Posted by Jeffrey Nelson on Feb 01, 2011
What financing methods have you been using to grow your business and keep cash flowing during the recession? As the economy improves again, credit card issuers are hoping more small business owners will turn to credit cards as a cash management tool.
The Los Angeles Times recently reported that entrepreneurs can expect to see more credit card offers in their mailboxes in the coming months. Why? Because the 2009 legislation that reformed credit card policies put a lot of restrictions on the kinds of rates and penalties card issuers can charge consumers. Business credit cards, however, were excluded from many of these protections. That means card issuers can charge us higher interest rates and make a bigger profit.
But while card issuers are hoping to attract more small business owners, entrepreneurs are a bit gun-shy about taking on new credit cards. There are several reasons for this.
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Tags: Credit Card, Small
Posted by Jeffrey Nelson on Jan 31, 2011
PROVIDENCE – Brown University has received a $497,990 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to expand the international exposure of Humanities scholars and professors.
The program, “Brown in the World/The World at Brown,” is a three-year, two-part program to be launched by the Cogut Center for the Humanities.
The Brown in the World portion will allow graduate and postdoctoral fellows to spend one semester at an international institution, “with the goal of enriching their perspectives, teaching abilities, scholarship, and networks of international colleagues,” the university said in a news release on Jan. 27.
Through the World at Brown portion, the Cogut Center will host nine international scholars – three one-semester appointments and six one-month fellowships – to teach seminars and workshops for both graduate and undergraduate students.
“Th
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Tags: Exposure, Global Exposure
Posted by Ryan Rogers on Jan 31, 2011
February 1, 2011, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – Ryan Specialty Group, LLC today announced the launch of CivicRisk , a Managing General Underwriter specializing in excess casualty coverage for public entities which includes, but is not limited to, cities, counties, school districts, transit districts, public utilities, and special districts whether written individually or in pools. Excess casualty coverage for self-insured public entities CRU offers public entities a broad range of occurrence and wrongful acts coverage underwritten on a single policy form that addresses general liability, law enforcement, public officials, employment practices liability, employee benefits and automobile exposures. Coverage is also available on a follow form basis over qualified underlying primary carrier programs. The Read more…
Tags: Civicrisk, Ryan Specialty, Ryan Specialty Group, Specialty Group
Posted by Ryan Rogers on Jan 30, 2011
Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon Corporation, provides comment on the situation unfolding in Egypt:
Beverley Marsden, Director of Aon Political Risks:
“From a Political Risk point of view it is too early to say whether the events in Egypt will lead to losses in the insurance market. Global confiscation policies may include Political Violence cover and rioting and looting may impact assets covered under such policies.
“We cannot advise at this stage on the extent to which this has happened. Shutting down the internet or mobile networks would not necessarily generate claims as such action is likely to be short term – plus government contracts with mobile telecoms providers may well give the government the right to shut down networks for reasons of national security.
“We are all watching of course what happens to the Egyptian government. Whatever
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Tags: Situation
Posted by Alexander Murphy on Jan 28, 2011
Investors in with-profits policies should take advantage of opportunities to exit their investments without penalty, according to financial advisers, as new figures show that the annual bonus rates on nearly 100 with-profits bonds are less competitive than returns on cash savings.
This advice came in the same week that Friends Provident announced it was freezing most of its regular bonus rates, in spite of improved investment returns. Bonus rates were held for policyholders in the Axa Sun Life and Sun Life Assurance with-profits funds that Friends acquired last year – although some unitised pension plan holders in Friends’ main with- profits fund will see modest increases in their bonuses.
With-profits policies are long-term pooled investments sold by insurance companies – usually in the form of endowments, bonds pension funds or annuities. Most
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Tags: Exit, Exit Window
Posted by admin on Jan 27, 2011
Everyone will have to agree that with the arrival of online auto insurance, things have changed drastically for auto insurance. It was a complete change as how the insurance companies viewed things earlier. But now, insurance companies have changed their strategy. Since internet platform brings added benefit, every auto insurance firms have now converted their service online. There are less insurance agents, and you no longer have to tolerate the cold calls and unwanted tele calls from the insurance agents.
Here are few chosen benefits associated with online auto insurance:
Online auto insurance procedure is highly convenient. There’s no comparison with offline auto insurance. You not only save time, but you also save a greater amount of effort. Imagine times earlier when you have to visit more than one company to collect quotes from them, and also to discuss the advantages associated with each of these insurance firms. N Read more…
Tags: Auto Insurance, Insurance, Online Auto, Online Auto Insurance
Posted by Jeffrey Nelson on Jan 26, 2011
Let’s talk about 2011 marketing trends. You may be saying to yourself,
In November 2010, Ad-ology Research surveyed 752 small businesses owners in order to study “their attitude toward advertising.” This annual study gives a snapshot of small business owners’ marketing plans and reveals their expected advertising expenditures for this year. The 2011 Small Business Marketing Forecast included U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees (82 percent of those surveyed had 20 employees or fewer).
2011 Small Business Marketing Plans
Ad-ology discovered small business owners’ continuing drive to pump more resources into various online marketing tactics. After all, online marketing is cheaper, relatively untapped and has ongoing buzz that can have real bottom-line impact if the business owner has a well-executed plan.
Top Online Marketing Choices
According to Ad-ology’s survey, the top places where small businesses will put their marketing dollars in 2011 are (72.7 percent in 2011 vs. 56.6 percent i
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Tags: Marketing, Small Business
