They're definitely distracted because they focus more on how to keep their heads floating and forgot or missed other aspects of their business which needed much attention.

And true, this is in fact the perfect time to start our own business.

The above is actually my comment in this post -- Opportunity Opens the Door When the Competition Is Distracted. This insightful post from BigThink did really hit the sweet spot when comes to opportunities.

Acquiring venture capital might be a not good idea these days as a means of business funding but the opportunity that our top competitors are in fact very disturbed about the current situation, then this opportunity becomes really appealing more than anything else.

This time is the perfect time to invest and start a business. We actually have an option. It is up to us if we spend or invest. So where do you want to belong? A spending puppet for all your leisures and wants or a wise investor to your business?

The door is finally open! So what are we all waiting for?

Who would have thought that their will be a new born baby in this economy? This baby I am referring to is the new business financing company -- Skada Capital LLC.

Skada Capital LLC (www.skadacapital.com) is a Maryland-based provider of financing solutions to healthcare, manufacturing and technology companies in the Mid-Atlantic region. With over 200 sources of capital in its network, Skada Capital tailors solutions for companies seeking cash flow financing or growth capital for expansion. Skada Capital specializes in commercial real estate financing, accounts receivables financing, credit card receivables financing, leasing, and other alternative sources of financing.

Yes, I know you are interested to learn more about this new business financing company. Check out more about this news here.

As always, "Cash is King" and Ron McNutt has written a humorous yet excellent post on how to get the cash flowing IN to your business.

-Pay attention! Simply put, meet with your staff at least weekly, if not daily to review A/R, credit policies, collection issues, etc.

-Set daily goals for collecting. If your goal is to maintain a Days in A/R of 30 days, and your average monthly revenues are $100,000, then your staff should be collecting almost $5,000 each and every day. Therefore, there should be $5,000 in the bucket on Monday, $10,000 on Tuesday, $15,000 on Wednesday, etc. Don't wait until Friday to check the bucket and be disappointed there is only $10,000 versus the $25,000 you expected. Be sure to find out current Days in A/R stats for your industry and strive to stay within them.

-Manage by exception. Call the most significant offenders, maybe the top 20% who owe 80% of your A/R.

-Increase statement frequency, maybe from once a month to every 2 weeks. You probably know the positive effect of paying a mortgage every 2 weeks, what could this same principle do to your business?

-Increase the "notice factor" of your statements by printing them on brightly colored paper. This has been a long standing procedure in collection companies. Maybe even consider sending them in a large 8 1/2 by 11 envelope.

-Always get to know the person who pays the bills. Don't just call them on collection matters, but call and thank them for payments. Remember, "You collect more bees with honey."

-Add additional payment methods and incentives. Take credit cards. Offer discounts for early payment and penalties/interest for late payment.

-Establish payment terms that are favorable to you. Always strive for the longest payment terms possible with your vendors and the shortest payment terms possible with your customers.

Keeping our small business finances intact is what's important these days. But how about if you have some receivables ought to be paid to you by other businesses as well.

Isn't it too difficult to deal with collecting those receivables especially that everyone is having a roller coaster ride of the economy?

Well over at smbtrendwire.com, their guest Rob Bovarnick shared a very helpful and timely tips on how to deal with this undeniably a tough task for us business owners to do. Listen to his interview and I'm pretty sure you'll get excellent tips from Rob. Check out the podcast here -- How To Collect From Dying Elephants.

How to Avoid Business Opportunity Investment Financing Problems?

Have you ever asked this to yourself? Well, thanks to Steve Bush for this very insightful post. Undeniably, business financing is one aspect of business we can't just allow a trial and error to come in so it is very important to have that armor of knowledge on to avoid this business opportunity investment financing problem to occur.

Buying a business investment without real estate requires specialized business opportunity financing. Although this kind of business financing is available, there are several potential problems which should be anticipated and avoided by prospective buyers.

In order to buy a business, a commercial borrower is likely to need business financing. If the business includes commercial real estate, the borrower will need a commercial mortgage. If the business purchase does not involve real estate, a business borrower must use a business opportunity loan.

You can check more on Steve's post here -- How to Avoid Business Opportunity Investment Financing Problems?

Ensure that you can always go back to the well for more capital. This means keeping very good relationship with vendors and supplier (who could offer trade credit freeing up cash flow) and your lenders. This also includes staying current on all payments - no lender will fund a company or person who is behind on current obligations. Thus, if the need arises - you have reduced all costs to their bare minimum - you can always go back to these sources for more capital. Lastly, constantly be looking for new, alternative ways in which to finance your company - including factoring, leasing, cash advances, or private investors.

Even if your business is really taking off - meaning that sales are growing at a phenomenal rate, your company could still (and usually do) face cash shortages as your bills (current expenses and the huge expense related to the growth) may be outpacing your cash inflow (actual cash into the business, not receivables - the actual amount in you checkbook).

Note: while managing costs is paramount to a successful business - so is managing revenue - ensuring that your receivables are closely matched to your payables.

I quoted the above financing tips from Business Know How blog. Well, there's a lot more to learn. Check it out on this post -> Estimating Capital Needs for a New Start-Up!

Here's some good news in the field of small business financing. Dawn Rivers Baker pointed in her article about Small Business Development Centers which offers free training.

That sort of training is available for free through SBA entrepreneurial development programs like the Small Business Development Centers (SBDC).

The SBDC program is the grandfather of the SBA’s entrepreneurial development programs, established in 1980. It is an outstandingly successful program that typically returns a minimum of $2 to the federal treasury for ever $1 spent on it, and saves or creates countless small business jobs on an annual basis.

The SBDC network is affiliated with colleges and universities or with state economic development departments around the country. There are SBDC state affiliates associated with such august institutions as Howard University in Washington, D.C. and the University of Pennsylvania’s prestigious Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia.

You can check out this small business financing news here.