Help me, I need quick business funding!

Is this the situation you are in with your small business? Are you an existing business who needs quick small business funding to help you expand your business, to help you pay for your employees, to help you pay for tools and equipment? Are you just at the stage where you are thinking of starting up and need funding now to make it happen?

Well you are in luck – sort of.

If you are looking for quick business funding, depending on the amount your small business needs, the easiest place to get it is in your own personal finances. Your savings, your credit cards, lines of credit, bank loans..etc  Why is it the fastest? Well, you have access to it right away.

If using your own money to startup or grow your small business isn’t your cup of tea, perhaps borrowing money from family and friends is the way to go?

If that’s the case and you need quick business funding, be sure to have some sort of agreement in place where you and your family/friends are protected and know what you’re getting into.

There are other alternatives as well – but not that quick.

When you are starting a small business in Canada, having enough funding to help you startup, to grow your business and to ensure your operational costs are covered, preplanning is a big deal. Having a business plan will help you with planning how much money you will need to successfully start up.

Don’t wait till the last minute to get the funding you need, otherwise in many cases it may be too late.

Government Funding As a Source of Quick Business Funding

Government funding programs are an excellent way to obtain funding for your small business in Canada. In fact, the Canadian government hands out billions of dollars to small businesses across the country in order to help stimulate the economy, create jobs and breed entrepreneurship.

Government funding programs come in the form of grants, loans, tax breaks and other financial assistance. However in order to apply and be a successful applicant, your business must meet certain qualifications and criteria.

If you’re thinking of applying to government funding programs and you need quick business funding, it’s possible however it’s a strategy you should be thinking minimum of 3 months before you actually need the funding.

Most government funding programs take time so take that into consideration when applying.

Applying to Government Funding Programs

The first step of applying to government funding programs is to ensure you have a business plan created. This can take some time if you don’t already have one.

Keep in mind that when applying to government funding programs, your business plan should be geared towards this and should answer the questions that funding agencies want to see such as; what do you need funding for, how much funding do you need..etc

The next step is to find the programs. In general, if you’re searching for government funding programs on your own, this can take 2 to 3 weeks. A lot of business owners turn to expert help such as the one available via our Funding Database in order to speed the search up – especially if you’re in need of quick business funding.

Once you’ve found the programs that are right for you based on the criteria and your funding needs – you will have to apply.

Applying to a funding program can take a few minutes to a few hours or days. All depends on what the program needs to have along with your application.

The next step is waiting for the reply.

If you’re successful at obtaining funding and your application is approved you would be contacted via email, phone or mail (or a combination). This doesn’t mean you will have the money in your hands just yet, so that quick need for funding is still a need. Once all is approved it can take a few weeks before you see any funding.

So in summary, if you need fast funding for your small business – you are probably out of luck already unless you are planning for the future and a few months ahead. But remember, personal savings, lines of credit, family and friends can be of help.