Informative Guide to Building
Business Credit
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Informative Guide to building Business Credit
Entrepreneurship can be a beautiful avenue to take in life if you know the proper steps to get there. This guide will not only cover the steps to acquiring business credit, it will also give you key information for setting up a business structure. I apologize for those of you who have already bypassed that point and already have your company established. The second half of the guide is the information you need. But for any readers starting from scratch, you will need all this pertinent information in order to separate you business credit profile from your personal credit. Having business credit can work to your advantage in many ways if you used properly. This guide will walk you through the beginning stages. The rest is up to you.
SEPERATING PERSONAL CREDIT FROM BUSINESS CREDIT
One of the major reasons entrepreneurs work hard to separate themselves from their companies is liability. Many businesses today (Possibly even yours) operate their business as a Sole Proprietorship. Operating your business this way essentially means you are personally liable for all debts and accounts related to your business. If someone were to sue your Sole Proprietorship, they can also come after your personal assets (house, Car, etc) because you are not protected by a corporate shield. Or imagine after starting your business things don’t take off as well as predicted and you decided to close your business, you would be personally liable for all debt accrued during that time. In a nutshell starting a business as a Sole Proprietorship, is not the best idea, you and your business are classified as one. If you’re operating your business as a sole proprietorship, it’s not too late. You can always convert your business and get “INCORPORATED” or set up a “LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY.” This is actually the first step to
acquiring business credit. You must set your business up as a company so that it can establish its own identity. Before I get into this topic I will advise you that I am not an attorney, before you Incorporate or set up an LLC. I would advise you to seek professional advice from an attorney or contact your local Secretary of State office. But let me fore warn you of one thing. DO NOT PAY an ATTORNEY FOR SETTING UP YOUR COMPANY. Setting up the corporate structure is an easy task that you can do yourself. The only thing you should pay an attorney for is his advice on the company structures and assisting you make a decision as to which structure would best suit your needs. One of the simplest business Structures to set up is the “Limited Liability Company” (LLC). The LLC provides the corporate shield: separating and protecting your personal assets.
The LLC is a unique form of business that blends the characteristics of corporations, partnerships and sole proprietorships into a simple and flexible business structure that many business owners prefer. The LLC can be used to hold property and transact any type of business. LLCs’ are owned by members, which are equivalent to shareholders in a corporation “INC”. Unlike S Corporations, which are limited to 75 shareholders, the LLC can have unlimited amount members. A member’s ownership interest in the LLC is referred to as a ‘membership interest’ it’s similar to stock in a corporation. All members of an LLC can manage the business; management can also be delegated to fewer than all members or to a single manger. A manager can be an individual, a partnership, a corporation or another LLC. Many of the things I am telling you may sound complicated at this point, but in due time you will understand every aspect.
LLC ADVANTAGES
• As a completely separate entity, LLC’s help separate the owners from the business itself.
• There is no personal liability for any LLC debts (Granted you have not signed your name as a personal guarantee) – we will discuss this in further detail later
• The LLC does not pay any taxes itself- the income or loss is passed through the owners personal tax returns. (Unless you elect to have your LLC taxed as a corpo ration)
• As an LLC, resolutions, amendments, meeting minutes and annual board meetings are not required by law as they are with corporations.
LLC DIS ADVANTAGES
§ Federal Security Limitations: The LLC is considered a privately owned company. Which means the company could not go public. (If your company ever reached a point of wanting to go public you can have your LLC converted to a “C” Corporation.)
I know at this point you are wondering why I am giving so much attention to the LLC and not the “INC”. Honestly the LLC is my personal favorite. Aside from the fact that it is fairly easy to understand and gives you the same protective structure as getting incorporated. Another factor is that being incorporated has
many levels to it and it is important you seek professional advice before heading in that direction. Even if you already have an LLC or set up one to start you can convert at a later date.
If you have chosen a name for your company, the first thing you need to do is conduct a search to see if the name is being used. The first place to start would be the internet. From there you should review US patent and trademark website and conduct searches for your company name and logo. Visit www.USPTO.gov.. After conducting searches go to your state Secretary of State website and review information on setting up LLCs’ and corporations. 90% of the websites have downloadable forms and instructions. If your state does not have a website simply contact the office via phone or email and someone will assist you with the entire process. This is the reason I stated earlier do not pay an attorney just to set up the company. Pay for advice and guidance. Some attorneys charge up to $500.00 just for the set up. If you do it yourself it will only cost you $100.00 tops. I am sure you have seen websites and other companies that up charge the cost tremendously. After you have set your business entity, step one is complete. You are on your way to earning business credit.
