Obtaining the necessary cash to get your business off the ground can be a challenge and few new companies are able to finance themselves on cashflow alone and therefore need to consider gaining finance from other external sources. There are many of these external sources who will be willing to provide you with this start up finance, a few examples of these are stated below:

• Bank loans

• Business angels

• Venture capitalists

• Overdrafts

• Credit cards

• Friends and family

These are just a few examples of some of the places that business start-up finance is available from; however there is another source of business finance available that many people often seem to forget, this is grant finance. Business Grants can however take several months to process so you should always add extra time to your planning so that you get a decision on your grant application before the project is due to start.

A lot of start up companies and small businesses are often put off the idea of applying for a business grant to help them with their finances and because of this many of these businesses are missing out on a great opportunity to gain extra cash for there business; cash that doesn't need to be paid back.

Few, if any new companies can finance themselves on cashflow alone and therefore need to consider raising finance from other external sources. If your business needs extra cashflow for a specific project or purpose then a business grant could be exactly what you need. This is because business grants are only awarded for specific aspects. So what exactly is a business grant? A business grant is when an organisation or authority gives a sum of money to your business to help you succeed in a particular project these business grants are mainly awarded by the Government at both a local and national level as well as by smaller bodies such as The Princes Trust or The Arts Council.

When you are applying for a business grant there are certain things that you should keep in mind such as a detailed description of the project, an explanation of the potential benefits of the project, a detailed work plan, details of your own experience and if possible a business plan. All of these will help you with your application process and help you to get closer to that business grant that you want.

If you are successful in your grant application the money that you receive is none repayable and you won't have to pay any interest for it either; however you will need to carry out a significant amount of hard work if you want to stand a chance of obtaining a grant. These grants are also limited so the competition that you will face for them is intense.