Business valuation proposals are generally prepared by domain experts. They know a sector of industry and a function of management so well, that they often do not ask basic questions. They overlook, by the same token, changes in conventions to which they have become accustomed.

A professional who knows the path through thorough investment analysis may ask naïve questions when first introduced to a new venture, but this seeming innocence can uncover some grave and basic errors on which business valuation numbers are based.

Demand trends, competitive changes, inflation, and time lines are generally the best considered assumptions, because our minds naturally tread these areas when we reflect on business valuation.

The regulatory environment, macro-economic trends, geo-political instability, and social upheavals, are some areas in which professional executives have limited if any [...] Continue Reading…

To the neophyte entrepreneur, the costs of business credit may seem a bit unnerving and worrisome. What are the costs associated with business credit? Actually, the costs associated with business credit are primarily dependent on the credit rating of the entrepreneur, unless the business is a corporation.

When a business is a corporation, getting a line of business credit is based on the corporation as a separate entity; meanwhile, the type of business credit a small business owner applies for is often based on the entrepreneur’s personal credit score.

As long as a small business owner has fairly good credit, the costs of business credit are not remarkably high. In fact, the better a business owner’s credit rating is, the better the interest rate associated with a line [...] Continue Reading…

In today’s world of technology and the Internet, finding travel insurance for your journey is easier than ever. Whether you’re taking a cruise in the Mediterranean or a month long pilgrimage on the railroads of Europe, it’s an easy and useful thing to find the travel insurance package which best fits your needs.

The simplest thing to do is perform a basic web search. Try just running a search for ‘travel insurance’ or something similar, and you’ll find yourself presented with a host of insurance providers for a host of travelers. If you’re looking for something more specific, like scuba diving insurance, just add that to your search term – ‘travel insurance scuba diving.’

Several web sites will compare and compile lists of travel insurance providers for you. When viewing websites [...] Continue Reading…

If you are a proprietor, you are fully aware that business credit and financing is a crucial part of running a business. A company or firm requires adequate and consistent business credit in order for it to survive.

As a business owner, you have a variety of business credit options available to you. By a large extent, the type of business credit that you use to finance your business will depend on the size and nature of the business itself.

Perhaps the most common form of business credit is small business loans. These loans are mostly obtained from private sector providers such as commercial banks. If you opt for this type of business credit, you will find that there is no shortage of lenders who are willing [...] Continue Reading…

There’s nothing quite like traveling to new and exciting places with your family. Amazing sights you can see together, great things you can do together, unique airline meals you can eat together …

Other than the airline part, family travel can be a fun, enjoyable way for families to draw closer together. And when traveling, the wise parent will make sure the trip is insured in case any emergency, medical or otherwise, should arise over the course of the trip. That wise traveler will probably think about investing in a good travel insurance package for his or her whole family.

The great thing about that is that family rates are usually even better than the already affordable single traveler rates. For a family of four on a [...] Continue Reading…

The triad of brands, goodwill, and know-how has no slots in financial statements, and therefore tend to be left out in formal business valuation. Yet, they can spring nasty surprises on an investor, and leave a seller in hopeless recrimination as well!

The value of brands is relatively well known, but finance professionals, who generally lead business valuation exercises, are usually at a loss to discern trends in rank, image, and margins. You might think that accountants can apportion contributions to individual lines of revenue, but there could be many operational realities, such as the time of sales people, which are misleading in business valuation exercises.

Even the most qualified and experienced professionals can be guilty of subjective bias when it comes to the goodwill aspects of business valuation. It may [...] Continue Reading…