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6 Business Credit Card Fees You Can Avoid

April 2, 2018
By Jason Steele –

Credit CardIt seems like America has gone crazy with fees. It’s now standard practice in most industries to quote prices that fail to include several mandatory extra charges, often intermingled with government imposed taxes.

But in the credit card industry, fees are actually under strict government control. All fees must be clearly disclosed in advance, and card issuers aren’t even allowed to use the fine print.

This makes it easy to avoid most fees when it comes to choosing a business credit card. Here are six business credit card fees you should always avoid: (more…)

Common Myths About Labor Law Posting Regulations

March 26, 2018
By ComplyRight –

ComplyRight eGuide - Posting RegsPosting compliance is a lot more complicated than most people think. In fact, there are common misconceptions about this mandatory government requirement – even though it applies to every U.S. employer. Let’s look at the top three.

• Posting Law Myth #1: Ignoring Posting Laws Carries No Risk

“Government fines are so small, it’s no big deal if we don’t post.”

“There are no poster police out there … so how would I even get caught?”

It’s not unusual for business owners to underestimate the importance of posting compliance or to think the risk is so minimal it doesn’t really matter. But this could get you in trouble. (more…)

Bringing Wet Shaving to the 21st Century

March 19, 2018
Success Story: Idaho

The Grooming NetworkImagine bringing the best of Victorian-era masculinity to the 21st century while also creating local jobs and protecting the environment. Luke Webster’s The Grooming Network (TGN) has accomplished all of these since starting up in 2011.

Along with his wife and two business partners, Webster has cornered the market in old-fashioned wet shaving. Webster started with a single product, a website and a small marketing budget. Within a short time, they had over $40,000 in orders and Webster knew they had connected with real need.

Webster and his team at TGN resurrected the lost art form of creating quality, American-made straight razors by patenting a unique process for manufacturing the blades in North Idaho. These reusable razors help reduce landfill shave waste by 96% while saving customers money. (more…)

The Right Way to Close a Credit Card

March 12, 2018 1 Comment
By Jason Steele –

Credit CardDid you know that there’s a right way and a wrong way to close your small business credit card? If you do it the wrong way, you could miss out on rewards and benefits, and possibly even incur late fees and interest payments. Use these steps to make sure that you close your credit card account the right way.

Consider Alternatives to Closing Your Account

There are some good reasons why you may wish to close your small business credit card account, but many of them can be addressed by your card issuer. The market for small business credit cards is extremely competitive, and card issuers are willing to go to great lengths to retain existing their customers. For example, if you are closing your account because the annual fee is too high, and you let your card issuer know, then it may waive your annual fee to keep your business. Likewise, if the standard interest rate is not competitive, then your card issuer might be able to offer you a lower rate. (more…)

Horse Lovers Combine Skills, Resources at Danville, Vermont Stable

March 5, 2018
Northern Lights StableVtSBDC Advising Assists Business Start-Up

Megan Haygood and her family already had the land, hay and equipment needed to start a horse boarding, breeding, training and riding facility in Danville. But they knew they needed more in order to start a successful business.

Enter Michelle Lemieux, an established equine trainer and manager, and you have the makings of a quality small business partnership. The two opened Northern Lights Stable last year after combining Haygood’s resources and Lemieux’s expertise and customer base.

“Our business is special as it provides exceptional equine care and 24-hour monitoring, highly skilled training and riding instruction, and a regulation-size indoor competition arena,” Haygood said. But even with the combination of resources and skills that Haygood and Lemieux brought to the table, they knew they could use additional help before launching the business. (more…)