by Larry Slusser on April 2nd, 2008
The mortgage crisis is having an effect far and wide across the economy and may even be affecting your company whether it is big or small. Many small businesses and even consumers that used home equities to fund their companies are finding it more difficult to obtain that type of funding.
This is particularly true in areas where home values have dropped. The level of equity in the home may be considerably less which changes the way banks view the loan. When they go to see their banker for more funding, they may not be greeted nearly as friendly as... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on March 20th, 2008
Understanding your business’ range of potential risks can help you to manage them, or even avoid them all together. By anticipating risks and potential pitfalls for both your business and the industry as a whole, you can protect your business and improve its success. Here’s how:
Step one: Identify the risks
There are two categories of risks facing companies: risks that directly affect the business and risks that face the business’ industry as a whole. For the former, make a list of potential risks that are affecting your business. It might include things like: specifically-named competition, price increases, material shortages,... Read more »
by Larry Slusser on March 14th, 2008
There is a lot of information out there about identity theft. This means that there will be people who are using a credit cards that do not belong to them, and you will not get paid for what they just purchased; however, this can have an adverse effect on your business. Below are tips to help protect your business from credit card fraud.
First, it is a good policy to establish that whenever someone uses a credit card to make a purchase, always check a photo id. If the consumer is the person identified on the card, they will not... Read more »
by Leeia Ladipoh on March 4th, 2008
Have you ever thought about how much money you could be losing from merchandise that goes out the door without your knowledge?
The price of shoplifting on retail businesses is high. Millions of dollars are lost to shoplifting annually. This represents lost money that you have to make up through increased sales.
Even if your store loses only ten dollars a day to shoplifting (which is a low estimate for retail shops), that translates to over $3,600 a year. How much nicer would it be to have an extra $3,600 in the bank instead of trying to make up for... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on February 14th, 2008
Enacted in 1999, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) gives electronic signatures and records the same legitimacy and enforceability as handwritten signatures and paper communications. However, there are several guidelines that electronic correspondence must follow in order to be protected under this law.
If you are like most business people, you favor e-mails, faxes and text messages as the preferred way of business communication, making casual agreements, contracts and promises as you correspond. Those are certainly convenient and timesaving ways to communicate, but they can also leave your company in jeopardy if you assume your typings to be legally binding,... Read more »
by Danny Brown on February 12th, 2008
With the rise in business use of the Internet, it’s no surprise that so many businesses are using it to promote their services or products. For small businesses in particular, the Internet offers an inexpensive and far-reaching opportunity to start and grow a successful business.
However, with anything that has a good side, there’s always a flipside. Online content is king, and many online business owners are investing a lot of time and money into the content they put on their websites, including articles, promotional content, and product descriptions. However, thanks to the continuous growth in online piracy, the threat... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on January 18th, 2008
Liability insurance coverage is vital for all small businesses. Operating any type of business without appropriate and sufficient insurance coverage is a serious error in judgment that can have dire financial consequences for both the organization and its owners. The peace of mind that comes from knowing that you are protected from lawsuits is well worth the small price of liability insurance premiums.
Liability insurance protects companies in the event they are sued by customers or employees asserting that the actions of the organization caused harm to them. Some small business owners feel that there is no way they will... Read more »
by Veronica Stone on October 16th, 2007
Order fraud is one of the most common types of online business fraud that there is. Whether someone is using a stolen credit card or information from stolen checks, etc, there is a chance that you could end up paying for it. When a company accepts payments with credit cards without the magswipe, there is a risk. Of course, since you do business online, it’s impossible to ask the customer to swipe his or her credit card. There can be fraudulent orders coming through right this second.
If there is no swipe of the card, it’s very easy for someone... Read more »