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As 2014 begins, aspiring entrepreneurs are challenging themselves to create and abide by their New Year's Resolutions. This is the chance to start off with a clean slate; go out and do what you've always told yourself you were going to do. Perhaps this is the chance to get out there and start that business you've always dreamed about.

You may not realize it, but your website can damage your ability to get a loan. It would be crazy to imagine that if you have an existing business website when you apply for a loan your lender would not look at it. What do you want them to see? You want them to see a site that will draw and keep customers. After all, how can you pay back a small business loan if you do not have customers?

There is often a debate in the heads of small business owners over whether they should buy that new piece of equipment or just lease it. It may seem to be a small question with only month to month ramifications, but that fact is that the choice made can affect your tax return as well. It may do so even if you do not intend for it to.

Everyone knows that opening a restaurant is a difficult undertaking, but it doesn't have to be all blood, sweat, and tears! Here, we break down some tips that will streamline the process of opening your own restaurant and help entrepreneurs obtain restaurant loans to start and grow their businesses successfully.

In the process of starting your own small business, the first stretch is always the busiest and most difficult. Working every day for 12 hours straight is not uncommon. Even though you may be enjoying it, you're probably wondering when the craziness will let up a little. Here are four tips to ensure that your hard work will come to fruition, and that your small business will keep growing - slowly but steadily!

If you are applying for a loan to finance your small business, you are probably aware that lending institutions will scrutinize your credit score. But perhaps you've made a couple mistakes in your financial history that caused your credit score to lower, and you ended up with sky-high interest rates whenever you applied for loans. Or worse, you were denied loans altogether.

All businesses have strengths--and we hate to admit--weaknesses. So when it comes to running your operation, focus on the factor that best generates business. As an example, Helen Ling, owner of a gift shop called Enchantments that specializes in jewelry and other items hand-made by skilled artisans, uses the calendar to promote different gift items. In May, she features Mother's Day gift ideas, in June, the focus is on brides. Naturally, the holiday gift season looms large.

As a small business owner, it is necessary to make financial projections to give an accurate sense of what the future looks like. Year-end financial projections for the year ahead are crucial towards making better decisions and keeping your small business in check. These financial projections should be based on your small business's accounting data, such as expenses and cash flow. Using this information can help you better guide your company in a goal-oriented manner during 2014. Read on for some types of financial projections that could aid your small business.

A New Year means a fresh start for many, and what better way to kick things off than by opening your own business? Startup business loans are out there waiting for savvy entrepreneurs to snatch them up and put them to good use, but how exactly does one do that? These 5 tips should help you prepare to take on the world of business ownership by storm.

Most entrepreneurs want to cast a wide net when applying for loans. Traditional bank loans, secured business loans or unsecured business loans… these are all valid questions that small business owners often consider when seeking funding.

Many people are under the impression that marketing is difficult and expensive. However, some of the most effective marketing strategies can actually be quite affordable. There are many ways to spread the word about your small business.

Initiatives, such as product development, take some time to produce revenue, but there are other expenses that you can calculate right away, based on benchmarks in the industry and other financial projections.

Once a Marine, always a Marine. They stand for an uncompromising code of personal integrity; accountability, self-reliance and discipline. honor, courage and commitment are the bedrock of a Marine's values," Wentz says. These are values that apply to entrepreneurs and their commitment to their businesses.

However, the budget deal forged at the end of the year provided confidence that there would not be another hurtful showdown in the near future. As the year progressed, we saw record gains by the stock market and a rebound in the real estate market across the nation. The unemployment rate has been dropping steadily and is hovering around 7 percent, far from the nearly10 percent unemployment rates during 2009 and 2010. Further, interest rates for small business borrowers are still low, and banks are beginning to lend again, although not yet at pre-recession levels. 

The causes of small business failure can range from poor leadership to lack of commitment to insufficient financing. Fortunately, there are some basic do's and don'ts that you can take to ensure the success of small business.

Whenever you set up any form of debt settlement agreement with your debtor or your credit card company, your chances for obtaining reliable credit in the future from the same company is considerably reduced. In addition to this, such a step will also impact your overall credit score in a negative direction. The process of debt settlement basically calls for offering the credit card company with a negotiated settlement that aims to convince the company to accept a payment much less than the final debt payment or the total owed amount. Well though many of these processes are successful in relieving the consumer of all his or her debt obligations and also in preventing the lenders from selling any future debt to the collector, however most of them tend to leave your future financial story with a black mark for the next seven years at least.

When it comes to dealing with issues such as debt management, loan qualification, and credit scores, everything is surprisingly interconnected. Most people's bad debt comes from misuse of their credit lines and loans. When credit scores drop, they discover that getting personal and business loans can be much more difficult. -

Every company has its own unique business atmosphere and its own cultural identity. Is your business filled with green peacemakers striving to make the world a more environmentally friendly place? Or is it comprised of engineering geniuses who love technology? Whatever the case may be, every business has something that defines its culture.

If you're looking to start a small business and you don't have a trust fund, wealthy friends, a mega-rich godfather or haven't won the lottery, chances are you'll more than likely need a small business or bank loan. This means tons of paperwork and personal time. It's a process that can take months to get a green or red light and even longer to pick up the cash.

A new study found that Latino small business owners and entrepreneurs across the U.S. often struggle to get business loans from banks and often turn to non-bank lenders with higher interest rates to secure financing, according to Biz2Credit.com.