Ever since President Obama stepped into office, talks about the stimulus package have been going on. From the capitol to Wall Street to coffee shops – the stimulus package has been much talked about. Some people are all for it while there are those who think that it’s a waste of tax payers’ money.

On the part of small business owners, however, the stimulus package just might be what they need to tide them over till the economy gets back on its feet. MSNBC published a feature last week, stating how the stimulus can actually be put to good use by small business owners:

A meeting brought federal officials and local entrepreneurs together on Thursday to help small business owners navigate the stormy economy.

Representatives from the Small Business Administration and Rep. Lee Terry met with business owners to discuss ways to modify programs designed to help them. “Small business is our economy,” Terry said.

He said the stimulus package, which provided $730 million for the SBA, will help provide new loans to assist small businesses with meeting debt payments, will offer higher loan guarantees and reduce loan fees.

What does this mean to you? If you are a small business owner and you have been struggling – or you are looking at that possibility, then the knowledge that you can get new loans with lower fees would be more than welcome. In this time of difficulty, this opportunity is a refreshing one, with the conventional lenders and creditors being more conservative. Let’s see how this thing develops.

The technology has been around for so long that it has managed to evolve as a primary business tool for communications. Known mostly to support and call centers, VoIP has gone mainstream saving businesses the much needed cash that hard to come by in today’s economic downturn. From high-end hardware based VoIP that has dedicated hardware designed to work similar to the private branch exchange systems of days past to more affordable soft-VoIP or software-based VoIP that uses emulators presenting the communications interface through the computer’s monitor.
Communications is one of the most expensive costs in a business and what better way to save than to use the existing internet connection for the same purpose. VoIP for business allows the downsizing of the communications infrastructure that used to cost businesses thousands of dollars turning to the ever present internet for communications that with the addition of a mic and speaker system turns into a more profitable investment.

Cost cutting is the buzz word these days. Go to any office work place – whether it be a big corporate office or a small business location. Cost cutting is what everyone is trying to do effectively. What are some of the ways by which you can considerably cut down on costs?

One, get rid of multiple telephone lines.
How many lines do you have in the office? Two or more? Why don’t you evaluate your set up and see how many lines you really need. If you are running a small business, I doubt that you would need more than 2 lines. You do not need a separate phone for each person. While that would be more convenient, think of the money you can save if you have only one or two main lines and use extensions for others.

Two, limit business travel.
If you need to travel for meetings and similar activities, why not look for an alternative such as telephone and video conferencing? With the technology that is available to everyone these days, there really is no excuse to spend more than is necessary for meetings. To save even more, invest in a VOIP package that will cut your telephone costs considerably.

Three, make sure everyone turns their PCs off at the end of the day.
The habit of many employees is to leave their PCs on when the leave the office. While this is convenient – no need to boot up the next day – the electrical consumption does add up. Remind everyone to shut down and turn everything off or even assign people to check everyday. You will be thankful for the power savings that translate to money.

The last two weeks have been tumultuous for everyone in my company. While we knew that the management was undergoing some changes, there were a lot of surprises that were sent our way. I suppose that we should have seen it coming, what with the never disappearing talk of the credit crunch and financial problems.

What happened was that 3 people in my team were let go. You can call it what you want but in effect, our team was downsized; without a warning – at least an explicit one. While I should be happy that I still have a job, I couldn’t help but wonder. What if it had happened to me? How long would I survive on the measly severance pay that would be given to me?

The only thing I can think of now is this: it is always a good idea to have some sort of business that can back you up if things do take a turn for the worse. One of my colleagues, for example, has been running a baked goods business for the last year. It is small, no doubt, but at least she has something to do in terms of income while she looks for another job. In the past, she saw it as a supplement to her regular income but I can just imagine how thankful she probably is that she has this small business to get her through.

Events like these are more than good enough reasons for us to make sure that we have something to back us up in case something happens.

What’s your back up plan?

Some credit card companies have been known to be notorious when it comes to customer support even if they come form some of the biggest names in the financial industry. Good thing is, that there are several banks and institutions that offer similar products that may cater to your particular need for attention to finances. Most banks offer their products in conjunction with their card services and some have exceptional track records when it comes to customer service.
May it be for card assistance, replacement or other trivial inquiries, they go the extra mile for the customer. Credit card offers come with 0% balance transfers from your current card provider making it easy to manage your finances. Indispensable for business folks, these small but mighty financial products allow us to safely do business without the risk of theft. May it be through their web sites or counters, they’ll be glad to provide you with the information you need for such services. do be careful with them, for they are ideal targets for criminals and vigilance is always warranted with such a powerful financial tool.

Everybody has credit cards and we have those darned banks to blame with their aggressive marketing strategies. Offers here and there, offers everywhere. Just seems you can’t escape plastic nowadays, in the mall, on a business trip or even on vacation. There is always a need for cash and thanks to these small yet terrible plastic cards we get to do a lot with less(carrying cash that is).
They’re not for everyone though, for many a debts have gone wild because of unwise use. Identity thieves also love these compact cash cows they use for their dastardly deeds. For the wise, its a good tool for your business for it allows you to balance the cash flow allowing shuffling of funds with their different cut-off dates. Pissed at your current bank, why not try shifting to another bank, for most offer balance transfers without charge. Just be sure to settle your debts before doing so or risk getting blacklisted by the credit industry.