The next step after setting up an LLC or Incorporating your company is to acquire a Tax ID/ EIN Number. (Tax ID and EIN Number are the same. The names are just used interchangeably.) The Tax ID is a nine digit number used to keep track of your business finances and transactions. Think of your Tax ID for your business as the equivalent to your social security number under your personal name. There are many ways of getting your Tax ID number. The easiest
way is to visit the IRS website: www IRS.gov. You need to download the SS-4 form. The form has detailed instruction on how to fill out the information and where to mail it. The application is free. After mailing the form you should receive a notice from the IRS with your assigned Tax ID Number for your company. This may take up two weeks. A faster way to handle this process is to go through the state. Many state business websites now have on line forms which can give a Tax Id number instantly. A third way ( and probably the best way to avoid any mistakes is to call the IRS and complete your application over the phone. This may take some time but at the end of the conversation you will have your tax ID number, they will send your official paper work at a later date. Your tax Id number is one of the key factors in getting business credit. You must have it and you must keep it in good standing.. To get a better understanding you should visit the IRS website www.IRS.gov and download the booklet “Understanding your EIN.” In order to conduct any type of business transactions you must have a Tax ID. On any business credit application your tax ID is asked for. You also need to be careful of fraudulent applications which will begin to saturate your mail box after setting up your company. If you receive an application for business credit, but it does not ask for your Tax ID, and only ask for your social. Be careful, this could potentially be a scam artist trying to get your personal information, or something that’s going to end up on your personal credit report not your business. Either way it could be detrimental to your goal. Guard your tax Id just as you guard your social security number, you don’t want either falling into the wrong hands. In order to open a bank account, a line of
credit, lease property or vehicles, you need to have your tax ID in good standing. For those of you which have poor personal credit, this could be your second chance to get things in order, don’t blow it. Later on I will get into further details of how to use your tax ID to your advantage.
After completing those two major steps, the next level of is to make sure your business is in compliance with all state and city business license regulations. Every state should have a business website, if not you may need to contact the business division of the state in order to get the proper license to legally operate. Many people who don’t know any better simply set up there legal entity and assume that’s it. It is illegal to forget about your city and state. Not obtaining your proper licenses can cause your business to be fined or completely shut down. Depending on the type of business you are starting whether its home based or not, you still need to acquire a “Business Occupancy License.” This license is standard in order to operate in the city. The license is fairly easy to obtain and requires a minimal payment to maintain. If you are operating a home based business this is all you will need. But for those of you entering into a specified field you will also need a license from the state for that particular field in order to operate. All of this information can be obtained by contacting your Secretary of State, State Business offices or Local County and city offices.
Ok so you have three major steps out of the way, Corporate Structure, Tax ID, State license: that’s should be it right?... Not even close, this is about to get tricky so pay close attention going forward, this is the information that’s going to separate a businesses with a separate credit profile and a business that will never
grow due to the lack of credibility. This is something you need to understand, if you destroy your personal credit, as a person you will still continue to grow and get second chances, but if you destroy your business credit profile, your business will not grow because the credibility is the back bone of any business.
THE BUSINESS BANK ACCOUNT
After you receive all of your paper work in the mail from Incorporating, IRS, and the state compliance, you will need to open a Business checking and savings account. The most prominent thing to remember when starting and maintaining a business is keep your personal and business expenses completely separated. Before you choose a bank do some research on the local banks in your area and see what perks they have to offer. Banks around the world are beginning to recognize up and coming small businesses and have set up exceptional programs which make opening an account without a large amount of capital very easy. Not all banks offer the same things for business accounts. Don’t go for the one you personally like, just because you do you r personal banking there, choose the bank with the best programs designed to help a small business advance quickly. In order to open a business account most bank s want an initial deposit of $500 or better. If you have a savings accounts pull money from there and deposit it into your business checking account temporarily (Once the account has been set up you can withdraw the money and put it back into your savings account.). After getting the accounts set up orders some checks and get a business check card. Now at this point I am sure you don’t have any business expenses yet. But here is where you need to get smart. When you begin applying for business credit applications, many of them will ask for your business checking account number. Let me tell you what they are looking for: Your
account Balance and your account transaction activity. I am about to contradict myself at this point with some choices you need to make in order to get business accounts within 3 to 6 months rather than waiting two years.
