Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Credit Crunch?

With the current condition of the economy, everyone seems to be concerned about the ability (or rather inability) to obtain credit. As entrepreneurship fuels the economy, this could potentially be a rather grave concern if entrepreneurs are unable to obtain credit to grow their companies. 

However, although a recent survey by Wells Fargo indicates that optimism is low for entrepreneurs, "four out of five small business owners said they did not perceive credit as difficult to obtain."

Why is credit not that big of a concern for entrepreneurs? My guess is that entrepreneurs have learned to persevere and find a creative way to get things done no matter what. The bar can also be relatively high in order to go the traditional credit route via a bank. It typically requires an entrepreneur to think thorough the business opportunity, prepare a business plan and financial projections. These projections must be realistic and believable enough to convince a lender to take on the risk of the loan. Thus, entrepreneurs have likely found a few different options to get the financing they need, and if financing isn't available, they find another way to get through the situation.

That said, even if credit is not the main concern of entrepreneurs, how the economic conditions impacts their ability to sell their product/service obviously is. Unfortunately, there is no real quick fix here.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Going Green

I read an article this morning on how some larger companies are going green (attempting to be more environmentally friendly in highly visible ways) in order to attract not only customers...but employees! With the rise of the creative class, some highly desirable employees are being a bit choosier about the kinds of companies they work for. They want to work in an environment where they know they are making a difference.

If you are a start-up company and want to be competitive, there is further motivation for going green. Not sure how? For starters, you should at a minimum...

  • Recycling in the office
  • Using eco-friendly suppliers
  • Go digital (reduce paper consumption)
  • Offer carpooling and/or working from home
  • Use energy-efficient light bulbs

Visit www.evo.com for some additional ideas.