Factoring account receivables is helping health care companies through these tough economic conditions opening the door to earning opportunities for cash flow consultants.
FactoringInvestor (FI) caught up with Phil Cohen, Founder and President of PRN Funding, LLC, to fill us in on the specialized niche of healthcare funding.
FI: What transactions will your company consider funding?
PRN: PRN Funding, LLC has a very specific niche in healthcare funding. We provide factoring to vendors who sell goods or provide services to medical facilities. Moreover, our client base consists of medical staffing agencies, private duty home care agencies, medical transcription services, medical billing and medical coding companies and medical supply companies.
FI: How did you get your start in the factoring business?
PRN: Prior to founding PRN Funding, LLC, I spent the better part of a decade acquiring medical transcription firms as a national roll-up strategy. During this time, I noticed a trend. Many of the medical transcription services were well-run firms; however, they were selling their companies because of cash flow problems. Seeing this cash flow problem, I was able to identify an opportunity to help them – accounts receivable factoring. Over time, I’ve been able to expand into other healthcare vendor niches, including medical staffing, medical coding, medical billing and medical supplies.
FI: What unique benefits does your company provide?
Industry Expertise: PRN Funding, LLC understands the unique characteristics of the healthcare vendor industry. We are very familiar with traditional payment terms, industry jargon and day-to-day procedures associated with the healthcare vendor industry.
Extreme Flexibility: PRN Funding offers the utmost in flexibility to vendors who sell goods or provide services to healthcare facilities. Our clients choose when, who, how much and how long to factor their invoices.
No Hidden Fees: PRN Funding does not charge the following:
- Application Fee
- Origination Fee
- Due diligence Fee
- Legal and documentation Fee
- Administrative Fee
- Early Termination Fee
FI: What do you consider the best methods for finding deals?
PRN: Aside from our web site, PRN Funding relies very heavily on our brokers and cash flow consultants to refer us deals. In fact, we value our referrals from brokers so much that we’re running a special promotion right now. The next 15 people who refer PRN Funding a deal will receive a $25 Starbucks gift cards in addition to the normal commission. We will send out the gift card, regardless of whether the lead becomes a client or not.
FI: How do you handle commissions to brokers or consultants?
PRN: We pay our brokers 10% of the fees we make for the life of the deal.
FI: What advice would you give to new professionals just starting out in the industry?
PRN: Now is a great time to get into the cash flow industry. Traditionally, small business owners relied heavily on credit cards to fund their business operations when they were not eligible for bank financing. The current economic situation has recently prompted many credit card companies to drastically reduce credit lines and raise interest rates for their customers who use small business credit cards. As a result, these business owners are in desperate need of a new alternative financing method to fund their business, and cash flow consultants have all of the tools to match those business owners with the appropriate funder.
FI: What is the most common business mistake you see people make?
PRN: The most common business mistake I see brokers make is that they present a lead to us without pre-qualifying it beforehand. It’s important for a broker to accurately assess a prospect’s need for funding and then match it with a funder who understands the prospect’s business model.
FI: Given the current economy, have you made any changes in the way you transact business?
PRN: In light of the changing economic climate, PRN Funding made the decision to branch out into a brand new healthcare funding niche. We formally launched PRN Funding’s home care factoring program in February. We recognized how long it takes for state-funded programs to pay private duty agencies, and we wanted to address the dilemma by offering these companies a factoring solution.
In addition, although there are more business owners applying for factoring as a result of the economic crisis, the quality of some of those applicants has gone down. Therefore, PRN Funding has had to tighten up on our due diligence process. Things that we may have been lenient on in the past, we are no longer able to do so.
FI: Where can people contact you to obtain more information?
PRN: Visit our web site: www.prnfunding.com
Call our toll-free number 866.776.5407 and ask to speak with our Broker Liaison, Nikki Flores
Visit the Cash Flow Consultant and Factoring Broker News section of our blog: www.TheFactoringBlog.com
FI: Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?
PRN: It’s important for brokers and cash flow consultants to know that in general factoring firms do not operate as a one size fits all operation. Each factor has its own funding “sweet spot” that separates it from other factoring companies. For example, some factoring firms require a minimum ongoing factoring amount, while other specialize in factoring companies in one specific geographic region. In addition, there are other factoring firms who cater their services to a specific industry. Therefore, brokers should look at each transaction as a unique opportunity and strive to match it with the appropriate factoring firm.
FI Summary: Helping businesses raise cash through factoring account receivables is one of many cash flow categories where consultants can earn commissions by referring transactions to funding sources. Factoring health care invoices is a specialized niche of the factoring industry
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