Guest post by Mathew Jade.
Running a small business has more than its fair share of risks. Clients can be late in paying. Competition is fierce, and as more and more people start their own businesses or try to make few extra dollars in the gig economy, it just gets tougher.
You can hit a surprise slowdown in business due to holidays, sudden shift in economic trends or expectations, changes in government policy, the loss of a large customer, or any of a hundred different reasons. Sometimes, deals you expect to close instead evaporate. You may need to spend effort and resources on business development activities with a highly uncertain return.
Cash flow is frequently one of the major problems for small to midsized businesses. Businesses may need fast cash in order to take advantage of an opportunity or simply to fund growth ahead of revenue.