GET A JUMP ON WORKING CAPITAL

Ask for working capital in advance of the need.  Ask for it all!

A lack of working capital has been the downfall of many small businesses. As is discussed in our education session (to be posted in BizQuack the week of April 1, 2018 under finance in the education section) obtaining needed capital to grow a business is an ongoing challenge.

It doesn’t matter what stage your company is in; even in the idea stage, you should be looking and finding what is needed to obtain working capital.

A common mistake among many business owners is to wait until the money is needed and then start looking for it. The second big mistake is that they only ask for what will satisfy the immediate need instead of asking for enough to put the business on a solid growth path.

A Pitch Deck is the foundation for the “ask” regardless of the source you are thinking about. The components of a pitch deck are as follows: Overview, Opportunity, Problem, Solution, Traction, Target Market, Competition, Business Model, your team, and finally the use of funds. These ten building blocks make up the heart of a pitch deck. (See the details on a pitch deck in the education section on BizQuack)

My advice is to start working on your Pitch Deck now. Not only will it help you in securing capital, but it will also force you to think about your business from a perspective of working on it not in it.

It’s important to remember that the launching of new business, or growing an existing business takes more work, will encounter more obstacles, may encounter many failures and most important, need significantly more resources than was ever thought about.

Relationships are another important part of securing funding for your company as it grows. Find out where the money is “hiding”, (your bank, investors, family, friends, partners, venture capital firms, Angel investors, Crowdfunding, and accelerators) and start building relationships before you have to ask for the money,

BizQuack will be adding a lot more education in this category. Please check in the education section under financing for new information. The daily blogs and Tuesday Challenges also have additional ideas on how to prepare yourself for the “ask”.

Tips & Advice by Nick Petra – CFP, Mentor, and Founder of Strategic Duck and BizQuack