A limited partnership is a business model that can connect bold, enterprising entrepreneurs with savvy investors looking to finance lucrative, low-touch business ventures. If you fit either of those bills, thoroughly understanding the concept is in your best interest. Here, we’ll explore the model further, differentiate it from similar business arrangements, review its pros and cons, and go over some prominent examples of what it looks like in practice. Let’s dive in. What is a limited partnership? Limited Partnership Examples Advantages and Disadvantages of a Limited Partnership General Partnership vs Limited Partnership Limited Partnership vs. LLC Limited Partnership vs Limited Liability Partnership A limited partnership starts with a general partner — a party who starts or pursues a business venture. They spearhead the partnership’s operations and … [Read More...]

A lot of strategy and planning goes into building a business from the ground up. Before your startup is ready to launch, you’ll want to think carefully about your brand and the image you’ll present to consumers. So, how can you stand out from your competitors? The most visible way is to create a unique business name. With a catchy, creative, and descriptive name, your business and brand will be memorable — consumers will recognize it online, in advertisements, or in stores. A unique business name also helps separate your products and services from the competition. But finding the perfect business name can be difficult and time-consuming without a little help. Start the brainstorming process with the business name ideas in this post. We even recommend … [Read More...]

In a way, your first customer is the most important client you’ll ever get for your business. Why? That first client proves that your business idea wasn’t a fluke. They make all of your lengthy planning, awkward family chip-ins, and steep out-of-pocket expenses worth it. Whether you’re an entrepreneur who’s just founded a tech startup or a first-timer who’s just opened the doors of their small local business, you’re probably reading this post to answer one question. How do you get that first customer to click “Sign up” or finally walk through that door? In this post, I’ll share top tactics for getting your very first real customers — and continue getting clients thereafter. First up, let’s outline some ways for getting that … [Read More...]

There’s no shortage of options if you’re looking for money to start a business. Startup financing ranges from news-worthy venture capital rounds to credit cards, grants, and small business loans. All entrepreneurs need to raise capital at some point — whether to get their business up and running or accelerate growth. But every lending choice comes with advantages and disadvantages. Some have long repayment terms and others require you to give partial ownership to investors. Understanding your financing options is essential for success. You don’t want to be one of the 38{da2ef7ff2781dfb5887db3e3a6cf03c7c894e23a27536de3f64bd799872794d1} of startups that fail because they ran out of cash or failed to raise new capital. To help you find the financing that’s right for your startup, we outline the various types of capital … [Read More...]

You’ve put countless hours into bootstrapping every aspect of your business. Now it’s time to find investors to get it off the ground. Luckily, a bank loan isn’t your only option these days. Whether you’re funding a side gig or the next big startup, you can find the right investors to help your business scale. Here, we’ll discuss where to find investors and six strategies to get your business “investor ready.” Where to Find Investors for Startups and Small Businesses No two investors are the same — which is why you should do your due diligence before accepting any offers. To find the best fit, research each type of investor and what they’re offering in return for their funding. Here are a few types of investors: 1. … [Read More...]

According to microlender Kiva, more than 1.7 billion people around the world are unbanked and can’t access the financial services they need. This subset of individuals and small businesses falls outside of the parameters of traditional lending. For entrepreneurs whose credit or circumstances make the risk of default high, crowdfunded or peer-to-peer financing, such as microlending, offers monetary opportunities that are not available elsewhere. But let’s dig in a bit more. What is microlending? Microlending involves lending small amounts, usually less than $50,000, to financially challenged individuals or organizations that are unable to obtain conventional loans from banks or credit unions. These modest loans may be provided by a single individual or procured from several investors who each contribute a percentage of the total amount. Typically, … [Read More...]

Raising startup funding is one of the most exciting, challenging times for a company. The CEO searches for investors, loans, grants, and other forms of funding to help their business grow. If successful, the startup has the capital to continue building its products or providing new features to customers. If not, the company may have to close its doors forever. Fortunately for entrepreneurs, startup funding is at an all-time high. Global venture funding hit $437 billion in Q3 of 2021, up from $284 billion in 2020. Startups around the world benefit from this influx of capital, with the average global deal size at $25 million. So, how do you get a piece of the funding pie? This post explains the essentials of startup funding so you know what … [Read More...]

Growth Hacking is a popular buzzword, but does anyone really know what it means? Neil Patel does a pretty good job explaining the concept and talking about its origin, saying that a growth marketer is someone who uses “analytics, inexpensive, creative and innovative ways to exponentially grow their company’s customer base.” But how can one pull off that kind of growth — especially with a limited budget and resources? We call growth hackers “scrappy” — fast-moving and super creative. They experiment until they find something that multiplies growth by 10, 20, or 40x instead of doing large projects that increase conversions in small increments. Growth hacking is often used by start-ups or small businesses and organizations that don’t have access to a significant amount of capital … [Read More...]

It’s tempting to write off “burn rate” as cute startup jargon or a funny subplot on the television series Silicon Valley. But a correctly calculated burn rate is crucial for the responsible growth, planning, and success of a business. In fact, 82{da2ef7ff2781dfb5887db3e3a6cf03c7c894e23a27536de3f64bd799872794d1} of small businesses fail because of cash flow problems. But what exactly is burn rate? And how do you calculate it? I’ve got the answers for you below. A company’s gross burn is the total amount it’s spending on operational expenses each month (with the absence of positive cash flow). In our example above, a startup spending $30,000 a month on staff salaries, office space, and a cool new ping pong table would have a gross burn rate of $30,000 per month. Let’s say, however, … [Read More...]

Everyone is looking to unwind when the holidays come around. Every year brings its trials, triumphs, and tribulations — and all of them can be exhausting. So as you come upon 2021’s end, you can help your team unwind a bit by throwing a holiday party. But those kinds of events can run your company a lot of cash — and when you’re working within the confines of a startup budget, you might not have the room for some extravagant celebration. That being said, you shouldn’t give up on throwing your team the party they’ve earned just because you don’t have the funds for a massive blowout. There are some ways you can throw a holiday party for your team on a startup budget. Here, we’ll take … [Read More...]

Struggling to find financing is one of the harshest realities of startup life — with several businesses essentially starting from scratch. According to a 2019 study from SCORE, 42{da2ef7ff2781dfb5887db3e3a6cf03c7c894e23a27536de3f64bd799872794d1} of entrepreneurs are bootstrapping, starting with less than $5,000 in cash reserves. When startup founders hit a certain point — often after dipping more into their savings than they’d like or exhausting what family and friends are willing to chip in — they start to explore other courses. One of the more attractive yet challenging options is landing an angel investment. Here, we’ll go over what an angel investor is, review the best angel investor networks, see the pros and cons of working with angel investors, and go over some tips to help you maximize your chances of receiving … [Read More...]