How Black Women Entrepreneurs Can Get Paid Immediately!

Black Women Business Owners Have a New Accelerated Invoice Payment Option for Easy Cash Flow In a Shaky Economy.

Working capital is the #1 concern for Black women entrepreneurs, according to a 2022 Hello Alice Black Small Business Report. At the same time, minority-owned businesses receive the least amount of fundraising and financial support from banks and other traditional lenders. 

Post-pandemic economic turmoil has resulted in stricter lending rules, rigorous collateral requirements, and more demanding lending standards. Inflation and a looming recession have made raising capital for small businesses incredibly difficult. Every dollar of working capital earned through selling goods and services is vital for minority-owned businesses.

As it stands in the pre-recession economy, your bank is probably too busy working to keep itself afloat through tough times. In belt-tightening periods, lenders are reluctant to provide capital for rescuing already underserved minority women-owned small businesses. 

Whether delivering goods and services to other companies or local, state, or federal government agencies, the ability to get paid immediately empowers minority women-owned companies by making cash flow and working capital available quickly. 

One way for Black women entrepreneurs to ensure a wide-open pipeline of liquid cash flow is to get paid by clients as fast as possible. Black women-owned businesses have enough systemic problems to deal with without the added stress of waiting 30, 60, or 90 days to get paid. Read further to learn how simple and easy it is to step away from long waits on invoice payments. 

Black Women-Owned Business is Booming While Old Problems Persist.

After decades of economic and social struggle, black women have been starting and cultivating businesses at a record pace, outpacing all other sectors, for the past few years. The 2020 global pandemic fueled unparalleled women’s business start-ups as economic conditions grew ever more chaotic, forcing women – especially black women – to seek their means of making a living independently. 

• Whereas women-owned businesses grew by a whopping 58% between 2007 and 2018, businesses owned by Black women ballooned more than three times as fast at 164%.
• Black women business owners tend to be younger, with 40% being under 35 years old.
• In a 2022 business survey, 85% of Black women entrepreneurs indicated a positive outlook for business growth over the next year, while the top concerns were:

1. Raising operating funds.
2. Generating cash flow.
3. Building a positive working capital picture.

Unfortunately, the paradigm shift toward business growth and economic independence has not remedied long-standing financial discrepancies resulting from unfair, discriminatory laws and practices that must be addressed to create an even playing field.

• According to a 2020 Forbes report, BWOBs brought in four hundred and twenty-two billion dollars in revenue compared to 1.4 trillion enjoyed by white women-owned companies.

• The average revenue for women-owned businesses is $143,000, while black-owned women’s companies range around $24,000, a grossly unbalanced indicator of a lack of fair play in the system. 

• An American Express report estimates that turning the situation around would add four million new jobs and $981 billion in revenue to the economy.

Historically, no minority business sector has faced the same unfair, culturally biased, systemic social and economic obstacles as black women entrepreneurs. The fact that minority women have fought so resolutely despite these disadvantages is a testament to the kind of strength, character, and talent deserving of business success.

Waiting on Invoice Payments in a Shaky Economy is Risky.

Many Black-women-owned small businesses make their living by selling to government agencies, other small companies, or big operations without charging payment upfront. This traditional way of doing business by allowing ‘Merchant Credit’ inevitably comes with the necessity to start issuing invoices to track incoming payments and follow up on extended payment terms. 

The result of merchant credit arrangements is usually a long wait for clients to pay after the business delivers goods and services. Sometimes, the business owner has to play the stressful role of a debt collector to force slow-paying customers to compensate. 

Like most small business owners, black women entrepreneurs serving business and government clients rely on invoicing and extended payment terms to bring in new accounts.

Invoice arrangements allow entrepreneurs to sustain and upsell existing accounts and, hopefully, strengthen the company through steadily growing cash flow and working capital. 

With invoicing, one typically conducts business on the promise of repayment over time. Extended payment terms vary from 30, 60, 90, or even 120 days (as demanded by the largest corporate contracts). This form of ‘merchant credit’ lives or dies on the trustworthiness and long-term reliability of the client, be it a B2B or B2G contract.

When the economy is not secure, neither are client invoices, especially after a global pandemic that saw hundreds of thousands of bankruptcies and closures. Right now, in a post-pandemic economy riddled with runaway inflation and supply chain issues worldwide, minority-owned companies are at the highest risk for slow payment and ‘no payment’ on extended payment invoices.