Option# 1 : If you have a personal savings or some money put to the side, place that money into your business checking account and let it sit for a while. This will give the appearance to companies pulling your business profile that your company has financial stability. Think about it, if you were the ones trying to extend credit, if you pulled there bank records and saw a very small balance with no bank activity, would you want to extend them credit, NO. Its all about the appearance of your company. It’s an investment you need to make. Think about it like this if you go on a job interview and your resume reflects that you are fully qualified, but you are dressed like a bum and don’t smell to great, will you get the job, NO!!. In order to play this game you have to stay ahead of the game and magnify your appearance to attract the right clients or business partners.
Option#2: Say you don’t have a decent sized nest egg put to the side. I am sure you have a personal checking account in which you write checks and pay bills. More than likely you may pay bills online. Since your business checking account is brand new , pay some of your bills through your business checking account in order to generate account activity. Companies need to see a decent balance and or account activity. Now I know this completely contradicts my earlier statement of keeping your business finances separated from your personal. I suggest doing this at least for 3 – 6 months just to establish your financial credibility. I personally was turned down for numerous business
accounts because my business checking account did not reflect activity. After paying personal bills and keeping a consistent balance in my account, I began receiving offers in the mail from the bank, offering lines of credit and business credit cards. This goes back to my original statement of choosing a bank that offer programs for new businesses. Once the bank starts to see activity you will receive an offer for a line of credit, Business credit card, and business loans. But you need to be careful 95% of the time they want you to personally guarantee any of those. In that case you should enquire about getting a secured business credit card issued through your bank. Even if the card is for $100.00 secured by your savings account, this will open many doors for you. Use the card; and pay your bill on time. In no time the bank will increase your limit, at the same time they will be reporting your payment histories to the two major business credit agencies ( I will go into more details later). If you follow the tips in this section you will be well on your way without using a large amount of capital. Last but not least creditors sometimes ask for a bank reference. Whe n you open your account a representative will assist you. simply ask them if you can use them as a bank reference and get their card. Try to develop a semi business relationship; maybe offer them your services for free or at a discount rate; this can open up doors for you. Bank officers know all types of people; don’t hesitate to ask if you can leave a few of your business cards.
BUSINESS CREDIT AGENCIES
Another key element to getting your business credit is to get listed with the two most important bus iness credit bureaus, Dun & Bradstreet and Experian. You may be familiar with Experian from your personal credit report but Dun & Bradstreet may be new to you. Out of the two Dun & Bradstreet is the largest bureau with over 70 million
companies registered. Experian has close to 20 million. Your Dun & Bradstreet report is going to be a determining factor on many levels, not only does D&B give you a credit rating , they assist you in creating a business credit profile based on the information you give the m. Now, as you can see I highlighted “based on the information you give them” for a reason. After getting the basics of your company set up you will need to contact D&B and set up your basic business profile. The initial profile you give them is called a “skeleton.” All it consists of is the name of your company, address, email address, contact information, the nature of your business, and when your business began. Again, I have highlighted yet another statement “when your business started.” Majority of companies who pull your profile from D&B want to know if you have been in business at least 2 yrs. Ok, I know what you’re thinking, “I just recently Incorporated or set up my “LLC” and began setting up my accounts.” I was in the exact same position. So let me explain how many companies usually get around that. I will use myself as an example, initially after setting up my business as a separate legal entity, when asked on applications about my start date I would automatically use the date I officially incorporated. You know what….I was wrong. In all honesty I had been running my business for almost a year and a half as a sole proprietorship. (In order to run a
business a sole proprietorship, basically all you have to do is go into business, there are legal formalities you must take care of but setting up a legal entity is not one of them.)
