Decisions a C-Suite would make for you
Vendor comparisons that are honest about where each tool falls short, plus a plan for doing the work yourself. Where we quote a benchmark, we show its source.
54 guides of 1,000
SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Financing vs Term Loans: Small Business Capital
Compare SBA 7(a) loans, revenue-based financing, and bank term loans: interest rates, personal guarantee requirements, advance limits, and debt covenants.
SBA Loan or Line of Credit: Financing Your Contracting Business
A decision framework for commercial contractors choosing between a revolving line of credit and an SBA loan, plus a worked mobilization-funding example.
SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Financing for a B2B SaaS Company
A worksheet for B2B SaaS founders comparing an SBA 7(a) loan against revenue-based financing, built around ARR, gross margin, and renewal contracts.
Financing a Custom Software Shop: SBA Loan or Revenue-Based Capital
Custom software and product engineering firms have lumpy, project-based revenue. Here is how that changes the SBA 7(a) versus revenue-based financing choice.
Financing a Young AI Automation Agency: A Step-by-Step Runbook
Most AI and workflow automation agencies are too new for a bank to underwrite comfortably. Here is a step-by-step path from first financing to an SBA loan.
Financing an MSP: A Checklist for SBA Loans vs Revenue-Based Capital
A checklist for IT consulting and managed service providers weighing an SBA 7(a) loan against revenue-based financing, plus the pitfalls that trip up MSPs.
Can a Small DevOps Consultancy Get an SBA Loan or RBF?
Straight answers for small technical and DevOps consultancies asking whether an SBA loan or revenue-based financing is even realistic at their size.
Financing an MSSP's Tooling Buildout: SBA Loan or Revenue Share
Managed security providers carry heavy upfront tooling and compliance costs before contracts ramp. Here is how to choose between an SBA loan and RBF.
SBA or Revenue-Based Capital for an Embedded Finance Platform
Fintech and embedded finance companies face eligibility questions an SBA loan doesn't raise for other software firms. Here is what to check first.
Financing a Consulting Practice: Comparing SBA and Revenue-Share Capital
A comparison of SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing for consulting firms, where billable-hours revenue rarely looks like a SaaS company's.
Financing a CPA Firm Around Tax-Season Cash Flow
Accounting and CPA practices have revenue that spikes around tax season. Here is how that seasonality shapes the SBA loan versus revenue-based financing choice.
Financing a Law Firm: SBA Loans, Revenue Share, and Bar Rules
A checklist for law firms weighing an SBA 7(a) loan against revenue-based financing, including the professional-conduct question firms often skip.
Financing a Marketing Agency's Media Float and Growth
Marketing agencies often front client ad spend before billing it back. Here is how that float shapes the SBA loan versus revenue-based financing choice.
Financing a Fractional Executive Advisory Firm: Common Questions
Answers to the financing questions fractional executive advisory and search boutiques actually ask, comparing SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing.
Financing a Staffing Agency's Payroll Gap: A Runbook
Staffing agencies pay placed workers weekly and collect from clients on 30 to 60-day terms. Here is a runbook for financing that gap and beyond.
Financing an Engineering Firm Around Public-Contract Pay Cycles
Civil and structural engineering firms often bill against government milestones with long pay cycles. Here is how that shapes SBA loans versus RBF.
Financing an Architecture Studio Across a Long Project Cycle
Architecture firms bill by design phase, often across a year or more. Learn how to size an SBA loan or revenue-based financing around that cycle.
Financing an RIA Book Purchase Around Quarter-End Billing
RIA fees bill in arrears off quarter-end values, so a market drop cuts revenue after payroll is spent. See how to finance a book purchase around that lag.
Financing a Biotech Consultancy Through Sponsor Funding Gaps
Life sciences sponsors pause programs between funding rounds, so a signed statement of work can become a hold. Here's how to finance a consultancy through it.
Financing a Multi-State Tax Practice Around Two Billing Windows
Corporate tax revenue lands in two compressed windows while rent, software and payroll arrive monthly. See how to size financing around that shape.
Why Retainer Concentration Matters More Than Rate for PR Firms
A thirty-day notice period lets one leadership change erase a retainer. See why client concentration matters more than the rate for PR firms.
Financing an HR Consultancy Around Survey License Renewals
Compensation survey licenses renew in one lump sum while projects bill later in pieces. See how an HR consultancy can finance that mismatch.
Why Contribution Margin, Not Invoice Total, Should Drive Financing
Pass-through cloud costs inflate a data consultancy's invoice total without adding margin. See why contribution margin should drive financing choices.
Why Success Fees Are the Wrong Base for M&A Advisory Debt
A deal expected to close in one quarter can slip or collapse, leaving staffing sized for revenue that never arrived. See what to base financing on.
Matching DTC Financing to What the Money Actually Buys
A factory deposit is due months before the first sale, right when inventory cash is committed. See how a DTC brand can match financing to each need.
Separating Permanent Assets From Turning Working Capital
One retail customer on long terms while suppliers want payment on shipment can drain a profitable distributor. See how to finance the gap.
Financing a Season That Starts Before the Design Is Final
Fabric is paid for two seasons before sell-through, and chargebacks land after the sale. See how SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing fit apparel brands.
