Comments on: Funding a Business with Credit Cards http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/ Because America runs on small business! Wed, 21 Mar 2012 23:03:07 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tony Mena http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/comment-page-1/#comment-49 Tony Mena Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:11:48 +0000 http://bestbizpractices.org/?p=128#comment-49 Let me further expound on using credit cards for starting or building business. This method is for those for various reasons will not be able to get bank funding. Or funding from any source for that matter. But the chose has been made to start or build a business. This is bootstrapping money. Start by getting the equipment you will need. You may have to be a little patient. Getting the equipment piece by piece and if you can pay it off. At least pay down the balance as much as possible and of course this means paying more then just the minimum. This may only take a few months. But you can also be doing so many other things in the mean time. One of which would be guerrilla marketing. Always the thinking is to pay it off or at least keep a low balance. As soon as possible use it to create income. In other words investing in what will make immediate income. Again this means marketing. Smart marketing. And of course done right you will be on your way to a successful enterprise. Start from the beginning to build your business credit. That way in time you will not have to use your own. Which will make it easier to find other funding. This may need a little thought but will pay big dividends. Let me further expound on using credit cards for starting or building business. This method is for those for various reasons will not be able to get bank funding. Or funding from any source for that matter. But the chose has been made to start or build a business. This is bootstrapping money.

Start by getting the equipment you will need. You may have to be a little patient. Getting the equipment piece by piece and if you can pay it off. At least pay down the balance as much as possible and of course this means paying more then just the minimum. This may only take a few months. But you can also be doing so many other things in the mean time. One of which would be guerrilla marketing.

Always the thinking is to pay it off or at least keep a low balance. As soon as possible use it to create income. In other words investing in what will make immediate income. Again this means marketing. Smart marketing. And of course done right you will be on your way to a successful enterprise. Start from the beginning to build your business credit. That way in time you will not have to use your own. Which will make it easier to find other funding. This may need a little thought but will pay big dividends.

]]> By: Tony http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/comment-page-1/#comment-48 Tony Sat, 01 Aug 2009 20:29:30 +0000 http://bestbizpractices.org/?p=128#comment-48 First of all using credit cards to help start or build a business is used when the banks won't help. Which is usually the case. Banks want collateral and so do investment angels. You may have the experience in the industry your looking to get into and a good business plan. But if you do not have a solid business background or what is known as "skin", money to go into the venture. It's pretty hard to get anything from the bank or anybody for that matter. What's more you could get the the same amount in credit cards that the bank won't loan. And, if you're smart with a low interest rate. If your business fails and you got a business loan you're still on the hook. No different then with credit cards. The way to use credit cards is for making money. In other words use it for marketing and advertising purposes. Use the credit cards to make a good website and get traffic to it -Customers-. Or if you need a piece of equipment that will make you money. That way you get a Return On Investment. Read up on starting and building a business. If you can start out of your house. Spend only on what you have to. Pay off the credit cards as soon as possible. And of course always - always make a business plan and take it to your local SBA office for review. Start building your business credit as soon as possible. And get away from using your personal credit. Sometimes if you want to get started or go forward you have to be creative. First of all using credit cards to help start or build a business is used when the banks won’t help. Which is usually the case. Banks want collateral and so do investment angels. You may have the experience in the industry your looking to get into and a good business plan. But if you do not have a solid business background or what is known as “skin”, money to go into the venture. It’s pretty hard to get anything from the bank or anybody for that matter. What’s more you could get the the same amount in credit cards that the bank won’t loan. And, if you’re smart with a low interest rate. If your business fails and you got a business loan you’re still on the hook. No different then with credit cards.

The way to use credit cards is for making money. In other words use it for marketing and advertising purposes. Use the credit cards to make a good website and get traffic to it -Customers-. Or if you need a piece of equipment that will make you money. That way you get a Return On Investment. Read up on starting and building a business. If you can start out of your house. Spend only on what you have to. Pay off the credit cards as soon as possible. And of course always – always make a business plan and take it to your local SBA office for review. Start building your business credit as soon as possible. And get away from using your personal credit. Sometimes if you want to get started or go forward you have to be creative.

