As in everything, there are do's and don'ts regarding the successful outcome of a loan request. Keep them in mind, write them down if necessary and use them to make the best possible deal. It is all part of the preparation most people just will not take any notice of. We have seen lots of things happen, good and bad, that's why we're here, for you to capitalize on our records.

Banks need to give loans in order to stay in business. They want you to take one. They need you, so that gives you a better position. Perhaps you could get a loan from a lender who is familiar with your trade or specializes in what you want to do. A car loan broker if you want to buy a car, for example.

Most loans for a startup will require a very safe security, since they know the risks of a new business. The best antidote for this is a well-designed business plan.

Tell your future lender how you are going to carry out your business, what your assets are, what target market you are aiming at and more than one contingency plan. And do not forget the possibilities of on-line marketing, advertising and sales.

The more doors you open to success, the lower the risk of failure and your banker has to know about it. Prepare a cover letter, get a template from Internet if you are not familiar with the usual text, make a realistic cash flow and projection of the development of your business for the first three to five years.

Apply Onassis's technique to prepare a business meeting: Anticipate every possible question you might be asked and work out a well explained answer. Remember to speak in business language. A good impression is a very important negotiating tool. It is what got Aristotle Onassis to the very top of the rank.

Remember it is not a “register of the money that comes in and the money that goes out”, it is a “financial statement”. It is not a track record of your “in's” and “out's”, it is your “balance sheet”. It is not “this is how we stand at present”, it is “our current status”.

For example, you may wish to ask for a determined payback period, explaining why you want it that way. If you are well presented, well backed up by a business plan and sufficiently confident with the reason for requesting a specific term, you will surely get it.

The agent will almost naturally accept, probably if you would provide more collateral, or something he wants as compensation. So be prepared for this and maybe you might say something like, “instead of that, will you be willing to accept this?”

As a rule, an agent asks simple questions but, believe it or not, most customers do not know the answers to them or, in the best of cases, they are doubtful. This might mean you are inventing on the spur of the moment, or that it is all a fake.

Yep, an apparently stupid question but which produces an even more stupid answer is, “What will you do if there is too much demand and you can not supply enough? Be prepared for an intelligent answer. That's what the question is asked for. To measure how sensible you are, when you are suddenly out of depth with a simple question the market asks you.