Mux is hiring a Product Designer to help improve video streaming for billions

Article URL: https://mux.com/jobs/?hnj=12

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22144171

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Great Generation Z Marketing and More –10 Brilliant Business Tips of the Week

Looking for Generation Z marketing tips? We’ve got those and more this week for our ten brilliant business tips of the week. Find out how to reach the generation after the millennials.

The Hottest and Most Brilliant Business Tips for YOU – Grab Some Great Generation Z Marketing Tips and More

Our research ninjas at Credit Suite smuggled out ten amazing business tips for you! Be fierce and score in business with the best tips around the web. You can use them today and see fast results. You can take that to the bank – these are foolproof! Take your Generation Z marketing to the next level – and more!

Stop making stupid decisions and start powering up your business. Demolish your business nightmares and start celebrating as your business fulfills its promise.

And these brilliant business tips are all here for free! So, settle in and scoop up these tantalizing goodies before your competition does!

#10. Better Bonuses? Yes, Please!

Our first jaw-dropping tip is all about building an effective bonus plan. Because who doesn’t love bonuses? Great Game says bonuses need to have a connection to the goals of the business. And the time for being secretive and mysterious about them is over.

Here’s our fave tip.

Rally Everyone Around a Common Goal

So, how many times have you worked for (or heard of) a company where the only bonuses went out to people who made sales? Or who could prove their contributions cost less than what they brought in?

Good golly, that’s unfair. But why?

Because there are plenty of disciplines which are fully important to business operations. But they are cost rather than profit centers. After all, where can human resources show a profit? What about loss prevention? 

And the clerical staff or the front-line factory workers? Fuggeddabout it. They will never see a bonus under these circumstances. By definition, they can’t.

So, where’s the incentive for them?

Communications Are Key

Now, this is true under most circumstances, anyway. But if a person who did really well for the company can’t get a little public recognition, then who can? Or should?

And in particular, if your employees need to meet some sort of quota or goal, let them know how they’re doing. How close are they? And how much further do they have to go? Is it possible for them to meet their goal, or not? Knowing they’re close might help some workers work just that much harder to meet their goal. And if you keep them informed early and often, some might not get discouraged if they are a little behind.

So, don’t just leave the feedback to the last minute. 

#9. Grab Your Advantage and Become a Market Leader

The next awesome tip is about lower risk innovation which can help you become a market leader. Entrepreneurs’ Organization notes you should get started with ‘jobs to do’. That is, understand what your product actually does for your customers. 

This gets into a bigger theme we’ve noticed for a while.

Let Your Customers Take the Reins

The biggest thing we have learned while writing these marketing posts is to listen to your customers.

Listen to your customers.

Let’s repeat that.

Listen to your customers. They know what they want. And it may not be what you think they should want.

It’s time for a true story. And it’s a new one. As in, this just happened this morning.

Please Don’t Treat Me Like Everyone Else

So, I am not in Generation Z. Heck, there are plenty of places which say I’m not even Gen X, although I tend to act and consume like that cohort. For the record, I’m ‘officially’ a late boomer. Birth date in 1962, yo’.

But I digress. I am on Twitter, and I tend to follow fellow writers. This morning, a profile I recently filed sent me a generic DM with their links and all. At least they had the foresight to call me by name. But it was my full name on Twitter. 

Anyone who thinks their program scraped my name from the appropriate Twitter field, give yourself a cookie.

That was the sole attempt at personalization. 

So, I sent them a return PM. And I told them in no uncertain terms that their DM was tone-deaf, generic, and clearly mass-produced. I also told them that if they didn’t have the time to get more personal with their intended audience, then they either need an assistant or they’re trying to be all things to all people.

And, let’s face it. I am most likely not in their target audience. The writing community reads, yes. But our Holy Grail is to find readers.

The person who DM’d me was savvy and gracious enough to thank me for my thoughts. And so, in return, I apologized for being harsh.

Smart Move on the Part of the Marketer

The kicker is that the writer, in this case, absolutely salvaged the situation. Will this person change their ways? Maybe. I have no idea. But they were wise enough to acknowledge my opinion and, dare I say, treat me like an individual.

