Just as owning a home was assumed to be a positive financial strategy for individuals, small companies owning commercial real estate was typically seen as a routine and constructive piece of their commercial financing during the period leading up to the most recent financial crisis. Both of these assumptions start to fall apart very quickly when it is difficult or impossible to obtain the underlying real estate loans from banks. Real estate continues to be a major component of the overall economy, and ongoing difficulties involving either obtaining or refinancing commercial mortgage loans presents severe problems for both societal economics in general and small business economics in particular.

Did the Bank Bailout Help Small Businesses?

One of the primary arguments made in favor of bailing out banks in 2008 was that it would permit the restoration of “normal financing” to businesses of all sizes everywhere. Seven years later most small businesses are still waiting for bailout funding to “trickle down” to them. Working capital loans and commercial mortgages are missing in action for many commercial borrowers.

Real estate has regularly been in economic news for both good reasons and bad reasons during the past several decades. Starting around 2005, concerns began appearing about the financial health of both real estate and the overall economy. What we did not know at the time was that banks began making speculative investments in financial derivatives tied to real property at about the same time. Some of these investment practices produced massive losses that precipitated the public banking crisis emerging in 2007 and resulting in a widespread bank bailout program in 2008. Even the few instances in which these derivatives produced profits for the banks proved to be controversial because the profitable investing was frequently at the expense of banking customers.

Zombie Banks and Troubled Banks

Here are two of the real estate and banking problems that are still very actively impairing the small business economy:

Zombie Banks are still operating – a Zombie Bank is one with a negative net worth (liabilities exceeding assets).
The FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) Troubled Banks List still has more than 200 banking institutions on the list.
It is worth noting that the FDIC does not publicize the problem bank list or name specific banks on the list – probably fearing a “run on the banks” if they did so. The recent “bank holiday” in Greece illustrates how quickly bank depositors can lose confidence in banking institutions. But the FDIC does release the number of banks on their troubled bank list on a quarterly basis. For example, the March 2015 total of problem banks as defined by the FDIC was 253. In comparison, the total was more than 850 banks at the peak of the recent financial crisis – but there were less than 50 troubled banks before the 2008 bank bailouts.

What to Do When Banks Say No

Small business owners must draw their own conclusions about the current financial health of banks, but it seems unlikely that a “Troubled Bank” will be able to make a “normal” level of small business loans. If banks are still saying “No” to routine commercial financing for creditworthy small businesses, what is the recommended response? Small business owners should actively review alternatives that include non-bank financing, reducing business debt and increasing sales with cost-effective solutions such as business proposal writing. At some point the practical need to fire their bank and banker will by necessity become one of the realistic actions by a commercial borrower in need of business financing but unable to obtain it from their current banking institution. In such a scenario, “You’re fired” can quickly become another example of life imitating art.

Owning your own home-based business can be a dream come true for many people. And spending less money on gas – which is one reason people decide to stay home and having more time to spend with your family is another reason people decide to have their own home-based business are growing factors in the home-based business expansion that the home-based businesses are experiencing today.

But how do you get started owning your home-based business? What home-based business leads. Home-based business leads will give you all the: what, where and when and even how to owning your own home based business. These home-based business leads can be found all over the Internet if you know where to look and we’ll get you started on your way to owning a home based business.

Depending on what type of home-based business you are looking for, whether it is selling products or services, or a business where you help others set up their own businesses these home-based business leads will show you where to begin and what to do from there.

There are many companies that strictly work with home-based businesses that are called lead generators and they provide home-based business leads for the home-based business worker. Sometimes these services cost a minimal amount, sometimes you pay a monthly fee, sometimes a yearly fee and if you search long enough you may be able to find a free service for home-based business leads. These leads will show you what you can do to make a good living at a home-based business. Some of these leads will direct you directly to customers were looking for your product or services. Other leads generated from home-based business leads will only show you what to do to get the leads and then you’re on your own with what to do with them.

Home-based business leads will show you where to find customers and what types of businesses are popular at the moment. Currently businesses which promote weight loss, other work at home businesses, making money from home and ways to quit your 9-to-5 job are all popular at the moment. These are home-based business leads in the lead generators will show you where to find the information you need to either sell this information on your website or to help others began their own home-based business. People will pay you to help them start their own home-based business. And not only do you get the income from helping others help themselves, but you get the appreciation and gratitude and just that good feeling of helping others being able to help themselves. By helping others get away from the grind of the rat race, by being able to stay home with their families by working at home at a home-based business.

Beginning with the home-based business leads you can help yourself and boost your own home-based business with these home-based business leads, you can also help others increase their income with the home-based business leads. But home-based business leads are what everyone needs to begin a home-based business.

Product creation could be a frightening subject for a lot of Internet marketers to face. Some folks who get in the game with the intention of making a full time income are completely ignorant as to how an online business operates. One of the most profitable ways to create online cash is by creating a product that others are happy to pay for.

Product creation is legitimate method of generating money through internet marketing but many entrepreneurs get it wrong. They start by imitating their Internet marketing gurus by creating information products on Internet marketing in hopes of getting rich the way their heroes did. The problem is that they usually don’t know what they are doing and enter a highly competitive niche with very little marketing experience or connections.

Here are a few tips for effective product creation that may help you get on the right track:
Start by finding a profitable niche with low to moderate competition. If you conduct some rudimentary market research and keyword research, you’ll find many opportunities in areas that will surprise you. Amazon and eBay are two great places to brainstorm for product ideas.

Developing Your Product does not have to be a difficult project. You can find experts in the right field for your niche and pay them to write the material while an artist designs the packaging and website or blog. You can outsource the entire product creation part of the project after you conduct the research and testing to ensure profitability.

Sales and marketing strategies should be created while developing the product and learning about the market. Some experienced marketers use pay per click to drive traffic to their offer page; some folks outsource the entire marketing campaign to affiliates through ClickBank or other affiliate programs.

Product creation does not need to be hard, particularly when the merchandise is electronic. E-books, videos, audio and multi-media products sell very well. They are distributed immediately to customers electronically. Once you have a good feel for a niche market, try to service your customers with associated products and upgrades. If you want to earn money online through product creation, you must understand supply and demand. The majority of new online marketers fail miserably because they go after highly competitive markets or forget to research their chosen niche properly. You have to create your products according to the needs, wants and desires of the prospective customers.