My Business Credit Journey to 1,000,000

Out of a doubt Business Credit has gotten tighter in the past 2 and a half years or so but it is estimated to be more accessible this 2011. The 4th quarter of 2010 showed a 83% boost on credit application offers (those pre-approval letters you get in the mail..and this was both business and personal) above the 4th quarter of 2009. 2011 is anticipated to show an even superior increase and the bulk of it is expected to be seen in business credit since the government is now regulating the number of offers sent out offering personal credit. Even though business credit is now and will be a little more accessible to us, we need to dot our i’s and cross our t’s even more now that we did in the past.

When building business credit is a plus to do and we should :

1. Get a Business License – I know that many states do not require a business license to operate certain types of businesses. If acquiring a business license is not a HUGE pain in the butt, my suggestion is to get one. newly, more than one financier has requested one from a couple clients of mine. The ones that did not have it had to make available a utility bill, but in my view it does help. We had one bank that required it, so in this climate it is now an obligation.
2. Get a Website – Having a webpage may not seem like a must in business credit building, but as getting approved is a little more difficult we must have all our chicken in a row. DnB now shows and lists your websites on your credit file and I know of two banks in particular that uses the fact that you have a website as a factor in determining how credit worthy a company is. Getting a website can cost as little as $50, so do not take any short cuts with this one.
3. Get an actual phone line – It is a moment in time to do things the right way, and if you want to get credit like a real company; and you’re not; at the very minimum you should appear like an actual company. Remote call forwarding is out the door now. Although they do work, I do not suggest it. Many creditors want you to call back from the number you applied with. Vumber.com is an options but my suggestions is to sacrifice and get a basic business phone line. It will act as a tradeline as well as ensure that you are listed in 411 and you can be called and can call back from that number.
4. Get one of the DnB products – Yes, you read it right. Yes DnB has their scams, and it is not “necessary” for you to purchase from them but it is becoming harder and harder to get credit. If you are claiming that your company will do or is doing over $1,000,000 per year in revenue, paying $39 / month will no hurt you. If you are serious about getting business credit, suck it up and do what you need to do.

• There are a couple basic things that we should not do when building business credit, and as much as I talk about it, readers still mak ethe basic mistakes. Some of them are:

1. Do Not Use a UPS Box – I have said this over and over and I get calls about the same thing.
2. Do Not Apply for more than 3 accounts in one week – Although inquiries do not hurt your score on DnB, it does hurt your score on Experian business. Consistent applying will lower your intelliscore. A consistant increase in inquiries on DnB can quickly raise eyebrows and they will look closely at your company. Most of the time they will try to sell you a new product that you do not need and when you do not agree they can block your file. The hassle is not worth it. Simply take your time when building business credit.

• Those are just a couple of useful tips that are important in building business credit in these times…