that’s similar to what you do now then there might be a conflict of interest that would prevent you from staying at your current job. Review any non-compete agreements and related terms of your contract.

If you are the type of person who works best under pressure then you might find that it’s worth it quit your job to start a business. You could thrive under the stress of trying to make a go of it when you don’t have another income to fall back on. The time you free up by quitting your job, and the freedom you get from working your own schedule, could be worth it. But don’t fail to take into consideration that there are drawbacks when you quit your job to start a business.

Drawbacks When You Quit Your Job to Start a Business

Research indicates that entrepreneurs do better if they stay at their job when first starting a business. There are some big risks and drawbacks to the decision to quit your job and start a business. Those drawbacks include:

  • You’re obviously no longer drawing an income. Therefore, there’s a lot of pressure on your new business to succeed dramatically and right away. You aren’t giving it enough time to scale up.
  • It could be harder to get loans for your business. If you can’t show that you’ve got an income coming in then getting credit for your new business could be more difficult.
  • If the business doesn’t do well, you might not be able to get your old job back. After all, the economy isn’t thriving right now. If you’re lucky enough to have full-time employment then you might not want to sacrifice that to start your own business.

Starting a Business: What to Do First

If you decide that you do want to quit your job to start a business, then you have to take that decision very seriously. You have to put your all into this new endeavor if you want to make it work. Here are some of the things that you need to do before you even quit your job:

  • Create a business plan. It’s imperative that you know exactly what you plan to do and how you plan to do it. You need goals, milestones, and timelines. Of course, those may shift with time but try to get a solid plan in place.
  • Crunch the numbers. Figure out what it’s going to cost you to start a business. Consider the initial costs, your own paycheck for the first year, and all other first-year expenses. Figure out how to make that work before you quit your job to start a business.
  • Start working. Don’t delay getting your first clients or customers. You might want to get the first few clients lined up before you quit your regular job.
  • Network. Just because you’re working for yourself doesn’t mean that you don’t need other people. Build your team. This might mean hiring people, working with consultants, or simply networking with other entrepreneurs. Make sure that you have a group of people in your corner.

Weigh the pros and cons before you quit a job to start a business. Does it make sense for you, considering the economy, where you are in your career, and what you truly want from starting your own business? The more thought that you put into the process ahead of time, the better chances you are to get the results that you desire.

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What Is an SBA Disaster Loan and How Do I Qualify for It?

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The Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), also called the SBA Disaster Loan, is one of the measures that the government has taken to help businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. New applications opened on June 15th. At that time, it became easier for certain businesses to qualify for the loan. In fact, even freelancers and other sole proprietors now qualify. Do you?

What is the SBA Disaster Loan?

The Small Business Administration offers a wide range of support and resources to small businesses. The SBA Disaster Loan is one of those resources.

First, there has to be a declared disaster. The COVID-19 pandemic is just one such example of a declared disaster. It has obviously impacted a large number of small businesses. Therefore, it’s exactly the type of situation that the loan helps remedy.

Once a disaster has been declared, small businesses can apply for assistance. In certain cases, SBA disaster loans also assist homeowners and renters whose property has been damaged. In the case of coronavirus, the damage is economic. Thus, the official name: Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL).

What is the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan?

Through this program, small businesses can apply to receive economic relief. If you are a sole proprietor or small business owner who has suffered losses due to COVID-19, then you might qualify for this loan.

Who Qualifies for this SBA Disaster Loan?

When you apply for the loan, you’ll select your status from the following options

  • Agricultural business with 500 or less employees
  • Coops with 500 or less employees
  • Tribal small business
  • Other business with 500 or less employees
  • Other business with more than 500 employees that meets the SBA Size Standards for a small business
  • Private non-profit with IRS tax exemptions under certain code sections
  • Sole proprietor or independent contractor with or without employees

If you qualify as one of those businesses, and your work has been negatively impacted by coronavirus, then you might be able to get an SBA Disaster Loan.

There are certain things that can disqualify you. For example, if you are a primary business owner who owes unpaid child support, then you might get disqualified from receiving the loan.

What is the SBA Disaster Loan Advance?

One of the things that might feel a little bit confusing is that there is the loan itself then there is a loan advance. You can apply for loans of varying amounts. Additionally, you can also apply for a loan advance of up to $10,000. You apply for it at the same time that you apply for the primary loan.

Some small businesses qualify for this advance even if they are not approved for a loan. Moreover, the loan advance never needs to be repaid.

SBA Disaster Loan Terms

The entire point of this business loan is to support small businesses during economic tribulations. Therefore, the terms of the loan are excellent compared to private loans. Some of the details include:

  • Low interest rate (3.75% for businesses, 2.75% for non-profit organizations)
  • Long period of repayment, up to thirty years
  • First payment is deferred for one year after receiving the loan

Small businesses can use the loan to pay their employees, pay off business debt, and cover most other business expenses. The loan is different from the Paycheck Protection Program loan. If your business received that money, use that first to cover those costs. Then use the disaster loan for any payments still not covered.

The big change that’s happened with these new loan terms is that sole proprietors and freelance employees are now more likely to qualify for assistance. Have you tried to get an SBA Disaster Loan? Share your experience in the comments below.

NOTE: If you enjoy reading our blog posts and would like to try your hand at blogging, we have good news for you; you can do exactly that on Saving Advice. Just click here to get started. If you want to be able to customize your blog on your own domain and need hosting service, we recommend trying BlueHost. They offer powerful hosting services for $3.95/month!

How to Take Payments Over the Phone and How to Choose the Best Provider for You

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Take payments over the phone
Yes, you can take payments over the phone.

If you own a company that needs to take payments over the phone, then a solution like a virtual terminal will be paramount to ensuring that you are successful. Some good examples of this are when you need to take a deposit for a hotel booking, accepting orders that need to be picked up and when products have to be shipped overseas. The question is, how do you make a payment when the customer isn’t there to give you cash or swipe their card in your chip and pin machine?

There are a few steps that you need to take to give your company this service, primarily a virtual terminal and PCI compliance. In order to do this, the first thing to do is to choose a virtual terminal partner.

Picking a provider

The first decision you need to make is choosing your virtual terminal partner. There are many on the market, and all have different features and price points, so doing the research to ensure that you are picking the best fit for you is essential. You may find that when doing your research, you will see ‘card not present’ transactions referenced as a service, which is just another term used interchangeably with a virtual terminal. You will often have to get in touch with the providers before you get any information on costs, so take some time to contact at least three to get a good idea of the market.

It may be tempting to choose only the largest providers like Worldpay or Sage Pay as they are very well established and often have lots of other services that may be useful to you. Ensure that you contact some of the smaller providers as well though, as if you are a smaller business, these might be a better fit for you. Also, do not be pulled into features that aren’t needed in your situation. While being able to access many different services from one provider may seem like a good idea, if you only really need a select few of them, you could be saving a lot of money by avoiding them. In general, providers will charge a monthly fee that isn’t too expensive, but doing your research will make sure that you get the best offer and service for your individual needs. The type of business that you have may impact your choice, as a more high-risk business may want more security. If you aren’t sure, then this PaymentCloud blog article

PCI compliance

Once you have chosen your virtual terminal, you’ll also need to make sure that you comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard to ensure that all of your payments are secure. This is due to card payments being more vulnerable to in-person payments, and fraud is a serious issue that you need to avoid. Most providers are PCI compliant, and this is something that you should check before signing up.

For more of our excellent savingadvice articles, read these:

Twenty-three advantages of self employment

Twenty-three disadvantages of self-employment

Sorry- you can’t actually start a business for free

Photo Credit: Celeste Lindell, via Flickr.