Retirement plans for the small business owner is probably one of the most important issues they face every year. Retirement accounts are not something small business owners offer their employees, but even for themselves is not something that is widespread nor considered at all. Hiring an outside firm to oversee those financial aspects for the business is costly, and many small businesses cannot afford such an expense. Does your business need a loan? Are you making too many mistakes in your business and don’t know what to do? Do you need to set up a retirement account and don’t have any information?Follow the links below for more information about these topics.
Why online lending will take off with small business owners
At a minimum, banks are perfect partners in the new game.
Earlier this month, the momentum behind the online lending industry was in full view at LendIt—an industry gathering that didn’t exist four years ago, but grew from about 700 attendees last year to more than 2,500 this year. What was clear is that it’s no longer a question of whether these disruptors will change the game in small business lending, but how quickly.
In fact, in his remarks at LendIt attendees in New York City, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers predicted that online lenders could eventually capture upwards of 70% of the small business lending market. That may be an overly optimistic prediction, but one thing is clear online lending is a welcome innovation in the small business sector.
Small Business Retirement Plans in the Hands of Lobbyists
Financial advisers
will be lobbying Congress this week on 401(k) plans for employees of small businesses.
The 401(k) accounts many rely on now are complex, require an outside administrator, and as a result are not cost-effective for some small businesses to set up for their workers.
Tom Iorio, an Edward Jones financial adviser in Rantoul, Ill., says they’re lobbying for a program for small companies.
“There are several bills out there in Congress that are trying to incentive small businesses to more easily get into what we think of as the traditional 401(k) market, like a small 401(k) or a ‘simple 401(k)’ is really the term that they’re using,” he says.
In a 401(k) program, employees may make tax-free contributions and select their investments within a plan that is administered on behalf of the employer. Employers also can contribute to employees’ accounts.
Avoiding Small Business Blunders
Entrepreneur Reva Minkoff aims to stop small businesses from making the same mistakes over and over.
Common mistakes account for too many small businesses wasting an average of 25 percent of their pay-per-click advertising budget each month. After identifying the same basic mistakes in 95 percent of the accounts she consulted on, Reva Minkoff started the award winning-website DigitalGroundUp in the summer of 2012 to train small business advertisers and over 300 students in successful digital marketing through short, hands-on online courses.
The company has since collaborated with major companies such as Facebook, while Minkoff herself wasinvited to the White House to live tweet the arrival ceremony of new British Prime Minister David Cameron. I recently interviewed Minkoff by email.
What are the worst mistakes small businesses make in advertising?
Not tracking their results. It drives me nuts when companies don’t know what’s happening on their website, what the results of their marketing are and how both are factoring into their bottom line. If they’re spending money on something, they should know what they’re getting out of it, and if they don’t, their agencies and developers should be working with them to help get them that information.
What are the most common pieces of advice you give students?
I remind students to focus on the overall concepts and not the interfaces. The fundamental digital marketing concepts haven’t changed from day one. As long as students understand them, they’ll be able to adjust to any other changes that may come their way and make the right decisions when faced with a new concept.
