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With lending mostly frozen and profits down sharply, many small-business owners are facing a shortage in funds. Score, a national nonprofit group that provides free assistance to small businesses, has offered five tips for beating the cash crunch:
• Sell more by adding a service contract or by bundling products with a slight discount — and collect payment at the time of the sale.
• Collect all funds you are owed and do it quickly. Collect deposits up front whenever possible, and set up progress payments in the contract at key milestones. Put a collection policy in place for all clients.
• Cut expenses 10 percent, and hold onto your cash. Spend on marketing and operating the businesses, but don't stock unnecessary items, print large quantities of brand material or commit to long-term contracts.
• Borrow funds for bridge capital until customer payment is received. Consider a line of credit if your credit score is good, or explore the possibility of an SBA-guaranteed loan if it is not so good.
• Slow payments to vendors. Free up extra cash by contacting your vendors, lenders and credit cards to renegotiate rates, fees and payment schedules before you begin having payment issues.
For more tips, including a surviving-the-recession podcast with financial expert Anne Groth, visit score.org/accelerate.
Pitch your business
Get out the video camera.
StartupNation has launched its 2009 "Elevator Pitch" contest, in which entrepreneurs can make a quick business pitch for a shot at some investor funds.
The top 100 pitches will be selected by popular vote and then judged by a panel of StartupNation judges as well as angel investors and venture capitalists.
The top five pitches will be announced on April 7. Winning entrepreneurs will receive the chance for a prearranged, one-hour presentation to top-tier investors, as well as a Toshiba laptop and a one-year account with GoToMeeting.
To enter, contestants must submit video or audio of a pitch that's no more than 2 minutes long to StartupNation.com by March 20. Contestants must be located in the U.S. and be age 18 or older to participate.
Growth seminar
Do you have a strategic plan for this downturn?
The Small Business Development Center at the University of Central Florida is hosting a two-day workshop called "Business Strategies during a Down Economy" on March 11-12.
The event, designed for next-level growth businesses, will cover topics such as strategic management, analysis of external and internal environment, developing a marketing strategy, building brand equity, and pricing strategies. Instructors will be Bruce Barringer and Raj Echambadi of UCF's College of Business Administration.
For Orange County businesses, the workshop costs $75 for both days or $50 for one day. Registration for businesses from outside Orange County is $375 for two days or $225 for one day. To register or for more information, visit sbdcorlando.com or call 407-420-4850.
Disaster-loan deadline
The deadline is approaching to apply for economic-injury disaster loans in connection with the wildfires that shut down Interstate 95 and destroyed dozens of homes in Central Florida last May.
March 2 is the last day to apply for the low-interest loans offered by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Loans of as much as $1.5 million are available for small businesses that suffered substantial economic injury from the fires. The money can be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills that could have been paid had the fires not occurred, the agency said.
Small businesses in the following counties are eligible to apply: Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Volusia, Brevard and Indian River. The interest rate on the loans is 4 percent, with a maximum term of 30 years.
Source: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/