Although I did not have the basics in order, I was still running a business. So remember when you contact Dun and Bradstreet give them the date you actually went into business, not the date of your Incorporation. It is very common for businesses not to set up a separate legal entity for years. Hopefully you understand what I am saying and this same
scenario applies to you. Once I realized this I began using the date I began the business and things changed drastically for me. Now I would only suggest you do this for small business credit applications and business profile purposes. Applications for large amounts of credit or loans want to see your tax returns for the last two years. Towards the end of the guide I will give you a list of business credit application which does not ask for tax returns or a personal guarantee. This is the basic blue print to get your foot in the door quickly, maintaining everything is up to you.
As I stated before getting started with Dun & Bradstreet is not hard at all, but I will give some detailed information on what they actually do, and where the cost comes in. Dun & Bradstreet is the gateway between your company and other companies. They will collect data on your company which other companies can purchase and review. Basically the information you give to D & B is public record and needs to be immaculate. After contacting D & B and setting up your skeleton business profile you will be given a DUNS NUMBER. The Duns number keeps track of your company dealings and assists in updating your profile with D&B. On many credit applications they will ask for your TAX ID and your DUNS NUMBER.. If you don’t have a Duns number, don’t even continue with the applications, companies without a Duns number are not even taken seriously. Now setting up your profile and getting a Duns Number is absolutely free, but don’t jump to get your number just yet, have your basic affairs in order first, before you even speak with them. The information you give them can make or break your company. Imagine if you had the opportunity to set up your own personal credit profile from the beginning? …..You would want to represent yourself in the best way possible and do what ever you can to maintain that clean image. D&B offer many other services besides
maintaining your profile. These services do come at a price, unlike other credit bureaus D&B charge for the extra services they provide, but it is well worth it. Although some vendors and credit lending agencies automatically report to D&B, many do not. But if you choose (I suggest you do) you can pay D&B to collect your payment histories from all of your vendors and business associates. This can only help to increase your business credit profile and SCORE. The reason I highlighted the word score is because after collecting information on your payment history for a period of time you will be given a PAYDEX SCORE. Think of your paydex score as the equivalent to your personal credit score. The paydex score ranges from 0 to 100. Having a paydex score of 75 or better is considered excellent and will take your business to the next level. If your company plans on expanding or merging, they will review your D&B report and your paydex score in order to make a final decision. Keep in mind just like personal credit, business credit can be affected by bad payment history. If you have made mistakes in the past on your personal credit, this is your second chance. Imagine if you were a vendor (which you may very well become) trying to extend business credit and when you pulled their DUNS report you realized they did not pay their vendors and bills on time. Would you want to do business with them, NO.? Since you are in the beginning stages I suggest you create a profile, get your duns number and work on the rest gradually. Having a profile and duns number is enough to get you started with business credit accounts. To get further information visit www.DnB.com or call: 800.519.3111 (within the U.S.) Telephone: 816.843.4299 (outside of the U.S.), Hearing Impaired: 781.575.2692.
DON’T GET RIIPPED OFF
Once you set up the basics, you must secure your business information at all cost. Once your information becomes public record you will receive numerous applications from solicitors in the mail. I would advise you to be careful and do some research on the company before you sign anything, many of these are scams trying to get your personal and business information. Trust me I am telling you this from personal experience, you will receive information about business loans; credit cards and many other accounts, at least 50 % are scams. Take some time and do some research on the company, find out if they are registered with the Better Business Bureau. Doing this can save you from ruin.
Now aside from this website I know you have seen plenty of other websites and companies offering to “build your business credit.” for a nice fee of course. Now I am not knocking all of theses companies, some of them actually do what they say, but honestly this is a process you need to be in control of, not someone else. The company will tell you they will get you lines of credit from vendors, and many other accounts. Sounds good right…..no. Let me explain why , they will get you accounts, but the lines of credit will come from some of the craziest vendors in the world, things you will not even need for your business!!!. Once again I know this from personal experience after being ripped off. I ended up getting lines of credit for construction equipment and paint tools. The only way to gain the business credit was to make purchases and pay the bill on time. But guess what, my business had absolutely nothing to with the accounts I was given!!! Do you see where I am going with this, who is winning in this situation? the company who charged you a processing fee and the vendor you are using. Now if you want just any kind of business credit, be my guest and waste your money. But what I
suggest you do is research and get lines of credit in your particular field. No matter what industry you are in, you can find business credit geared to your preference, you just have to take some time and do the research. I know many of you are busy taking care of other aspects of your business and would like someone else to do the work, I would advise you to get assistance from someone you can truly trust, a spouse or a close relative. This will enable you to precisely track the progress of your business credit without it falling into the wrong hands. Being ripped off was part of my inspiration for putting together this guide for new entrepreneurs. What would you rather spend $19.99 on this or up to $1000 to some private company!! That’s what I thought. Along with this guide I will also give you links to some general business credit applications. Trust me I am trying to assist your company, not hurt your business.
