Business loans are good. They can fuel your business in terms of operations and capital budgeting. But you have to prepare yourself and your company to get the money and make sure the business loan is right for you.
Joanne MacKean, a Senior Account Manager at BDC in Winnipeg has loaned money to hundreds of businesses for such projects as buying equipment, real estate, and technology. She sees many entrepreneurs making these common mistakes that jeopardize their company’s future.
1. Not borrowing on time
You may be tempted to finance your expansion projects from your cash flow. But paying for investments with your own money can put undue financial pressure on your growing business. You may find yourself needing to borrow money quickly and doing it from a position of weakness.
Solution—Prepare cash flow projections for the coming year that take into account month-to-month inflows and outflows, plus extraordinary items such as planned investments. Then, visit your banker and discuss your plans and financing needs so you can line up the funding before you need it.
2. Asking for a small amount of loan
You’re right to be careful about how much debt you take on. However, low-balling how much a project will cost you can leave your business facing a serious cash crunch when unexpected expenses crop up.
Solution—Develop a cash flow forecast for each individual project including optimistic and pessimistic scenarios. And then borrow enough money to ensure you can cover your project, unforeseen contingencies and the working capital required to bring your project to completion.
3. Too much emphasis on the interest rate
The interest rate on your business loan is important, but it’s far from the whole story. Other factors can be just as important, or even more so.
“Some entrepreneurs will skim over the loan terms and conditions because they think they’re just legal jargon or standard terms requested by all lenders. But the truth is that terms and conditions can differ greatly between lenders”
Solution—Shop around among financial institutions for the most attractive package, keeping in mind the importance of the terms other than the interest rate.
4. Repaying the loan too soon
Many business owners want to pay back their loans as quickly as possible in an effort to become debt free. Again, it’s important to reduce debt, but doing so too quickly can cost your business. That’s because you may leave yourself short of cash. Or the extra money you’re devoting to debt reduction might be better spent on profitable growth projects.
Solution—Compare your projected return on an investment to how much interest you’re saving by paying down your loan faster than required. If you expect to earn more investing the money in your business, consider slowing down your repayment pace.
5. Poor financial record keeping
It’s all too common for busy entrepreneurs to let record-keeping and other financial chores slide—with potentially disastrous consequences. It’s essential to keep good financial records, including year-end financial statements.
Messy financial records can leave you in the dark about how your business is performing until it’s too late to take corrective action. It can also make it difficult to approach a banker for a business loan because not only do you lack documentation, but you’ve also shown a lack of managerial acumen.