News

SBA Community Express Loan Program for Microbusinesses

Attached is a brief description of the SBA Community Express Loan program, a
new pilot program being rolled out in Montana by Innovative Bank out of
Oakland, California and delivered through the Small Business Development
Centers.

The SBDC’s are certified as technical assistance providers by the
National Community Reinvestment Coalition. A technical assistance
assessment is required before a loan can be processed. This loan program is
designed to reach the underserved markets of minority-owned businesses and
businesses located in low-moderate income areas of the state as defined by
SBA. The program offers a 7-year term loan from $5,000-$25,000, which is
85% guaranteed by the SBA (and a 50% loan guarantee through the SBA Express
Loan Program for borrowers not eligible under the minority and low-income
category).

Innovative Bank/Merchant Solutions would like to hire more representatives
in Montana, especially in eastern Montana. A job description with contact
information is attached.

Ann Desch, State Director
SBDC Lead Center
Montana Department of Commerce
PO Box 200505
301 South Park
Helena, MT 59620-0505
(406) 841-2746
[email protected]
FAX: (406) 841-2728

************

Executive Summary of the “S.O.H.O. Access” Program

Innovative Bank located in Oakland, California is interested in participating in the “Community Express” pilot program of the SBA, which includes a technical assistance-training component to help educate the underserved markets.

Purpose:

The purpose of this document is to summarize a government assisted micro loan program for the small businesses consisting primarily of minorities or businesses located in designated low to moderate income areas or (LTMI).
Whereas the Bank is looking to expand our SBA volume and Balances as well as the opportunity to cross sell additional Bank products through loan brokers, and the government is looking for banks to participate in these minority loan programs that provide technical assistance to further enhance the economic stimulation in said target areas.

Objective:

Offer an SBA guaranteed program of “Community Express” 7-year term loans of $5,000.00. The approval process will be based on an approval scoring matrix qualification. The program will be funded by Bank of Oakland/Innovative Bank (currently a preferred SBA lender). Solicited by Minority chambers and the Banks (“Brokers”) along with the endorsement and cooperation of the America’s Small Business Development Center Network (ASBDC) and all of their individual offices (aprox. 1000), We believe that with the Bank’s SBA and micro business expertise and the ability of our partners to reach the under served sector of the small business community, together we can successfully launch a program that will meet and/or exceed the needs of the “unbanked” sector of the micro business community. The government has targeted this sector and is prepared to provide an 85% guaranty under the “Community Express Pilot Program,” to aid these areas and help jump-start the economy.

When implemented, we believe we can help these micro businesses grow into successful small businesses, which will employ more people, increase the fee income of the Bank and prove our plan more scaleable and diverse, thereby increasing shareholder value.

Program Defined:

The Bank has developed a concept to work in concert with the “Community Express” programs of the SBA. The program needs a 24-month funding cycle and an additional 12 months to monitor results. We believe we can generate more loans and more technical assistance than we can fund, so we need to secure alternative funding and training sources.

The loans are called “Community Express” loans defined by the SBA. The Community Express loans are guaranteed by the government at 85%. The specific requirements of a Community Express loan are that the financial institution provides “technical assistance” and pays for said assistance. Typically this expense, coupled with the “big is better” theory, restricts banks from participating in this program. In our proposed program, we are taking a different approach in contracting with the offices that provide this technical assistance (the SBDC). Our partner in this program is the ASBDC, which is the master organization of all the Sbdc’s and the concept is that our potential loan customers will go into these offices asking for assistance.

We will train the offices on how our program works and, in return, if the customer fits our model, they will train the customer accordingly. The SBDC counselor will fill out the necessary technical assistance outline that he/she recommends for this business seeking help and fill out the necessary application for our Community Express package which may include a business checking account as well as a merchant processing account. For every loan customer that gets funded, we will pay a one-time SBA broker fee and technical assistance-training fee of $150.00. This is where our program makes it feasible to manage the costs of smaller transactions. In most cases, the SBDCs charge the bank for training provided.

An example would be if a customer comes in looking for a lesson on Quicken, the SBDC sends a bill for an hourly rate to the financial institution responsible. The customer can use the SBDCs as often as they need to in order to complete his/her training. The Bank, in fact, will send out semi-annual letters to remind the customers that we are paying for their technical assistance training, which is a requirement of the SBA, and that they should take advantage of this assistance.

Conclusion

Most banks do not want to participate in the S.O.H.O. market place. Their theory is that it takes to much work to do a bunch of small loans rather than one large loan. We disagree and believe that the S.O.H.O. is our “niche”. We understand the small business because we are one, by comparison to the banking giants. We have expertise in this area and will continue to find innovative ways to service it.

**********

Innovative Bank/Innovative Merchant Solutions

Job Title: Business Development AE-Independent Agent

Purpose and Scope

Sales and Marketing of all IB/IMS loan & processing products and services. Account Executives work closely with T/A partners and meet with, present to and sell new business clients that will benefit from Innovative Bank/Innovative Merchant Solutions’ products and services. Your mission is to successfully prospect and uncover client opportunities, create a need, and present benefits of IB/IMS products and services, featuring our SBA Community Express and Express loan programs. Closing the sale and servicing our customers profitably is our mission. We pay high straight commissions at close of sale plus recurring revenues and monthly performance bonuses. (1099 Independent Contract Sales Agent opportunity)

Supervisor: Assistant Director Business Development

Responsibilities

Ø Aggressively prospect & network to uncover and help qualified clients

Ø Build solid relationships with all SBA T/A provider partners

Ø Accuracy on all loan, merchant and lease applications

Ø Learn features and benefits of all IB/IMS products and services and stay up to date on your products and service selling arsenal

Ø Use any/all sources including, but not limited to, canvassing, strategic partners, warm leads & referrals to find and develop new business customers

Ø Building and maintaining positive customer relations

Ø To professionally represent yourself and our company at all times

Ø Attend and participate in all team planning and conference call sales meetings

Ø Set and achieve monthly goals, track weekly projections and communicate progress to your supervisor constantly

Ø Become a sustaining resource to your clients and local partners

Education/Experience

College Degree preferred and financial/banking sales experience helpful but not required if a proven sales track record of over-achievement with 2+ years of successful outside sales performance is present. You must have and keep a positive attitude and possess & use strong business-to-business selling skills that build instant rapport and trust. Seller’s strengths to include a pleasant approach, detail oriented, and customer focused, with solid probing, listening and closing skills.

Other Requirements

Must have an independent entrepreneurial business approach yet be a team player, self-motivated, focused, disciplined, detail oriented and have reliable transportation to prospect, meet with and sell to new customers. Must be able to establish instant rapport and trust with prospects and not accept a “no from a person that can’t say yes”.

I fully understand the job requirements and agree to perform these duties successfully. I also acknowledge that I will receive a 1099 for tax purposed since I am an independent sales agent for Innovative Bank/Innovative Merchant Solutions.

News Catrgory Sponspor:


Dorsey & Whitney - An International business law firm, applying a business perspective to clients' needs in Missoula, Montana and beyond.

Leave a Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.