Tough Times Bring Out The Best in the Best People

I read a great message last week which sums up how I feel about the (still) coming economic storm. I don't present my message as some prophet of doom but rather like the weather forecaster who is sounding a warning for you to make preparations for the storm. By knowing the forecast you can turn this negative event into opportunities to prosper for you in your personal and business life.

The message is this: Many fortunes and millionaires were made in the Great Depression. Those who prospered were taking a good hard look around and were asking the right questions. Today we need to be asking, “how can I do something better and what is it that other people need?” You also need to determine what goals you want and need to achieve what will really make a difference in your life and therefore the lives of others.

When times get tough it brings out the best in the best people and we’ll get through this storm unscathed if we don’t ignore it but embrace the opportunities.

What lies ahead? That's for you to decide. You can ignore the signs and get swept away by the storm or you can heed the warnings and make positive decisions on how to proceed in order to simply survive and/or prosper.

With that being said, one might ask, "Where do I begin?" You can begin by getting informed. Connie Hayes, my wife and business partner has made some good suggestions on just that subject. Visit her blog and view her latest posting.

May God bless you with great happiness during this holiday season!

Turning Invoices into Cash

The Interface Financial Group’s Invoice Discounting service turns invoices into cash. IFG’s Client is a business that provides their goods and/or services to another business, the Customer, on standard credit terms. In other words, the Client provides the goods or services upfront and then sends the Customer an invoice for payment. This invoice is due for payment in some number of days, usually 30 – 45 days.

Often times, before this invoice is paid, our Client needs the cash that this invoice represents. He may need it to pay his suppliers for the products he used for the order or to purchase supplies for new orders. Perhaps he needs to pay his employees, taxes, rent or any other normal business expense. He certainly can’t pay these bills with the invoice. But, what if he could turn the invoice into cash? That’s what IFG’s Invoice Discounting service does. He can sell that invoice to IFG. IFG turns that invoice into cash by purchasing it from the Client at a discount. The purchase price, or advance as it’s often referred to, will be up to 90% of the invoice’s face value. Poof! Just like that the invoice has been turned into cash.

Of course it really isn’t magic and there are details about the process that weren’t discussed in this brief example. We’ll go into those in the days ahead. But the fact is that Invoice Discounting is a way to turn your businesses invoices into immediate cash.

If you’d like more information call our office at (765) 868-7030 or email us at hayes@interfacefinancial.com.

Posted by Connie Hayes, Principal - THE INTERFACE FINANCIAL GROUP

Networking Dos & Don'ts

Have you ever had this happen to you?

You are at a networking event and you introduce yourself to someone you’ve never met (after all, you attend networking events to meet new people) and after the pleasantries of introduction have concluded you ask Joe what he does? He says he sells furniture and then goes on to tell you why his mattresses are the same ones the big stores sell but his cost only a fraction of what they charge. You cringe but not wanting to appear rude, you politely ask him another question about his business and you’re hit with another barrage of why YOU should buy from him.

Are you likely to buy anything from him? Would you be willing to refer him to your closest family members or friends?

Ask yourself, "Why not?"

Joe, in the example above has confused networking with direct selling.

Don’t make that same mistake. Your networking efforts should be directed to developing relationships built on trust. Your referral partners could be your customers but really your focus should be to teach your referral sources how to refer you to their friends and business contacts. You'll achieve greater success, I promise.

Happy networking!

We're So Lucky!

It's that time of year. Time for a vacation. Time to clear the mind and revitalize the spirit with a trip to the mountains of Colorado. The recreation opportunities are endless. Miles and miles of trails for hiking, backpacking and mountain biking await those who look for some solitude. And let's not forget the kayaking and rafting opportunities as well. Then throw in more miles and miles of trails for off-road 4x4 adventures and you've got the perfect place for a summer vacation and in the winter the snowbugs take to the slopes for some of the best skiing anywhere in the US, so they tell me. I don't ski.

We plan to take advantage of some of those trails even though there is nothing you can do here in Indiana to prepare for the altitude and steepness of the terrain.

Now some people will ask, "Since you own your own business, how can you go on vacation and service your clients when they need funding?" The answer is simple, our business is portable. We forward our faxes to an email fax service, our office phone is forwarded to a cell phone and with a laptop you can ACH or wire funds to a client's account even from a campground. Since we feel it is important for our small business clients to get the funds they need in order to move forward in business, we feel it is our duty to stay connected when those requests for funding come in to us.

That explains why we are so lucky. We have a love for small business and what we do. Our clients look to us as their partners in business and we do not intend to let them down. That is quite satisfying to us. And we can help them even while we recharge our own batteries, we're proud of that fact.

