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British business has changed in the last few years, becoming part of the online revolution and the advent of E-business and Internet financial management. The high street has been the real victim in this groundshift towards more virtual business and despite the continuing worry about recession, financial downturns and the ongoing ‘credit crunch’ businesses have seen their markets expand globally, thanks to the relentless march of cyberspace. Banking hasn’t been left behind either, and it’s now rare to find any financial institution that doesn’t offer an online banking service. This can only be of benefit, both to customers and to businesses alike.

The original thinking behind online financial management was more environmentally altruistic, as it was seen as a means to remove the ‘paper-based’ system of old. The public was initially reluctant to become part of this revolution, their concerns fuelled by reports of identity theft, online credit card scams and other cybercrimes. Better security systems have replaced the first generation protocols and using the Internet is now a safe and secure method of managing your finances for both personal and business customers. Small and medium sized companies (SMEs) have particularly benefited from a more modern approach to doing business online.

Business credit cards have proven to be a perennially popular way of giving SMEs an additional source of funding, with 23%* of business owners using them to inject additional capital into their companies. The flexibility of an online credit card management strategy has made it even easier to keep a close eye on the day to day finances of a business, as online management gives a real-time snapshot of the company’s transactions and expenditure 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Traditionally, a business credit card user would have to wait for the monthly statement to assess how the cards were being used. If an overspend had occurred, it was too late to prevent it escalating. With online banking a card owner can put a stop to any overspend before it happens, making the overall financial position of the company that little bit more secure. This is particularly important where there are multiple users on a single account, and pre-set spending limits also makes this a more controllable system of financial management.

Using an online financial management system incorporating business credit cards can also give businesses an outline of their average expenditure as projected throughout the year. It means that if a business owner notices an increase in travel costs for example, restraints can be put in place to curb overspends before they occur. Some business credit cards offer ‘reward schemes’ as part of their package, and these can be utilised to make further savings for the business, particularly in travel and accommodation expenses. This ability to be able to not only control immediate spending but to forecast potential costs throughout the year can potentially prevent a company nose-diving towards collapse as a result of overspend.

Time management is a vital factor for any business, and online business credit card management can help here as well. The time spent gathering in and sorting through receipts and separate paper statements can cost a company money, especially if they employ an external accounting service. Online management gives a business owner the chance to stay on top of the paperwork quickly and easily, reducing the time (and money) spent on bookkeeping and other administration. A clear breakdown of any transactions can be printed out at any time. It also enables a business to keep a close eye on payments to suppliers, ensuring that deadlines on invoices are met and keeping vital lines of credit open to the business.

The evolution of E-business and its resultant online financial management systems is making the way UK PLC does business more dynamic and controllable. In a global marketplace that never sleeps, having access to your financial information at any time of the day or night could mean the difference between your business keeping up with competitors or going to the wall. Any weapon in such a competitive marketplace needs to be utilised, and online management of business credit cards can leave business owners with more time to focus on the important aspects of their business – bringing in new customers or developing new products or services. It also gives them the peace of mind that, at the click of a button, they are in complete control of their business finances.

* Figures published by the Federation of Small Businesses 2009 New Year Message



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An economic recession is on the near horizon and is bearing down on us very quickly. The global economy is headed south and is currently starting to affect a growing segment of the population. We need to buckle our collective seat belts folks, it is going to be a rough ride. How rough? Only time alone will tell. Historically speaking, most people simply try to cut spending, save money and maintain a low financial profile when a recession comes knocking. But with more people getting “downsized” and with the “credit crunch” crunching us, the Internet has increasingly become a popular place for the average-ordinary citizen to look for creative ways to make an income. 

So, some obvious questions come to mind. Is it really a smart choice to start an online business during a recession? Is there any upside in starting a web based business when the economy is shrinking? Can an Internet home business make money in a struggling economy? Well it is true, home based businesses actually have several distinct advantages over their brick-and-mortar counterparts. And many online network marketers really thrive during recessionary times. If you are considering these questions, here are some valid reasons why starting an online business during a recession is not nearly as insane as it sounds.

Starting an online business can be cheap.

Compared to the initial startup costs of a retail business, where you have to spend thousands of dollars, starting an Internet business can be done for a relatively minor investment. In a traditional business you will need furniture, office supplies, inventory, cash registers, and service supplies…etc. By eliminating these financial obstacles and others such as rent, utilities, licenses/permits, and employees, online businesses can save literally thousands of dollars compared to brick and mortar businesses. Necessary online business costs such as domain names, web hosting, auto responders, to name a few, are cheap in comparison. In addition, there are many affiliate programs and turnkey website-based systems that can be successfully run as home businesses and are either free to join or very inexpensive. 

Advertising an online business is relatively inexpensive and there are no physical boundaries.

