Handle Your Business

This is a guest post from Gil Effron, founder and CEO of New York City-based Strategies For Growth. Gils post today talks about how to maximize your marketing efforts. — Kai

My wife and I frequently visit a Chinese restaurant in our neighborhood. The food is good, the service is great, and the philosophy is always right on target.

I’m referring, of course, to the fortune cookies that I receive from time to time. One evening, the cookie contained a fortune so profound that I took it home and taped it to the frame of my computer. It says, “Better to do something imperfectly than to do nothing perfectly.”

Good advice for me; good advice for you.

I see too many business owners bury themselves in details that don’t matter. This is particularly true when it comes to marketing. In seekin

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Does your business need to purchase new equipment?

Not sure whether you should finance or just pay cash?

If you don’t quite know the difference between a lease and a loan or you don’t really understand the tax benefits associated with funding business equipment don’t worry because you’re not alone.

You can spend countless number of hours on the internet searching for companies that offer financing but first you should determine which purchase option works best for you.

Whether you’re financing office equipment, financing business supplies, or financing business equipment there are certain benefits and strategies associated with each type of option.

So in order for you to get a much better perspective on how you should purchase your company’s business equipment let’s compare the difference between leasing, getting a loan, using credit, or paying cash.

Equipment Leasing

• Interest rates are fixed
• Fast approval is usually within days
• Down payment is low typically only 1 or 2 payments upfront
• Leases under $150k usually do not require financials
• Lease payments are 100% tax deductible when you show it as an operating expense
• Equipment does not become obsolete because you don’t own it

Getting a Loan

• Interest rates can fluctuate which can become costly
• Approval can take weeks
• Down payment of 10-20% of the total amount is typical using up your company’s cash
• Financial statements are required
• Depreciation can be taken over the useful life of the equipment
• May need to purchase new equipment in the future as existing equipment becomes obsolete

Using Credit

• Interest rates are variable and sometimes fixed
• Approval can take weeks
• Requires 10-20% down on the total purchase amount
• Financial statements are required
• Can use depreciation over the useful life of the equipment
• You own the equipment so it can become obsolete in time

Pay by Cash

• No interest
• Instant purchase with no approval period
• Requires 100% of equipment purchase amount using your company’s cash reserves
• No financials required
• Depreciation can be used
• You own the equipment outright which can become obsolete in time

So if you prefer to conserve your company’s cash some of the most popular equipment you can finance includes computers, office equipment and furniture, heavy machinery, dry cleaning equipment, medical equipment, printing presses, fleet vehicles, and restaurant equipment.

Did you know that over 80% of businesses in the U.S. lease at least one of

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The Smith Consulting Forum is the MBA Consulting Club’s signature annual event that facilitates discussion among professional consultants, students, and faculty members on various topics in management consulting. Through panel discussions, a keynote address, and networking reception, forum participants are given the opportunity to learn about evolving trends in the Management Consulting industry. The 2010 Smith Consulting Forum will feature a keynote address by Vivian E. Riefberg, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company’s Washington D.C. office. Pa

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If you are divorced you may be entitled to a portion of your ex-spouses Social Security retirement benefit. If so you will increase your benefit without reducing the ex-spouses benefit.

If you were married for at least 10 years, are at least age 62 and are not re-married at the time you apply for benefits, the Social Security Administration will look first at the benefit you qualify for under your own work record. They will then look at your ex-spouses benefit. If one-half of the exs benefit is more than your own, then you will collect the larger benefit.

You dont have to wait until your ex retires, although he or she must be at least 62.

Qualifying for part of an exs benefit does not reduce what the ex will receive when he or she retires. They will still receive the full benefit they are entitled to under their own work record. So in the case of a divorce and Social Security benefits, 1 + 1 can equal more than 2.

If you own a law office, a PR company, or a computer design firm and you don’t think your business qualifies as small, think again. A new proposal from the SBA might just mean that your company is one of the many joining the small-business ranks.

If you own a law office, a PR company, or operate a computer design firm and you don’t think your business qualifies as small, think again: It may under a new proposal from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

For the first time in about 30 years, the SBA is proposing a change to the way small businesses are defined in a move that could boost the number of businesses eligible for SBA programs. To define a company as a small business, the SBA primarily looks at two measures: revenues and the number of employees. But

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House Keeps the Lights On

The House did its part today to avoid a government shutdown, passing legislation by a 335-91 vote to fund federal agencies through March 18.

“Vote yes and keep the government operating,” said Republican representative Hal Rogers, of Kentucky, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee.

The current bill funding the government expires Friday. Without a new bill, the government would be forced to halt all but essential operations. That’s not likely to happen—the Senate will pass the bill by Thursday afternoon, according to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, of Nevada.

So forget about a government shutdown for now. But be ready for this threat to come roaring back in two weeks. The temporary spending bill passed by the House today satisfied Republicans because it cut $4 billion in spending over the next two weeks. At that Read full post…