Blog

While every bank has their own lending "formula," almost all use some form of The 5 C's of Credit as a basic guideline to evaluate a potential borrower. Business owners, or...read more

According to the 2017 Economic Census, franchises exist in over 300 industries – from fast-food restaurants to less obvious industries like weight-loss clinics and warehousing. If you...read more

Hartford City Banking Center Manager Ashley Laurence is an example of what can happen...read more

We're publishing a series of articles celebrating women in business, starting with Kathy Denney, AVP - Chief Compliance Officer here at Citizens State Bank....read more

If you’ve realized your rent is too high, you’ve outgrown your office space, or you have a balloon payment coming up, you’re probably...read more

Applying for a business loan can be intimidating, but the more preparation you do, the higher your odds of getting your application approved. Here...read more

Everyone feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day, but this is especially true for entrepreneurs. There are so many aspects to owning a business – which is why it’s important to find the right tools to help. To celebrate #SmallBusinessMonth, we’ll be sharing...read more

Your Business Plan truly is the first step toward success or failure. It only makes sense to take advantage of...read more

"Getting more organized" is one of the more common new year's goals, and like most...read more

The great enemy of communication is the illusion of it. This sentiment, first written by journalist William H. Whyte in 1950 still applies today. Fortunately, we...read more

Small business owners are far less likely to have concrete retirement plans than those who are company employees...read more

Preparing financially for retirement is complicated for everyone, but for small business owners (SBOs) the process often poses...read more

Your business vehicle - should you add branding signage to promote your company? You likely need...read more

As a business owner, you know risk is unavoidable. While not all risk can be mitigated, insurance is...read more

So you’ve decided to launch your own business and be your own boss. Now what? The best step you can take now is to have a plan, or more specifically a Business Plan. Yikes! Don’t you need an MBA to write a business plan? Thankfully, the days of 100 page business plans are over, but that doesn’t mean you should bypass this important step....read more