If you're looking for a business that will provide you with that kind of satisfaction, why not look into the franchise opportunity that THE INTERFACE FINANCIAL GROUP has to offer. You might just find it as rewarding as we do.

Happy vacations everyone!

Blame Big Government

It’s July 21st and it has been too long since I posted new information here. But where does the time go?

Business is good for us but we'd like it to be better. We're getting more referrals and leads come in but the prospective clients are slow to move in the direction of invoice funding. These things require time and then there is the attempt to keep up with the financial news - the markets, oil and gas, gold, failing banks, the Fed and FDIC. This takes up even more time but I believe in order to protect yourself and educate others, you must be informed.

I’m an optimist at heart and look for the good in people and events. However I’m not a Pollyanna and when you look at the fundamentals driving the economy, one wonders when the next shoe will drop in what has been referred to as “the perfect storm.” So I’m certain that things will get a lot worse for the US economy before they get better. How’s that for PMA? Yes, there is light at the end of the tunnel but just how long is this tunnel anyway?

If the market manipulators have their way, the tunnel will be a lot longer but if the free market is allowed to correct itself, we’ll get over this illness sooner than later. When I refer to market manipulators I’m not referring to those people who speculate in the stock market. I’m talking about the Federal Reserve Bank and government regulators. Many free market economists point out that the problems we now face would not exist if the markets were left alone and not managed by the powers mentioned above. I certainly agree with that assessment. This is not a problem of free market capitalism but a perversion of the system overseen by our own government.

I suggest you inform yourself. Start by reading the booklet, THE LAW by Fredrick Bastiat, the great 19th Century economist. For a pdf version of this great little book click here: http://www.fee.org/pdf/books/The_Law.pdf.

In closing, I'll attempt to be better about keeping this blog updated with new information and if you would like to share your comments about the economy or Bastiat's little book, I would love to hear from you.

Credit Crunch Hits Small Businesses

We see the headlines over and over again. Small businesses are finding it harder than ever to get bank loans. In a Federal Reserve survey released earlier this month, more than half of the banks polled in April said they tightened their lending criteria for small firms in the last three months. That's up from January, when 30 percent of those same bankers reported stricter standards than the previous three months. The Small Business Administration's most popular small-business loan is down 19 percent nationally in volume from the same time a year ago, according to agency data. A company looking for money to facilitate their growth will naturally turn to their bankers for a loan and bankers are our number one source of referrals. But, what business person do you know that sells their goods and services on credit to other businesses and has been denied funds by their bank? If you are a banker or broker and you know someone who has a need to turn their receivables into cash, contact us today.

Factoring & Invoice Discounting - a definition

Question: Is there a difference between Factoring and Invoice Discounting?

Answer: Yes and No. Both terms have the same root definition. In these modern times, the following are more accurate definitions of factoring and invoice discounting:

Factoring - The selling of a company's accounts receivable to a third party, in order to obtain funding.
Over time it has come to mean that factors provide the following:
· Long term agreements
· Large minimum amounts
· Maintain the sales ledger and perform other administrative tasks relating to accounts receivable functions;
· Collect the accounts receivable;
· Provide bad debt protection by absorbing losses, which may arise as a result of the customer’s inability to pay.

Invoice Discounting - The selling of invoices to a third party at a percentage of their face value to obtain immediate funds. Period!

As you can see, both factors and invoice discounters offer the same basic service by providing funds to business through the purchase of A/R but today factors offer more services which may or may not be desired by clients needing funding.

At IFG, we are Invoice Discounters and require no large minimums or long term agreements. Our clients use our funding as needed. Some use us every week or month and some will only use us 5 or 6 times a year. We will even fund a qualified client once if needed. Our initial funding amounts range from about $2000 to nearly $200,000. Our discount rate is determined by how many days before we get paid by our client’s customers. There are no other fees!

As you can see, IFG offers a unique funding option which is designed to help growing, profitable businesses improve their cash flow through the Invoice Discounting service.

Interest Rates & Our Clients

The new year has begun and by reading the financial press one could speculate that interest rates will continue to fluctuate and few small businesses will welcome this news.

Recently an IFG client asked how changes in these rates would affect him. The answer is the same as it has always been -- there is no change! Since we are not lenders, fluctuating interest rates have no bearing on what we do - nor on what his costs for our service are.

We charge a discount fee, being the difference between the value of an invoice and the amount we purchase it for. There is no loan, thus no principle with interest to repay.

IFG's invoice discounting service is user friendly and offered to our clients on a "use it at needed" basis. We do not require long term commitments or minimum amounts and our clients are in control of their cost by selling good invoices that will pay sooner rather than later.

This is truly a unique way to conduct business with our clients. They appreciate the fact that we are indeed a valuable business partner by helping them grow their businesses and add to their bottom line.