As a retired businessperson I always find it odd that freelance writers who've never had to make a payroll in their lives, other than paying their own living expenses seem to think it's okay for them to write on small business topics as if they are experts. There is a big difference between being a freelance writer and running a small business in the real world. Yes it's true that most freelance writers can spin a phrase, and most of the articles are topics of interest.
Still, I find some of the nonsense which is purported in some of these filler articles a little more than I can stomach. The advice is not all that good and they often miss the point and in doing so show just how little they really know about the subject. Not long ago I read an interesting article in the small business section of the Wall Street Journal titled; "Study Finds Certified Financial Statements Help Businesses Loan Prospects" by Angus Loten published on January 13, 2011.
What the article did not explain was whereas it would help a small business to have audited financial statements when they go to seek a loan to expand their business, "BUT" the reality is they need to take out a loan to get the audit in the first place. Ever since Sarbanes-Oxley the cost to get an audit has skyrocketed, and is well over four times the cost as it was before that law was in place. Worse there are even new financial laws now which will make things even tougher.
Often, I wonder if this Sarbanes-Oxley rules were actually written by accountants, or if Senator Sarbanes and Senator Oxley had relatives that were CPAs or accountants. After all, why on Earth would they create such an onerous set of regulations which would stifle the entire business community regardless of industry? Now the cost of 'errors and omissions insurance' has skyrocketed for accountants, and very few firms want to do audits. Meanwhile most CPAs and accountants are so busy, they don't wish to take the work or do peer reviews.
The whole thing is nothing less than a nightmare. The article tries to put some numbers to all these factors, and show that in the end the lower interest rate payments, and the loan itself will keep the small businesses in business, therefore it's worth the cost to get certified financial statements. In some cases this may be true, but if the cost of borrowing money is so expensive, and you have to pay professionals which are gatekeepers to that money, it becomes unviable, and a very uninviting prospect to say the least.
Needless to say, I know a thing or two about all this, since I'm retired franchisor. And with that said I'd like to remind you to be very careful what you read when looking through small business filler articles no matter what publication the article resides in. Indeed, I hope you will please consider this. If you have any comments or questions you may e-mail me and we can talk.
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