GUIDELINES FOR EARNING BUSINESS CREDIT FASTER
Growing business credit is similar to establishing your own personal credit. It takes time and you have to earn it. You have to start with the basics. For example, Staples, Office Depot, Gas cards, lines of credit from theses companies can be used by any business no matter what field you are in, and all of them report to Experian and D&B. I am sure you can find some supplies from Staples?? Staples was actually my first line of business credit, after maintaining it, many other doors began to open.
Aside from applying for business applications there are many other things which can be turned into business commodities. For example, if you are starting out as a home based business (having the basics in order of course) turn your everyday bills over into your company name. Not only will this help you earn business credit faster, it will also
assist you in writing off business expenses during tax time. All of us have bills, but there is finally a way to use it for your advantage. Your phone bill, electric bill, cell phone, you can even write off a portion of your rent or mortgage if you are a home based business. All you have to do is enquire; I guarantee at least one of those companies will transfer the name. Also, due to the fact you found this guide, I am sure you use the internet and have an internet service provider right? Many service providers have business accounts now. You can write off 100% of your monthly bill as a business expense!! I am pretty sure you own a cell phone, guess what? If you transfer your cell phone into your company name you can write that off as well. Aside from staples, T Mobile instantly gave my business account with up to 10 phone lines. Now, I know all of this sounds great, but let me tell you the catch to this…. With your credit applications 90% of them automatically report to D & B and Experian, but with bills they will not. In order for these bills to help your business credit profile, you need to pay D & B for there services of collecting your payment histories. Doing this will build up your Paydex score quickly, this can cost $400 to begin, but it is well worth it in the long run. Now if you can’t do that right now due to the expense, don’t worry about it, I would still advise you to transfer these bills into your company name because you can write them off on your taxes. Do you see where I am going with this? By now I hope the mystery behind business credit is becoming clear too you. There is a lot more to learn, but as I said in the beginning this is the basic blueprint to get you started.
Having a business gives you access to multiple avenues the average person does not have. For example, you will now have the ability to open accounts with wholesale companies. Have you ever been online and noticed two logins? One for individual and
another for business; (If not I am sure you will pay attention after this) . As long as you have a separate legal entity and a TAX ID, you can open a wholesale account with no problem. Some of them also want your State sales license number, but that is fairly easy to attain on the state level. After you have the basics in order, visit yahoo and type in “Wholesale account”, thousands of web pages will pop up giving you access to virtually anything at wholesale rates. Let e tell you a little story, I would always buy my wife some nice perfume from Macys, Riches, Bloomingdales or any of these big stores. Now no matter if you are male or female you know how expensive cologne and perfume can be After starting my business, I decided to search the web for wholesale perfume websites. Guess what, because I had a TAX ID number, I was able to open a business account with multiple wholesale vendors. Some of those same perfumes that were in Macys for $80.00 dollars were only $17.00 at the business wholesale rate!!!. From that point doors began opening everywhere, wholesale clothing, furniture, jewelry, all of this because I had a separate legal entity and a TAX ID number. Let me fill you in on another little secret, you don’t even have to be in that particular field of business to get accounts. Don’t get me wrong some companies will only accept you if you are in the same field. But the majority will let you open an account, I promise you. In order to utilize your business properly you have to open your eyes to everything around you.
