According to government statistics, every year approximately 600,000 new businesses are started in the United States. Each entrepreneur optimistically begins with the same goals in mind…making money and growing the business. Often start-ups need to look for business financing to acheive these goals.

Failure is all too common in small business start-ups. Statistics say that about 78% of all small business start-ups fail by the end of the first year. The main reason for failure is a lack of cash flow. This can impair the ability of the small business to compete with proven competitors by hindering access to equipment or supplies necessary to obtain new clients.

Often, there are huge opportunities in the course of time that arise for the business start-up. It can be frustrating when the only thing keeping the business from capitalizing on the golden opportunities is a lack of cash flow to compete for the big contract. That is where an unsecured business line of credit can really make a difference.

An unsecured business line of credit provides a resource of capital, much like a bank loan, but the money can be used only when needed. The term “unsecured” refers to the fact that collateral is not required for obtaining the money needed. In fact, you can think of it like a credit card, but without the inherent danger of high fees and penalties of credit cards.

Even so, an unsecured business line shouldn’t be taken lightly and needs to be used only if there is opportunity to profit. It is still credit. However, keep in mind that with an unsecured business line, the threat of personal property being repossessed is non-existent. This is obviously a good thing.

Another factor that makes an unsecured business line beneficial for the business start-up is the speed funding in comparison to a traditional business loan. Being unsecured, no appraisals on properties are necessary. However, the road to obtaining business line funding can be slowed by a low credit score of the business owner. It requires credit repair, or proper business manuevering.

Overall, an unsecured line of credit is a valuable tool for business start-ups. Not only can it help the business in its infancy, but it can boost the bottom line expontially. Don’t seek a bank loan or look for a new credit card to max out. Grow your business start-up with a business line of credit. You will not regret it.

Small business advertising has no such guarantees however. It’s not like buying a refrigerator that is guaranteed to keep the milk and eggs cold. $1000 of advertising might bring $8000 of profit, or it might bring in zero. So, what’s a small business owner to do, especially if faced with a limited budget?

The best answer is to use small business advertising that only charges the owner when and if it works. There are several ways of doing this.

The primary method is called pay per click. This Internet option is available with numerous online merchant sites as well as hundreds of newspapers across the country and the globe.

Simply put, a small business agrees to pay a specified amount to the publisher, or the merchant site, for each ad that entices a consumer to come to the small business site. The price paid is generally an amount that the small business owner has bid on. More and more newspapers are offering this option as they struggle to maintain competitive online with eBay, Craigslist and other pure play classified and marketplace sites.

Another option for pay per click and inexpensive advertising for a small business that wants to concentrate on local customers is with regional publications or some of the larger metropolitan newspapers and groups that are introducing citizen media sites. These zoned products offer a much less expensive buy because the small business advertiser is buying the local neighborhood instead of the total metropolitan circulation of the metropolitan paper.

Companies such as YourHub, a product of the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News, are licensing these citizen media sites to other newspapers in other areas and those welcome small business advertising and discount the price. They also encourage citizen journalism. The small business owner can contribute articles, photos and local stories, although the paper will undoubtedly edit something too unabashedly self-serving. This is still a great way for a local entrepreneur to introduce himself or herself to the neighbors in a friendly, casual and soft sell way.