Why GMV Is the Wrong Number to Borrow Against
Gross merchandise value looks like revenue to almost everyone except your accountant, and a lender anchoring on it will size a facility you can't service.
SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Financing for a Multi-Channel Retail Brand?
How multi-channel retail brands should weigh SBA 7(a) loans against revenue-based financing for buildouts, inventory buys, and seasonal cash gaps.
Financing a Coaching or Cohort Education Business: SBA 7(a) vs RBF
Why cohort-based coaching and online education businesses usually lean on revenue-based financing, and the cases where an SBA 7(a) loan still wins.
Funding a Paid Newsletter or Community: SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Capital?
How operators of paid newsletters and high-ticket communities should choose between an SBA 7(a) loan and revenue-based financing for growth spend.
SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Financing for B2B Media and Conference Operators
B2B publishers and conference operators face a specific cash gap between event deposits and vendor payments. Here is how to finance across it.
Financing Enterprise Training and Certification Growth: SBA 7(a) or RBF?
Corporate training and certification providers face long enterprise payment terms. Here is how SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing each fit.
Financing a Commercial Media Production Studio: SBA 7(a) vs RBF
Commercial media and creator production studios juggle equipment costs and brand deal payment lags. Here is how each financing tool fits that mix.
Why Commercial Contractors Rarely Use Revenue-Based Financing
Commercial contractors get paid in draws, not daily sales. See why SBA 7(a) loans and lines of credit usually fit better than revenue-based financing.
Financing Growth in Freight and Trucking: A Step-by-Step Look at SBA 7(a) vs RBF
A step-by-step guide for freight logistics and 3PL fleet operators choosing between an SBA 7(a) loan and revenue-based financing for growth capital.
Financing a Precision Manufacturing Shop: SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Capital?
A worked example of how precision contract manufacturers should weigh SBA 7(a) equipment loans against revenue-based financing for raw material gaps.
A Building Material Supplier's Guide to SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Financing
Building material suppliers carry heavy inventory and thin margins on trade credit terms. Here is a decision guide for SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based capital.
SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Financing for an Equipment Repair Business?
Industrial equipment and field service businesses mix recurring maintenance contracts with lumpy emergency calls. Here is how to finance each side.
Financing Temperature-Controlled and Hazmat Fleets: A Pitfall Checklist
A checklist for temperature-controlled and hazmat carriers weighing SBA 7(a) equipment loans against revenue-based financing, with the pitfalls to avoid.
Financing a Solar or Energy EPC Firm: SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Capital
Commercial solar and energy EPC contractors face upfront material costs and staggered customer draw schedules. Here is how each financing tool fits.
Financing Dental Support Organization Growth: SBA 7(a) or RBF?
Dental support organizations acquiring or building out locations should understand where SBA 7(a) loans beat revenue-based financing, and where they don't.
Financing a MedSpa or Specialty Clinic: SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Capital
Specialty outpatient and medspa clinics balance equipment purchases with membership revenue. Here is how SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing compare.
Financing Multi-Hospital Veterinary Growth: SBA 7(a) or RBF?
Multi-hospital veterinary groups weighing practice acquisitions against wellness plan growth should know where SBA 7(a) loans beat revenue-based financing.
Financing Multi-Clinic Physical Therapy Growth Around Payer Reimbursement Lag
Outpatient physical therapy networks wait weeks on insurance reimbursement. Here is how SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing each address that gap.
Financing a Growing Behavioral Health Group Without Much Collateral
Behavioral health groups have few fixed assets and slow insurance reimbursement. See when SBA 7(a) loans or revenue-based financing fit each growth need.
Why Recruiting Costs Drive Financing at Growing Real Estate Brokerages
How commission-based brokerages should weigh SBA 7(a) loans against revenue-based financing for recruiting, buildouts, and slow quarters.
A Property Manager's Runbook for Financing a Portfolio Acquisition
A step-by-step look at financing property management growth: trust accounts, door acquisitions, onboarding ramps, and turnover costs.
Why Most PE-Backed Portfolio Companies Cannot Use an SBA 7(a) Loan
Why SBA affiliation rules disqualify most private equity portfolio companies from 7(a) loans, and what to finance growth with instead.
SBA 7(a) or Revenue-Based Financing for a Debt Advisory Firm?
Why arranging financing for clients all day doesn't make a debt advisory firm's own capital stack simpler, and how to finance it correctly.
Why Most Specialty Lenders Cannot Get an SBA 7(a) Loan
Why SBA excludes lending businesses from 7(a) loans, and how specialty finance operators should finance the operating company instead.
Financing Your Next B2B Franchise Unit: A Buildout-to-Ramp Walkthrough
A walkthrough of financing a new B2B franchise unit, from franchisor consent clauses through the buildout and the ramp to mature revenue.
Buying an Insurance Book of Business: SBA 7(a) vs Revenue-Based Financing
How to finance an insurance agency book acquisition, from carrier appointment risk to why contingent commissions shouldn't fund debt service.
Financing a Government Contractor Through a Payment Freeze
Why government invoicing creates financing gaps, and how SBA 7(a) loans and revenue-based financing handle contractor payment freezes.