No time of year puts quite the same amount of panic into a factoring business owner as tax time. Properly filing and paying your business taxes is one of the most important things you will do all year, and can also be one of the most complicated. With that in mind, we have five tips to keep your tax season running smoothly. Tip #1: Get the right person to prepare your taxes. (Hint: it may not be you.) It can be tempting to save money by filing your business taxes yourself – after all, who knows your factoring business better than you? Before you break out the pens and calculators, though, think about whether you have the time and the tax knowledge necessary to accurately report all of your earnings and deductions. Mistakes can cost you … [Read more...]
Archives for 2014
International Factoring Association Conference 2014
The 20th Annual Factoring Conference will be held April 9-12, 2014 at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco CA. This convention is organized the by the International Factoring Association and attendance is on track to make this year's conference the largest gathering of Factors ever! Whether you are a Factoring Company, Broker, Asset Based Lender, Trade Finance Professional, Bank, or anyone that supports this group, join the top factoring industry professionals by attending this unparalleled networking and educational event. 2014 Factoring Convention Schedule and Speakers Sessions are designed to be educational, informative and entertaining. Speakers Dr. Christopher Thornberg - Economy Jeffrey Ma - Power of … [Read more...]
Should Your Factoring Company Also Offer Purchase Order Financing?
Recently, I have been writing articles about brokers who want to start factoring companies. As I have mentioned previously, the factoring field is very competitive, so you have to be highly selective when you choose your market niche. Some new factoring companies have taken this strategy a step further and differentiate themselves by adding niche products such as purchase order (PO) financing. This article discusses whether this is a good strategy. A brief purchase order financing tutorial Basically, purchase order financing helps companies that have a purchase order and need funding to fulfill it. In principle, the product sounds great. However, it has a number of restrictions. Specifically, it can be used only for transactions … [Read more...]
Funding Invoices With Fundbox
Invoice funding is not always factoring. We were reminded of this in February when we highlighted a case study on social media marketing in the article Is Invoice Factoring Becoming Mainstream? We were intrigued by the company with an innovative marketing approach and decided to dig deeper in this interview with Tomer Michaeli, VP of Business Development at Fundbox. A NY-based technology company, Fundbox is helping small businesses, freelancers and home offices grow by overcoming short term cash flow gaps. They also accept referrals from factoring brokers and are a new addition to the 2014 Directory. Is Fundbox a factoring company? Tomer Michaeli: No, Fundbox is a technology company that offers business owners and freelancers a … [Read more...]
Peel Some Layers Back Before Funding Invoices
You’ve read the books, attended the training classes and finally have landed your first real prospect. They are eager to get started factoring their invoices and you can’t wait to get this deal closed. Whether you are working as a broker, business development officer or direct funder, this is the starting point where you will need to connect the dots to see if the deal will move forward or be declined. What Is The Business Trying To Achieve By Funding Invoices? Before the credit reports are generated, UCC-1(s) filed, or any other piece of due diligence is started, it is really important for you to understand what the prospect is trying to achieve by obtaining your services. Sure, we all know the easy answer is that the applicant is … [Read more...]
New Medicaid Incentive Creates Opportunity for Home Care Factoring Growth
An Affordable Care Act program designed to incentivize home and community care over nursing homes will create a huge growth opportunity for home care staffing agencies in participating states. The Balancing Incentive Payments Program is a $3 billion dollar program that will match state spending for alternative care at higher levels through September 2015. To qualify, participating states must have lower than 50 percent current Medicaid spending on home and community care. They must also demonstrate that they are making it easier for patients to access treatment alternatives to nursing home facilities. Seventeen states are currently participating in the Balancing Incentive Payments Program: Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, … [Read more...]
6 Tips For New Factoring Companies
In recent months I have been writing about brokers who want to start their factoring companies. This is an important topic for brokers since many want to move to the direct funding side of things. Unfortunately, most have unrealistic expectations about their chances of success. They like to focus on the potential positive aspects of the move, such as higher revenues. But they often ignore the obvious risks, such as losing principal or going out of business. Here are six tips that will help you survive your first year as a factor. 1. Double your marketing budget One of the toughest things in this business is getting clients. Due to intense competition, the cost of acquiring a client is very high. New factoring companies often underestimate … [Read more...]
Is Invoice Factoring Becoming Mainstream?
Let’s say you are in business for yourself and begin your morning ritual. Coffee. Email. Facebook. You know…not quite ready to get into the day-to-day stress of work, employees, and cash flow issues. Then you see this on Facebook…. Invoice Factoring has entered social media…and in a BIG way. And when something enters social media…it becomes mainstream. And mainstream means, potentially, big profits. Fundbox.com is just one such factoring company* that understands the importance of social media, websites and online marketing. *[UPDATE: Tomer Michaeli, co-founder at Fundbox, was nice enough to contact us and give us a bit more insight to their business model. - "Fundbox is not a factoring company...We are a technology … [Read more...]
The Straight Truth About Invoice Factoring
Whenever you hear someone say they are going to give you the straight truth about a person or particular subject it usually isn’t good news. In a world where we are inundated with posts, tweets and instantaneous information it’s very easy to only get the information people want you to hear. When it comes to the factoring industry it’s very easy to get roped into thinking that it’s just about getting some capital, advance on receivables and make huge returns. What is the actual truth about the factoring industry? Anyone who works in this industry is entitled to their own opinion therefore, I will go on record and say that the views below are only mine based on my experiences as a broker, funder and due diligence coordinator. Truth #1 – … [Read more...]
5 Business Cash Flow Resolutions for 2014
January offers the first opportunity for businesses to evaluate their performance during the busy holiday season and, for many, to consider and commit to a plan for the coming year. Unfortunately, if cash flow is tight during this critical time then it can set a business up for failure. Whether you believe in making resolutions or are afraid of breaking them, we have five business cash flow resolutions that companies can use to eliminate (or greatly reduce) their cash flow concerns. Resolution #1: Control your outward cash flow Are you overpaying for services or, worse, paying for services you don’t even need? As service contracts come up for renewal, look carefully at your expenses and decide if you are getting the best value for your … [Read more...]