Five ways to finance your business without taking a loan

Financing has been repeatedly identified as an issue for startup businesses the world over.  Apparently, there isn’t enough money to go around and financial institutions continue to charge exorbitant rates of interest on business loans.  In my own locale, it is significantly easier to qualify for a personal loan over a business loan, any day.

New and existing entrepreneurs are then left in a quandary – where do I find the funds to start my operations? And having started, how do I now finance my business in the growth stage?

Well, there are several ‘new’ types of financing options now available to both startup and growth stage businesses.  Among them are Angel Investing, Venture Capital, Crowd Funding and Grant Funding and Equity Funding.  These options are among a slew of others.

If you are doubtful about where to access funding for your startup, the following are five ways to finance your business without taking a loan.

Image courtesy of www.jamaicaobserver.com

1.       Angel Investment – Angel Investment is provided by affluent individuals who invest capital into startups in exchange for ownership equity. Some angel investors invest through crowd funding platforms online or build angel investor networks to pool in capital.

2.       Venture Capital - Venture capital is financing that investors provide to startup companies and small businesses that are believed to have long-term growth potential. For startups without access to capital markets, venture capital is an essential source of money. Risk is typically high for investors, but the downside for the startup is that these venture capitalists usually get a say in company decisions.  

3.       Crowd funding – This is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people, typically via the Internet.  More non-traditional businesses such as Musicians, Artists and Film-Makers frequently use this method. 

4.       Grant Funding – Grants are non-repayable funds or products disbursed by one party, often a government department, corporation, foundation or trust, to a recipient, often (but not always) a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. 

5.       Equity Funding - Equity funding is an umbrella term that refers to any means of financing your company in which you receive money in exchange for issuing shares of your stock. There are multiple methods for raising equity capital, but, depending on how you raise this money, you could be giving up anywhere from 1-100% of your business.

Source (Definitions s: www.investopedia.com; www.smallbusiness.yahoo.com en.wikipedia.org

That AT&T/Time Warner Deal proves #millenialsruletheworld

Millenials - Image courtesy of www.cio.com

 

The acquisition of Time Warner by AT&T is proof that content and mobile is the future currency of marketing.  AT&T rules advanced mobile services, next-generation TV, high-speed internet and smart solutions for people and businesses.  Time Warner boasts popular cable networks such as CNN, HBO, TBS and broadcast networks including ABC, CBS and NBC.

The convergence of the platforms offered by these two media giants will for all intents and purposes, change the media landscape drastically.

The concern is that AT&T will now be too big, with too much power and consumers could suffer higher prices in the not so distant future.  From a marketing perspective though, this acquisition means that the concept of ‘TV anywhere’ is closer than ever.

The marketers executing the new campaign for the reformed company will have a field day conceptualizing new product packages and selecting from myriad or a combination of platforms to reach the new and improved customer.  #Millenialsruletheworld! 

This is what Randall Stephenson, AT&T’s Chairman and CEO had to say about the acquisition:

“This is a perfect match of two companies with complementary strengths who can bring a fresh approach to how the media and communications industry works for customers, content creators, distributors and advertisers.  Premium content always wins. It has been true on the big screen, the TV screen and now it’s proving true on the mobile screen.”

“We’ll have the world’s best premium content with the networks to deliver it to every screen. A big customer pain point is paying for content once but not being able to access it on any device, anywhere. Our goal is to solve that.  We intend to give customers unmatched choice, quality, value and experiences that will define the future of media and communications.”

There is indeed a poignant lesson to be learnt from this acquisition for businesses of every stage and size.  Good businesses are always on the lookout for opportunities to improve their bottom line and provide better services to their customer group.

Whether or not the deal will work for everyone involved, is yet to be seen. One thing is for sure is that post confirmation, consumers and other stakeholders should prep themselves for improved product offerings, available almost anywhere, better customer service and hopefully different product packages at different price points to suit each ideal customer group.

Quote taken from http://about.att.com/story/att_to_acquire_time_warner.html

Five tips to refresh your brand

There is an old proverb that says ‘familiarity breeds contempt’ which means that extensive knowledge of or close association with something leads to a loss of respect for it.  Now, it may not necessarily be a loss of respect but customers can and do get bored with the same old, same old.  Particularly if a newer, fresher brand is introduced to the market, the lure of the new brand can cause customers to begin to wane.

It is therefore important and recommended that throughout the life the business, you creatively refresh your brand (at intervals) to ensure that your customer base remains engaged and new customers are attracted to what your brand is becoming.

The following are five tips that you may use to refresh your brand

 Add a new product, programme or activity - The number one recommendation to refresh a brand is to either add a new product, programme or activity to your product line.   Introducing a new product to the business re-energizes the entrepreneur and excites the customers.  With new and revised products and services, the business is showing that it is here to stay and that customers can depend on it to fulfill their needs at every interval.

Consider upgrading your brand identity – The Company’s logo is its most visible identifying mark.  However, as the business moves through its life cycle, there comes a time when it must adjust not only its message but its ‘mark’ to show that it is indeed responsive to the market.  Whether incorporating a new element or redesigning for sharpness and clarity, the logo must retain those elements that helped to define your brand in the first instance.

The evolution of the Pepsi logo - Image courtesy of Pepsi Logo History

Adjust your tagline/company motto – Your tagline or company motto is an important symbol for your business.  *For customers, it is an expression of the value that your company creates and for employees, a motto is the purpose for the company and an expression of the company's culture.*   As the company begins to achieve its long term vision, adjusting your motto may become necessary.  You may start out with something like “Food on call” for your Meals-on-Wheels business, but having acquired a permanent space, the tag no longer works.  An adjustment to ‘Food at your service” will inform your customers that you are still committed to providing tasty dishes but you can dine in a warm atmosphere.

Get your customers involved – As a business owner, one of your greatest resources are your customers.   You can therefore involve them in the refreshing process by making a competition out of it.  Offer prizes and incentives for the best suggestions.  This way the customers will feel like they are a part of the business.

 Redo your collateral material – Having upgraded your logo and adjusted your tagline, it follows that you should redo your collateral material.  Your brochures, flyers and advertisements should all get a makeover.  Ensure that you include all the new information about the products and services, as well as the changes you have made to the business so that it operates more efficiently, for the satisfaction of the customer.

**Definition taken from http://yourbusiness.azcentral.com/business-motto-3280.html