Business Credit Cards Guide |
By Robert Alan |
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Business credit cards are a helping hand for those entrepreneurs who
are running their own businesses. A business credit card not only
acts as a line of credit but can also help to provide you enough
control in managing your company finances and cash. When business
credit cards were first introduced it was mainly aimed towards
corporate executives. However, this trend has changed and nowadays
even small business owners can acquire business credit cards fairly
easily. Business credit cards have become a versatile tool which
allows business owners to utilize effectively over time as their
business needs change.
A majority of the business credit
cards come with a wide range of features including cash advances,
cash rewards, airline miles, one-call emergency service, and
insurance coverage. The features included in a business credit card
vary from one card provider to the other, but most of the credit
card companies offer an attractive introductory rate for the first
few months from the date of opening your account. After that initial
period the customer will be required to pay a higher ongoing APR and
the card also might require an annual membership fee.
One of
the major advantages of a business credit card is that it provides a
significant increase in financial control. The cards allow you to
simplify and manage your business expenses well, eliminating the
need to use a personal credit card for business expenses. Another
most important feature of a business credit card is that small
business owners can make use of these little pieces of plastic to
provide financing or emergency "bridge loans" for their business
when stuck in cash flow shortages. And even thought it is not
explicitly stated in the business card features, business owners
have made use of business credit cards for start-up funding as well.
Nowadays, there are myriad small and medium sized companies which
make use of business credit cards as an efficient financing tool.
There is a wide variety of credit card issuers that offer business
credit cards with various schemes and features. Because of the many
opportunities available, it is highly recommended to thoroughly
contrast and compare business credit cards to select the ideal card
best suited to your specific business needs.
Tips for
Choosing a Business Credit Card
Before you apply for a credit
limit on a business credit, make an estimate of your monthly
business expenses and your history of repayment. Make sure that you
apply for a credit limit that you know is within the bounds of your
expense limitations, but equally important, will also take into
account the growing needs of your business.
If you have
several employees working under you, you need to determine how many
cards your business may need and which employees will require cards
for business expenses. Obviously, before you issue cards to any
employees make absolutely sure that they are trustworthy.
Also, make sure that during this process that you determine your
business requirements for ancillary services. That is, if you or
your employee has to travel regularly for business needs, then it is
a good idea to find out those business credit card issuers who offer
free air miles, travel insurance, and hotel discounts.
Be
careful about the introductory interest rates offered by business
credit card issuers. Most of these offers are designed to entice new
customers and after an initial period of six months to one year, the
interest rates will increase substantially. So when comparing
business credit cards, one of the most important things to check is
the regular interest rate versus the introductory APR and which card
compares favorably in that regard.
So if you are planning to
start a new business venture, try to utilize the entire suite of
benefits that a business credit card offers that can fund, track and
reward your business activities. |
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