Bank of America (BOA), one of the world’s largest financial institutions, has announced it will provide $10 million in grants to nonprofit lenders, such as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), to leverage funds from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for lending to small and rural businesses.
The grants to nonprofits will help up to 8,000 businesses obtain new loans over the next 12 Months.
The CDFI’s will use the grant money as loan loss reserves, which BOA hopes will unlock millions in low-cost capital for small business microloans program nationwide.
SBA and USDA microloans are made through local nonprofit lenders, which also provide business training and technical assistance.…
Continue reading
When it comes to online marketing, small businesses are staring at a dilemma. Free online marketing tools like social networks have great potential for reaching new customers, but their actual impact on the bottom line is hard to measure. Meanwhile, established tools like email marketing provide valuable metrics on subscribers, and are more suited for retaining and engaging existing customers than acquiring new ones.
One of the most important aspects of small business management is the manpower. This is where the business operation and the business success relies. If the manpower is weak, 
Small businesses tend to overlook the importance of hiring a management consultant; they don’t realize that big businesses are into this kind of stuff because they know that this can greatly affect the return of investment.
It can be overwhelming sometimes to see a lot of tasks that need to be done for your business. Sometimes you can manually do the tasks but they often lead to added pressure and stress. The solution for this is to find software specifically designed to do some of these tasks and help eliminate the burden. Many business managers are on the lookout for software that can help them do the tasks while improving their business.
If you think you have achieved success when you saw your business up and running, you are wrong. You are actually just starting. You are not really considered successful yet if you have just started your business. Your greatest challenge comes when you have to make your business available to the public. You still have to find who is going to buy your products.
Gone are the days where marketing can be done by just buying a small ad. Business cards are no longer attracting customers and sending mail or postcards may not get you new clients. These are traditional marketing strategies. We used to witness how these strategies helped entrepreneurs to manage their business. But this is no longer the case.
Despite a modest-to-invisible economic rebound in the U.S., conditions remain precarious for millions of small business owners in all areas and industries. With economic headlines shouting one big problem after another, we’re conditioned to think about economic dangers in grandiose terms – the calamity that cripples and possibly sinks a business, whether it’s a giant oil company, or a local restaurant.
Expenses can be a burden for any particular company. This is something that a business owner cannot avoid. Of course, the prerequisite for a business to operate is start up capital. You can’t manage and operate a business from an empty pocket. You need to shell out money in order to start your business operation.
Being the manager of a business is a big responsibility. You should be able to know every detail from business planning to business operation. If you are a successful manager of a business, your fulfillment is the best reward.
