Category Archives: General Business Advice

Jobs Act Frees Cash for Small-Business Borrowing

Posted on by
Floyd Morelos

Floyd Morelos, Vice President, Century Bank

One silver lining in the economy’s slow recovery is that deflated real-estate values have given many business owners the opportunity to purchase the building they’ve been leasing or to buy land on which they can construct a new building for their business. The federal government helps by offering loan guarantees through its 504 loan program. Under temporary provisions of the Small Business Jobs Act, the 504 program lets borrowers refinance mortgages on properties they already own.

Created in 1980 to encourage economic development, the 504 program has made it easier for businesses — the biggest job-creators in the country — to expand through the acquisition of assets. The program provides long-term, fixed-rate financing for the purchase of land, buildings, machinery, equipment and certain improvements. Continue reading →

Businesses Shift Focus to Veterans’ Needs

Posted on by
Christy Valdez

Christy Valdez, President and CEO, ReForm Spine & Injury Care Center

As U.S. troops withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan, the military’s focus is moving from international hot spots to hospitals and veterans centers at home. Images of service men and women striving to function with the loss of limbs stir compassion, but no images adequately portray the pain of those struggling to reintegrate into families and communities or those suffering from the debilitating effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Nearly one of five recently returning veterans describes symptoms of PTSD. For Vietnam vets, the statistics are more alarming; 25 years after a 1988 study of Vietnam Continue reading →

Budgets Matter to Business

Posted on by

 

Bobbi Hayes

R.A. Bobbi Hayes, CPA, CITP, CFE, CFF, CCIFP, Partner, Accounting & Consulting Group LLP

Business owners striving to make it through the tough economy need to know how cash flows in and out of their business. A good place to start is with a budget – a basic tool used to forecast when cash will be collected and when expenses must be paid.

Many owners of small and midsize businesses don’t take the time to create a budget, or they neglect to update the one they have. In this slow economic recovery, every dollar is precious and it’s more important than ever to know where money is going. Financial institutions also want to know; banks are beginning to require that borrowers include a budget with their loan requests.

Since a business budget is such a valuable tool, understanding how to create a good one is vital to obtaining successful results and improving a business’s chance of survival.

Continue reading →

Associations Take Members Beyond Networking

Posted on by

 

Carol Wight

Carol Wight, CEO, NM Restaurant Assn.

Professionals sometimes make a critical mistake in their careers: they neglect to join their industry associations. After investing time and money in a university education or training program, they disregard the value of continued education, advocacy and other assistance that associations provide. With so much at stake in these difficult times, why would anyone want to go it alone?

Associations were created by people who saw the need for banding together to fight for common values and interests affecting their industry. While this is still the primary reason most people join, modern associations provide much more than they did in their early days.

Continue reading →

Don’t Risk Business Success With a Poor Presentation

Posted on by

 

Bay Stevens

Bay Stevens, DTM, District Governor, Toastmasters Int'l District 23

Entrepreneurs looking for startup capital, expansion funding or customers are often the best spokespeople for their business or idea. Knowledge of their business plan or product is deep, and they are passionate about their business.

But not all entrepreneurs are good communicators. And when it comes to speaking in front of a crowd, few are born with the skills needed to keep an audience engaged. Fortunately, effective public speaking can be learned.

Continue reading →

‘Made in America’ Heats Up

Posted on by

 

Yolanda Garcia Olivarez

Yolanda Garcia Olivarez, SBA Region VI Administrator

Joseph Armijo has consistently created jobs: his business added 12 employees over the past 10 years – about one a year. ButArmijo’s Albuquerque-based company, Four Winds Mechanical HTC/AC, may soon accelerate its rate of hiring. With help from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA),Armijonow has the resources to bid on large contracts that, if awarded, will allow him to quickly hire up to five additional employees. Four Winds Mechanical provides plumbing, fuel (gas) process piping, sheet metal work, and heating and air conditioning services, including equipment repairs.

Continue reading →

Small Business Publicity: Writing Effective Press Releases

Posted on by

 

Julianna Martinez-Barbee

Julianna Martinez-Barbee, Director, NMSBDC at Northern NM College

Professional publicists recommend press releases to deliver business news to the media for broadcast to potential customers. Publicity of this kind is free and can often be done by a business owner or someone who works for her company. If the media publish the story, the business stands to gain the goodwill of existing customers and attract new ones. The result can be increased sales at a cost of only the time it takes to write and distribute the release.

But the average newsroom receives hundreds of emails and faxes every day, only a fraction of which are published. Competition for print space and airtime means press releases need to be creative, factual and informative. They must provide content the media believe its readers, viewers and listeners want.

Continue reading →

Government Contracting: A New Path to Increased Revenue?

Posted on by

 

Elaine Palin

Elaine Palin, Advisor, PTAP at Santa Fe Community College

In times of economic upheaval when private sector output slows, government contracts may mean the difference between running a company at profit rather than loss. The Procurement Technical Assistance Program, set up by the New Mexico Small Business Development Network in 2009, is a non-profit organization that helps small businesses obtain government contracts.

Continue reading →

National Labs Encourage Small Business Collaboration

Posted on by

 

Monica Abeita

Monica Abeita, RDC for Northern NM Connect

Members of Espanola Valley’s Santa Cruz Irrigation District (SCID) believed they needed to invest in an expensive sediment trap to maintain the capacity of their reservoir. Sedimentation had filled more than a third of the reservoir, resulting in water rationing and a shorter growing season for the more than 3,000 farms that depend on its water. With help from a leveraged project through the New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program, the district learned that sediment was coming from multiple sources rather than just one, and it is now pursuing plans to build several smaller, less expensive traps.

“NMSBA prevented us from making a costly investment that would not be effective and offered better alternatives to benefit the farmers,” said Kenny Salazar, orchard owner and board chairman of SCID.

Continue reading →

SBA Seeks Feedback at Event

Posted on by

 

John C. Woosley

John C. Woosley, District Director, SBA NM District Office

Janice Lucero was convinced people would pay a little more to renew their driver’s license or car registration if they could do it quickly from a convenient location with friendly service. Lucero turned her conviction into MVD Express, a $5 million company that serves 22,000 customers a month from its 11 New Mexico locations. Lucero’s success and community involvement led the U.S. Small Business Administration to name her the New Mexico Small Business Person of the Year. The award earned Lucero a trip to Washington D.C. where she’s in the running for national recognition.

The New Mexico district of the U.S. Small Business Administration will honor Lucero and other small-business leaders from 11:45 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. June 2 at the state’s Small Business Week Award Celebration luncheon at Embassy Suites Albuquerque Hotel, 1000 Woodward Place N.E.

Continue reading →