  

Minority-owned businesses run by women are more likely to experience late payments or default. The faster they convert a client invoice into cash flow, the better for the small business service provider. Getting paid quickly means having working capital available for:

• Paying employees, contractors, and other industry talents.
• Compensating suppliers and vendors.
• Taking care of logistics, facilities, and real-estate-related bills.
• Making strategic investments in equipment, hiring, and expansion.
• Acquire or produce more inventory and products to sell. 

Introducing an Accelerated Invoice Payment System that’s Perfect for Black Women-Owned Businesses.

Women entrepreneurs in the Black community embody the fearless adventurism and flexibility necessary to successfully run and grow a small business into a larger one. That independent spirit demands a respectful approach to raising cash flow, and working capital that makes accounts payable a breeze, freeing business owners to focus on the parts of the business they most enjoy. That kind of freedom comes with unrestricted inbound revenue.

Unpaid invoices are the exact opposite of flexibility and independence. In a shaky economy, they are a potential stress factor that could devolve quickly into a liability at any time as more of your clients may begin struggling under the pending recession. 

For example, in 2020, a pandemic swept across the globe, and the resulting lockdowns left B2B and B2G small businesses stuck with untold billions in unpayable invoices, evaporating inbound cash flow and disintegrating working capital. Don’t allow your business to get caught flat-footed.

Since working capital and cash flow are the top concerns for your minority-owned small business, it only makes sense for you to find a way to convert accounts payable invoices into immediate cash. You can use that revenue for daily operations and grow your business fearlessly. 

NowAccount is the perfect solution if you’re tired of waiting for clients to pay. As an independent small business entrepreneur, you may find these Accelerated Invoice Payment System features to be the ideal fit for you:

1. You want to get paid immediately and bypass waiting 30, 60, 90, or 120 days. Waiting is inconvenient for your business, slowing your ability to grow and make more revenue. Still, you do not want to bug your clients to pay faster than agreed.
2. You want to get the working capital you need fast and at the lowest possible cost, with no hidden fees or disguised interest. You don’t mind a small, one-time fee that is so easy that every invoice feels like getting paid immediately by credit card.
3. You want an alternative way to raise cash flow and working capital without opening up your entire personal life and credit history.
4. You don’t want to use personal or business collateral as a guarantee against non-payment. You don’t want to put your business on the line, meaning you don’t want to burden equipment, inventory, or real estate. 
5. You want complete privacy and opaqueness with your client, so they have no idea that you are getting paid immediately on their invoice even while they get to pay later as agreed. They don’t need to know.
6. You want out of the ‘bill collector’ role and want someone you trust to take care of any necessary collections issues so you can focus on positive business relationships in your effort to grow and scale.
7. You desire a ‘Non-Recourse’ invoice payment option that won’t hold you or your business personally liable if your client defaults.
8. You want a working capital solution that works flawlessly alongside any existing loan or line of credit so that it does not impact your balance sheet. 

Benefits of Getting Paid Immediately on Invoices Using NowAccount. 

The power to get paid without long waits on invoices brings real economic empowerment for Black women-owned small businesses because it frees up revenue that would otherwise sit frozen in an unpaid invoice. In addition to the benefits of having immediate cash flow and liquid working capital, your NowAccount comes with perks catering specifically to you as an entrepreneur.

• NowAccount is not a loan, nor is it ‘invoice factoring.’ and will have no negative impact on your balance sheet. The low-cost charge is a one-time, small flat fee and does not engage in ‘holding back.’

  Holding back is when some shady invoice factoring companies only pay you the partial value of your invoice while holding back the rest. You’ll enjoy running a B2B or B2G business with the same easy convenience that feels like accepting a credit card payment.

• Your ability to get paid immediately on invoices frees your business to compete for larger contracts with more prominent companies and government agencies. It gives you the power to compete, knowing that the invoices generated will enable the cash flow you need to fund any necessary supplies, equipment, inventory, staff, or facilities needed to meet the growing demands of new business accounts.
• You will have complete freedom to choose which invoices you prefer to convert into cash flow, letting you make the best strategic financial decisions for your business.

With a fast, easy, and simple four-step process, you can qualify, set up, and begin using your NowAccount Accelerated Invoice Payment System as soon as it’s ready to step out of the unpaid invoice waiting game. Get paid right away in your small business for more liquid cash flow and a stronger working capital position.