REAL ESTATE /AUTO LEASING
Purchasing and /or leasing property and vehicles can work to your advantage if done properly. Initially it’s very difficult to purchase property or vehicles under your company name unless your “accounts receivable”(Money paid to your company account for services rendered) can guarantee the loan. Basically you company has to be in good financial standing to guarantee a loan, but that all depends on the cost of the vehicle. When I first started what I did was purchase a very inexpensive vehicle (honestly I could have paid for it in cash) but the loan was completely under my business name and it helped my paydex score increase tremendously. The same basically applies for purchasing real estate; finances must be in order before you can do this completely under the business name. Now leasing vehicles and property is easier, but they usually want to see at least one year worth of tax returns to see if your company can handle the monthly payments. Aside from tax returns they will review your D & B report for credit worthiness. Once again all of this can be written off on your taxes as a business expense saving you thousands of dollars. The same applies for leasing business equipment, it can all be written off. Now all of this can be obtained at a faster rate by using a personal guarantee, but I am trying to steer you away from that. Another perk to all of this, if you choose to set up an LLC, the taxes are written off under your personal tax forms. If you have a job and are running a business, the business expenses can off set your personal taxes bill a great deal. I hope you are beginning to see that business credit can help you even if the business is not at the level you want it to be.
TRADE REFERENCES
Once you begin doing business with other companies they will automatically become “trade references” for your business. A trade reference simply put is another company you have done business with that can vouch for your credit worthiness and would make a good recommendation for another company to do business with you. Many business credit applications will ask you for at least 3 references. Ok, I know what some of you are thinking, I do not have any trade references as of yet. But, let me ask you a question, do you have any other friends with their own business? Do you have any relatives that own their own business? Do you see where I am going with this? This is where networking and being business savvy comes into play. You have to utilize your resources and network the trade references yourself in the beginning. Build business relationships, there is a way around everything; you just have to be savvy enough to figure it out. Also keep in mind that if you decide to uses Dun & Bradstreet’s financial services to collect information from your trade references, you can use the same trade references. Again I hope you see where I am going with this. Everything you need to build your company profile is directly in front of you. You just have to be business savvy and work around some of the obstacles placed in front of you. Again I will advise you too stay away from other companies offering to “Build your business Credit” for a fee. Besides opening business credit accounts they will also help you get trade references from companies. Basically these are people you don’t even know. There services are absolutely the same for everyone. Don’t you think the credit bureaus will get suspicious because all new companies have the same trade references?? That’s why its important
for you to build your own, because you have 100% control and can keep track of your company information. Everything that I am telling you in this guide is what those companies will do. But you are not in control, they are. Although everyt hing I am telling you will take research and work. It is well worth it not to get ripped off and have your business information floating all over the place.
Let me tell you a story of what happened to a friend of mine. He decided to uses one of those companies (even though I advised him not too). They did get him business accounts from vendors(but of course they were from vendors he could not uses for anything, then later on down the line he receives a bill from a company for a $10,000 dollar line of credit he supposedly opened and used. He never even filled out for an application with that company. Basically a fraudulent company used his information and stole $10,000 dollars worth of merchandise. His business profile was destroyed, and the company he enlisted to “Build his business credit” could not help him. He eventually had to file bankruptcy and start from scratch. Fortunately, he never signed his name as a personal guarantee to any accounts, so his personal credit was salvaged. This is what I mean when I say protect your business credit information. Business credit is easier to abuse than personal credit, let me explain why. If someone gets a hold of your personal credit, they usually need your full name, address, social security number and date of birth. Now if someone has opened an account in another state under your name, that is a big part of your defense, the credit bureau has your current address listed. This can save you from being liable for the debt. Now business credit is completely different, if someone has your tax ID, Duns Number and company name, they can open up an account with a different address, and fill out a “DBA” form (Doing Business As)
changing the name of company. From there they could open up a new account steal merchandise and eventually they will track you down for the payment. I am telling you all of this to be aware of scams and people who are savvy enough to mis use your business information. You see it’s not uncommon for a company to open accounts in another state, or fill out “DBA forms. Many companies branch out creating subsidiaries in many places. By the time you realize what has happened your profile could be ruined. That is why I am telling you it is important to protect your profile and use caution when filling out applications. You will receive hundreds of applications in the mail; look out for ones that don’t ask for your TAX ID. Research the company to see if it’s legit. search the web to see if any complaints have been filed. There are so many companies trying to take advantage, you need to be in control every step of the way. Don’t get excited the first time you receive applications in the mail, in some instances all they want is your information so they can sell it or mis use it. I have seen it happen to others and I don’t want it to happen to you. That’s why I would advise you to do this yourself or work with someone you trust. Also check your report with Experian and D&B periodically just as you would your personal credit.
