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Common Concerns of Factoring There are 3 common concerns that business owners raise when considering factoring: 1. Factoring is expensive. 2. I can’t afford to factor, my bottom line is only 2%. 3. I don’t want my customers to know I’m factoring. It shows my customers that I am having problems or that my business is weak. Let’s take a close look as to these concerns: 1. Factoring is expensive. No doubt about it. There is no way of getting around this fact. If a business has other financing options, those options should be explored. Most businesses that utilize factoring have explored and or, have already exhausted other forms of financing.
2. I can’t afford to factor, my bottom line is only 2%. If your business would increase by a sudden influx of cash and your bottom line would improve then the real question should be can your business afford not to factor its accounts receivable?
Let’s assume for a moment that a business doubles its sales by the use of factoring. As a business grows the cost of goods percentage and the gross profit percentage remain the same regardless of the increase in sales. The actual overhead cost percentage will actually decrease because fixed costs will not double if sales double (rent does not double, equipment payments do not double, utility payments do not double, payroll does not double, etc…).
Study the chart below and note that with financing the net profits improved:
3. I don’t want my customers to know that I am factoring. It shows my customers that I am having problems or that my business is weak. There is no way of getting around the verification and notification process of factoring. If you factor your accounts receivable, your customers are going to know. Pre-notifying your customers can often times eliminate this problem. Also, many large companies prefer that their smaller vendors do factor because it assures them that the smaller vendors have cash flow support for their business. If growing your company and becoming more profitable is an offset to your customers knowing your factoring then does it matter what your customers know? |