Corporate Credit Services
- A Corporation (3 to 5 years of age in good standing)
- Transfer of Ownership
- Corporate Registrations/Business/Bylaws & Corporate Kit
- Established Corporate Credit (Dunn and Credit Bureaus)
- IRS Company Registration (Tax ID #/EIN #)
- Dun & Bradstreet (DUNS)
- Physical Business Address
- Corporate Phone with auto attendant
- Fax
- Corporate Email System
- Website Domain & Design
- Business Plan
- Policies and Procedures
- Certifications
- Registrations
- Merchant Account Setup
- City + County Licenses
- Business Bank Account
- Directory Listing Combo
There are four major business credit rating agencies: Dun & Bradstreet, Equifax Business, Experian Business and Business Credit USA. According to Dun & Bradstreet, the primary source in business credit reporting, a good business credit score is at least an 80 on a scale of 0 to 100. This means that the business is paying its bills on time. A lower rating than 80 means the company is taking more than at least 15 days to pay its bills.
Business v/s Personal Credit
Business credit, also called trade credit, works essentially the same way as personal credit. Like personal credit, a business credit profile is generated based on the business name, address, and employer identification number (EIN) which is akin to a person’s Social Security number. However, unlike personal credit where lenders have long submitted consumer payment history to the credit bureaus, businesses submit payment history on other businesses voluntarily. In fact, a business may have established a good credit record with other businesses without having a credit score.
Business Credit
Unlike consumer credit, with score ranges from 300 to 850, a business credit score range is 0 to 100. A business with a credit score of 80 or better is a strong indicator of good payment history. A credit score of 70 signifies that the business is paying its invoices 15 days late, and a score of 50 means that bills are being paid 30 days late. The lower the score, the longer it takes a business to pay its invoices. A 20 rating equates to a company paying its bills 120 days later.
Trade Credit
It is standard practice for businesses to offer one another business credit. For example, a vendor may provide goods and services to a business customer, giving the business 30 days to pay the invoice. It is not uncommon for the vendor to offer an early payment discount of 2 percent. If the business fails to pay the bill within a reasonable time (within 30 days to 60 days), it may not receive credit with the vendor again. The vendor has the option of reporting the delinquency to the business credit bureaus. Other vendors can use this information to decide whether to extend trade credit to the business.
Credit Essential
A large portion of business transactions get done on business credit, as in the above example. Thus, credit is the lifeblood for a majority of businesses. In fact, a company without access to credit is at a major disadvantage, particularly if it does not have cash on hand to pay for supplies. Vendors can threaten to withhold goods or services, which may impact a company’s ability to meet its obligations to its customers, ultimately preventing it from get paid. Therefore, a business with a high credit score signifies less business risk.
Maintaining Business Credit
Having a high credit score helps a business receive favorable terms on loans and trade credit with other businesses. A company can maintain business credit by simply paying invoices on time.
Corporate Credit Application