]]> By: Cliff Sullivan, SCORE Counselor http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/comment-page-1/#comment-47 Cliff Sullivan, SCORE Counselor Sun, 12 Jul 2009 21:24:27 +0000 http://bestbizpractices.org/?p=128#comment-47 There are many resources at SCORE, www.scorepinellas.org, www.score.org, and www.score.org/women, and www.sba.gov, for SBA participating loan programs, 504, 7(a), ARC, Express, and Patriot Express for Veteran Owned Businesses. FYI There are many resources at SCORE, http://www.scorepinellas.org, http://www.score.org, and http://www.score.org/women, and http://www.sba.gov, for SBA participating loan programs, 504, 7(a), ARC, Express, and Patriot Express for Veteran Owned Businesses.
FYI

]]> By: Linda Heath http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/comment-page-1/#comment-46 Linda Heath Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:38:26 +0000 http://bestbizpractices.org/?p=128#comment-46 As for the comment that recent credit card laws are detrimental to small businesses...and your generousity in asking what Congress was thinking...I personally believe we are seeing an all out assault on the freedom of American citizens to achieve "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" through the private entreprise. Privately owned companies (by definition "small" if 90% have less than 50 employees) are the business equivalent of the middle class. I encourage your readers to consider joining NFIB or NSBA that watchdog the impact of new legislation on private entreprise. Right now Congress is skewing the balance of power in favor of public corporations and more governmental middleman interference in our economy. This makes it harder and harder for private enterprises to survive. We need to be pro-active in standing up for a level playing field for this consituency (private enterprises). This recent credit card "reform" was very little reform. Congress is the one that passed the laws favoring the rights of credit card companies against their customers in the first place...allowing them to engage in predatory financing practices and violating (in my opinion) basic contract law (both parties have to agree in writing to changes...usually at the time changes are made and not in advance waiving the right to negotiating changes). TMI...but we need to take a stronger tone in education entrepreneurs on how to fend for themselves. Linda As for the comment that recent credit card laws are detrimental to small businesses…and your generousity in asking what Congress was thinking…I personally believe we are seeing an all out assault on the freedom of American citizens to achieve “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” through the private entreprise. Privately owned companies (by definition “small” if 90% have less than 50 employees) are the business equivalent of the middle class. I encourage your readers to consider joining NFIB or NSBA that watchdog the impact of new legislation on private entreprise. Right now Congress is skewing the balance of power in favor of public corporations and more governmental middleman interference in our economy. This makes it harder and harder for private enterprises to survive. We need to be pro-active in standing up for a level playing field for this consituency (private enterprises). This recent credit card “reform” was very little reform. Congress is the one that passed the laws favoring the rights of credit card companies against their customers in the first place…allowing them to engage in predatory financing practices and violating (in my opinion) basic contract law (both parties have to agree in writing to changes…usually at the time changes are made and not in advance waiving the right to negotiating changes). TMI…but we need to take a stronger tone in education entrepreneurs on how to fend for themselves. Linda

]]> By: Linda Heath http://bestbizpractices.org/funding-a-business-with-credit-cards/comment-page-1/#comment-45 Linda Heath Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:31:40 +0000 http://bestbizpractices.org/?p=128#comment-45 Mike, this article gets the ball rolling but misses a key point: Your very first sentence says "...entrepreneurs that were unable to raise capital for their business..." When banks and angel investors reject you...you have just received valuable "financial intel". In layman's terms a "No" means "Your idea has more risk of failure than success and you don't seen to grasp that...making you a bad credit/investment risk." Banks and angels have a great track record...they can usually foresee a train wreck before the train driver does. Why run to "easy" money sources when the smart thing to do is figure out if you really have a viable business concept and what it will take to make it work? Seasoned entrepreneurs will tell you that it takes 3 times a long and 3 times more money to make it than they thought. Funding a business with credit card financing is a very marginal business tactic and carries more risks than benefits. SCORE is a great resource and you need to have an honest conversation about how your plan stands up to the Top 10 reasons for business failure. Linda Mike, this article gets the ball rolling but misses a key point: Your very first sentence says “…entrepreneurs that were unable to raise capital for their business…” When banks and angel investors reject you…you have just received valuable “financial intel”. In layman’s terms a “No” means “Your idea has more risk of failure than success and you don’t seen to grasp that…making you a bad credit/investment risk.”
Banks and angels have a great track record…they can usually foresee a train wreck before the train driver does. Why run to “easy” money sources when the smart thing to do is figure out if you really have a viable business concept and what it will take to make it work? Seasoned entrepreneurs will tell you that it takes 3 times a long and 3 times more money to make it than they thought. Funding a business with credit card financing is a very marginal business tactic and carries more risks than benefits. SCORE is a great resource and you need to have an honest conversation about how your plan stands up to the Top 10 reasons for business failure. Linda

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