In the face of today’s inflationary pressures, many retired individuals confront the sobering reality that their savings and pensions might not stretch as far as anticipated. As the cost of living continues its upward trajectory, the need for supplemental income becomes not just a desire but a necessity for countless retirees. Fortunately, the digital age has ushered in many opportunities that enable individuals to harness their expertise, experience, and skills without the constraints of traditional employment.
While some opportunities for today’s home-business semi-retired entrepreneurs may be in the form of an expensive franchise along with complete training and marketing support, others may be comprised of a simple online mini-business selling products that require absolutely no training whatsoever. The point here is that in today’s web-based world, entrepreneurs have a plethora of quality home business opportunities they can examine and choose from, with well under half being started for less than $5,000. To be certain, some stand out from others based on ease of startup, cost of entry, and earnings potential.
Enter freelance consulting in factoring and business finance—a realm perfectly suited for retirees seeking part-time home-based ventures. This specialized niche not only aligns with the seasoned expertise many retirees have accumulated over years of professional endeavors but also offers flexibility, autonomy, and financial rewards tailored to their unique circumstances. By bridging the gap between industry knowledge and the burgeoning demand for financial expertise, retired individuals can navigate this rewarding landscape, ensuring a stable supplemental income while leveraging their wealth of experience in today’s dynamic economic landscape.
Factoring Broker: A Very Unique Consulting Niche
As a general career path, consulting is a very popular category or niche of home business opportunity, with thousands opting to launch some form of consulting business each and every year. Some align themselves with consulting firms or “clearing houses,” which have certain advantages, especially when you are starting out. Others will go the completely “freelance” route from day one, hanging out their own shingle and opting for the complete creative control afforded by truly being your own boss. Either way, if a consultant’s life seems right for you, you will need to choose your “niche.” To be sure, freelancing is rapidly growing in today’s economy, with over 57 million Americans currently engaged in some form of freelancing. The general rule is that the more specialized your niche is, the more income potential you will have.
The commercial factoring industry offers those seeking a career in consulting an exceptionally lucrative niche, and it’s exceptional for a variety of reasons including…
- EXPERIENCE: To be successful, most consultants will need to have years of experience in their chosen niche. That is not true of factoring. While you will certainly need to “know your stuff“, you can basically become an industry expert in just a few short weeks. This is because factoring is one of the simplest forms of alternative commercial finance. Factors solve business cash flow problems by purchasing invoices. Nothing more or less. While you will need to expand your knowledge as you add more financing products to your service areas, launching your business as a pure “factoring consultant” is relatively simple.
- PRICING FOR SERVICES: For many new consultants, how services are priced is a major concern. If the price is too high, you’ll lose business. The price is too low, and you leave money on the table. Factoring consultants simply do not have to deal with pricing issues. Since a factoring consultant is paid directly by the factor and not by the client (business in need of cash), the costs associated with the consultant’s services never come into play. From the client’s viewpoint, your valuable consulting services are absolutely free.
- FLEXIBILITY: Most who enter the freelance consulting community will have a certain amount of flexibility regarding when and where they work. If you take a temporary position consulting for a large company, you will lose a certain amount of the flexibility. Factoring consultants, however, ultimately retain the flexibility to work how much they want and from where. There is simply no limit to their options. Work from a home-based office in your own town a few days a week, or semi-retire and work from a motor home as you tour the country. The choice is entirely yours as you define your own work-life balance.
- COMMISSION PAYMENTS: Most freelance consultants will need to invoice a client for their services monthly. That is not the case in the factoring industry. As a freelance broker, you will automatically receive your commissions transferred directly into your business checking account each and every month. As long as your referred client continues to utilize the services of your factor, you will receive commissions. And, unlike in most industries, commissions as a factoring consultant are both residual and for the life of the referred account.
Low Startup Costs
As with many freelance gigs, launching a home-based business as a factoring consultant has very, very low startup costs. In fact, for those interested in simply learning what factoring is and how to direct business clients to an institutional lender for commissions and referral fees, you can learn all that is necessary by signing up for some free basic broker training, which is made available by the IACFB (International Association of Commercial Finance Brokers).
Those seeking a more career-oriented entry into the industry with more than just occasional work aspirations and seeking a career with true six-figure income potential, however, will require a higher level of training and some additional startup and support items such as…
- a well-designed factoring broker website and landing pages with online applications and form fields
- a blog (almost an essential marketing component in today’s world)
- a CRM …a Contact Relationship Manager (we recommend Pipedrive)
- an email management program such as Mail Chimp
- sales aids such as postcards, mailers, brochures, flyers, telephone scripts, etc.
- memberships for networking opportunities such as Chambers of Commerce
Explore This Unique Niche Consulting Field
Is consulting in the factoring and small business finance industry the right career path for you? The best way to explore this vocation and a good “first step” is to find out more by viewing the Front Page of Commercial Finance Consultant Magazine. Although some archived magazine articles are only accessible by IACFB members, there are always dozens of informative, up-to-date articles on the front page that are available to all on the web. If, after learning more, you think this is the perfect home business for you and that you’ve got what it takes to enter this career successfully, then take the next step by signing up right here at “Boot Camp” at IACFB Magazine. It is a FREE introductory broker training crash course for those interested in a career in factoring and small business finance. To enter “Boot Camp“, simply return to the magazine’s front page and scroll to the bottom. Complete the short signup form, and you’re in.
