Merchant Cash Advance Blog

While Halloween is a fun time for humans, it can be dangerous for our pets. Pets are more likely to suffer food poisoning during Halloween week than at any other time of the year. So, before your dog gets into your child's candy stash, be sure to know which candy can be dangerous and even deadly for dogs.

It's long been known that gift cards provide an easy and effective way for restaurants and retailers to increase holiday sales; According to studies from last year's holiday season, businesses saw a double-digit increase in gift card sales. 

You need a solid gift card strategy to increase sales this holiday season. Here are five actions to take now to make your holiday gift card program a success.

Walgreens is using robots to count pills and package the prescriptions you order. Lucki, the robot waiter, will bring food to your table, then pick up the dishes. Flippy, the robot cook, works at White Castle, dropping baskets of fries into the hot oil. Amazon just finished a three-year test of Scout its home delivery robots. Others take orders or mix drinks, and now several engineers that formerly worked at Elon Musk's aerospace company, SpaceX, are planning to launch a robot-powered pizza food truck.

The holiday shopping weekend that encompasses Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday is vital to the bottom line of small businesses across the country. Plan ahead, promote early, and don't just offer the same deals as everyone else. Try to come up with something that will really stand out and attract attention. So, if you're a small business owner, how can you ensure you get the most out of this holiday shopping weekend? Here are some tips:

Your business's profit margin measures the percentage of revenue you keep after paying all your outgoing expenses. It sounds simple but understanding your profit margin is critical to running a successful business.