EXTRA TIPS TO BUILDING YOUR PROFILE
§ Obtain a business Phone number under the business name and list the number in the local phone book. Companies will reference this to ensure you are a legitimate separate entity. ( You can also transfer your home phone or cell into the company name)
§ If you are a home based business get a P.O. box as your business mailing address. Again this will help separate your company as a separate entity. § Do not fill out applications signing your personal guarantee. Although
signing a personal guarantee can increase your credit amount, this will also show up on your personal report and make you personally liable. Take your time and let the business credit build on its own without your support. You will have to start out small but its worth it.
§ Many personal expenses can be paid by the company, including car, education, legal and accounting fees, insurance, moving expenses, seminars, books, meals, entertainment, travel, computers, office equipment and much more. Even this book can be written off!!!
§ Say your business has been operating for two years( just because you recently set up a legal entity does not mean you were not operating as a sole Proprietorship for a longer period of time.(Only se this for small applications, large companies want to see tax returns and financial records.)
§ Take your time and make sure you have the basics in order before setting up your profile with D & B. ( At some point you will need to pay for the
services they offer, but for now getting your DUNS number is eno ugh to get you started.
§ Comply with all state license regulations( you don’t want to get shut down)
§ Set up a professional email account which reflect your company name, its very in expensive to set up. Don’t have @hotmail of @aol.com. This will make your business look unprofessional. Trust me they pay attention to stuff like this.
§ Network to get trade references, ask if they would mind reporting to D &B or give you an excellent reference when another company contacts them. This will build your paydex score.
§ PAY YOUR BILLS ON TIME – If you have had trouble in the past with personal credit this could be your second chance.
§ Get a secured business credit card or a secured line of credit. This will open many doors for you if you pay your bill on time.
§ Transfer as many bills into your company name as possible (helps with tax write offs.
§ Pay bills through your business checking account in order to generate activity.
§ Let some money you have saved up sit in your Business Checking account. Trust me you will receive offers for lines of credit.
§ Lease equipment or a vehicle in the company name (Don’t forget to register the vehicle under the company name at the DMV.
§ Although you may not see them visible, more companies than you think offer business credit, you just have to ask for the application.
§ After registering with D&B, pay for services so that you can receive a high paydex score.
§ Have someone build you a professional website; you would be surprised how many people will do business with you because of the professional image you display. Even if your business is not web based. Your website is essentially your resume. Companies will ask for your web address. A website is becoming as common as pa email address.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion I hope the information in this guide has helped you understand the mysteries behind business credit. The truth is, there is nor mystery, you just need the business savvy to know the ropes. This is the basic blueprint, there is plenty more to learn but I don’t want to over whelm you with information that can confuse you. Take things one step at a time and eventually everything will fall in place. No matter what field you are in establishing business credit is an essential part to growing your company. Hopefully I have opened your eyes to the world of business credit and will help many of you avoid getting ripped off by other companies. The last page of this guide contains links to a list of business credit applications which are fairly easy to obtain without a persona l guarantee. Cut and paste the web address into your web browser. This should take you directly to the applications, if you have any trouble contact the company directly, if you need any further assistance regarding information given in this guide; feel free to contact us at: [email protected]. A representative will respond promptly.
CREDIT APPLICATIONS ? ?Home Depot /www.ecardapply.com/homedepot/web/us/commercial/thd/crc/application.as ? ?Staples ? ?https://www.ecardapply.com/staples/web/comm_application.asp?terms=rev ? ?Office Depot https://www.ecardapply.com/officedepot/web/comm_web_application.asp ? ?Sam’s Club http://www.onlinecreditcenter2.com/sams/ ? ?Shell Gas Card
http://www.shellcreditcard.com/shl_ahm.htm ? ?Quick Trip Gas Card
? ?\ http://www.quiktrip.com/fleet/FleetCommercialApplication.pdf ? ?Exxon Gas Card
http://www.onlinecreditcenter2.com/exxonmobil/brc/rfs_print_app.html ? ?Texaco
ht tps://www.ecardapply.com/fleet/web/Texaco/application.asp ? ?Best Buy
www.bestbuyforbusiness.com/financing/CreditApp.pdf ? ?Sears Commercial Credit