Online advertising enables marketers to target specific customer groups, get immediate statistics on marketing effectiveness and ensure product exposure to more prospective customers. Since there are no geographic boundaries online, an Internet business has the means to reach a worldwide audience. There are more choices available for marketing an online business and marketing costs are often not as costly as you might think. Effective marketing can be easily done at no cost. Some examples of no cost methods are free online classifieds like craigslist, making your own advertising videos to post on sites like YouTube, marketing on social websites like Facebook, starting your own blogs, writing articles for marketing…the list goes on and on. 

Even in turbulent financial times, online buying is more widespread than ever.

Convenience and ease are still the buzzwords for Internet purchasing even in the midst of a recession. More households have personal computers and Internet access than ever before. If you combine this with overnight delivery and the basic fact that Internet sales are still largely untaxed, you can imagine why Internet shopping is so popular. You can buy something online one day, often just as cheap, and have it at your front door step the following day. Also, many products or services online are absolutely not available at the corner store or your local Wal-mart. In fact, you can obtain virtually anything online today, and numerous niche businesses have popped into existence as a direct result of the demand for specialty products. Find a niche and fill it, they will come. 

Internet based network marketing (MLM) businesses actually thrive in a bad economy.

In a recession the number of persons actively looking for ways to make money and reduce their financial burden increase dramatically. This is exactly what network marketing or MLM businesses are designed to do – make money. In fact many MLMs actually sell money making systems. Did you realize that nearly 25 million searches are done on Google every day for ways to make money online? And this number will only expand as the economy goes downhill. That is a lot of potential customers. Network marketing on the Internet is a prime way for reaching these opportunity seekers. Starting a network marketing business is really very inexpensive. Many MLM businesses come complete with turnkey websites and training in online marketing for under $250. 

To wrap it up, there has yet to be an economy bad enough to stifle online business as a whole. Hopefully that time will never come because it would suggest something much worse than a recession is taking place. Business on the world wide web is entirely too strong and diversified to let a recession (even a particularly bad one) bring it to a halt. Furthermore, the Internet is such a vast place that there will always be likely customers for practically any home based business regardless of what state the economy is in. The ideal moment to launch an online business, regardless of how the economy is doing, is when you have done your homework and are positively motivated to begin and follow through it. If you happen to decide to open your venture during a recession at least you will know that it is not nearly as insane as it sounds.



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Putting aside all talk of recessions, downturns and ‘credit crunch’ headlines for a moment, there has been a noticeable shift in the way UK PLC has been doing business over the past couple of years, with a revolution in ‘E-business’ and online financial management. The high street has been the real victim in this groundshift, whereas businesses online are thriving in a global market. Banking has quickly picked up on this and there are very few banks or credit card providers that do not offer online facilities to their customers. For business, this can only be a good thing.

Initially, many banks and financial institutions offered online banking as an environmentally friendly and ‘paperless’ way to monitor and maintain an account. Despite the initial reluctance by the public (fuelled undoubtedly by stories about identity theft and the ease with which fraudsters could obtain personal details), better security systems introduced by the banks has meant that online banking is a safe and secure way to run your financial affairs. This also holds true for businesses, and online banking offers small and medium size businesses in particular a host of advantages, especially when using business credit cards.

Business credit cards are a popular way of providing additional financing for SMEs, with 23% of entrepreneurs using them to inject additional capital into their company. The benefits of using an online system to manage a business credit card makes it an even easier and more flexible way to run a business, as online management gives a business a real-time overview of their transactions and financial position 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Instead of waiting for a monthly statement to drop through the door an owner can keep track of expenditure on a daily basis, monitoring exactly how much is going in and out of the account and keeping track of payments to suppliers and expenses incurred by additional card holders.

By using online management for business credit cards, a business can see quickly where the majority of expenses are being incurred and adjust their overall plan to factor this in or even make adjustments to save the business money. Some business credit cards also offer ‘reward schemes’ that a company can take advantage of to make savings, particularly on travel and accommodation expenses. Instead of waiting for a monthly statement to be able to see any patterns that may be emerging, a business credit card allows the company to act quickly to curb any overspend that may put the business in jeopardy. It also provides a business with the ability to forecast potential spending over a longer period of time and thus help them to plan their overall finances with more accuracy.

Online management also gives a company another other major benefit – time. The time spent going through a plethora of receipts and various other paper transactions can be time consuming and costly, particularly if the business employs an accountancy firm to keep the books up to date. Online management means that a clear breakdown of all transactions can be easily printed out at any time, making accounting much easier and quicker. It also enables business owners to monitor payments to suppliers, ensuring that payment deadlines are met and keeping open vital lines of credit to suppliers that could mean the difference between a business succeeding or folding.

In a fast moving, modern business environment, the evolution of E-business and subsequently E-Banking is one that all SMEs have to be a part of to succeed. Competition is fierce and anything that gives a business an edge in such a competitive marketplace should be utilised. Online management of business credit cards leaves business owners more time and flexibility to concentrate on the most important part of their daily life – running the business itself. It also gives them the peace of mind that they are in control of the business finances, all at the click of a button.



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