By listening to your audience, your customers and your prospects, you are treating them like people and not a monolith. And that’s not just good for marketing to the post-millennial generation.

Generation Z Marketing Credit Suite

If you are as passionate about succeeding in business as we are, please help us spread the word about how to take the plunge and save time and money – and your sanity! Start Generation Z marketing today, and more!

#8. Up with Productivity; Down with Stress!

Our following life-changing tip concerns lowering your stress levels. Score lays it all out for us. And be sure to check tip #7, which is also about combatting stress.

But first, let’s tackle productivity. After all, it can be extremely stressful when you don’t seem to be able to get everything done on time. And beyond that, if you’re constantly getting everything done after hours, that will take a lot out of you physically. Not to mention, it could interfere with parenting or even threaten your marriage.

There were some great tips here, but we’ll just focus on one.

Om Shanti – Meditate Your Way to Less Stress

You don’t need to climb a mountain and meet a yogi. Rather, you can just download a meditation app onto your phone or computer. The main point of meditation is to train your mind to essentially go to a ‘happy place’, even if everything else around you is going to hell in a handbasket.

This doesn’t mean you ignore your problems. It’s more that you are able to approach them more dispassionately. That can make it easier to solve them.

Consider this. It’s a lot like listening to your friend’s problems with their love life, and you have the solution on the spot. But when it comes to your own issues, you’re stumped. Well, sure, because you’re too close to those problems. 

Stepping back could be the key to seeing solutions all the more clearly – and faster. What better way to increase productivity than to lessen the amount of time you spend fixing stuff?

#7. Banish Your Financial Stress in 2020

For our next sensational tip, we looked at financial stress in your business, and how to minimize if not outright omit it. Small Biz Club says that over half of all entrepreneurs say debt is a problem.

But you may be asking, don’t you advocate carrying debt here at Credit Suite?

Not exactly.

In reality, we advocate building and leveraging credit. But we also feel you should never bite off more credit you can ‘chew’. Being incapable of paying your business debts is hardly the definition of success.

While this article is mainly about personal finances, we suggest checking it out anyway. Many issues with personal financial stressors are similar to business finance stressors.

In particular, if there’s more than one owner of your company, be open and honest with each other about money. Your business’s survival will depend on your open communications in this area, so don’t clam up about business cash.

#6. Soothe Those Ruffled Feathers

This tip is so helpful, and it works! Inc tells us all about dealing with difficult customers.

Talk about your stressors!

We highly recommend reading the entire article, as it offers a good framework for this inevitable issue. Hence, let’s talk about one tip which really stands you in good stead with difficult customers. Heck, it should help you in your relationships.

Seriously.

Own Up, Apologize, Address, and Resolve

These are actually two separate tips, but we feel they’re related closely enough to talk about them together. 

For any issue in life, you can cover it up and deny it. Or you can own up to it. So, if you did it – whatever it is – say you did. Of course, we all have egos. And we don’t necessarily enjoy or want to confess to our mistakes. But they are going to come out, sooner or later.

Admit to them and you’ll be able to control at least a small part of the narrative. 

And then apologize.

“I took the last cookie. I’m sorry.”

Then address the issue. It’s not just an admission of guilt that’s necessary. You should also be working to prevent a recurrence. 

“I took the last cookie. I’m sorry. I’ll make sure we keep cookies permanently on our shopping list, so we don’t run low again.”

Finally, resolve the issue, as soon as you can.

“I took the last cookie. I’m sorry. I’ll make sure we keep cookies permanently on our shopping list, so we don’t run low again. This afternoon, I’ll go to the store and get more.”

There, now, that wasn’t so bad, now.

#5. Learn All About Generation Z Marketing

Grab this mind-blowing tip while it’s hot! 

Go beyond the millennial generation and get into Generation Z marketing!

Manta says this generation is going to become 40% of all consumers by year 2020.

Wait a second – that’s this year.

Now, you may be saying to yourself – Generation Snowflake is still a bunch of kids. They aren’t interested in my widgets. Not so fast. Per Wikipedia, the post-millennial generation was born between the mid- to late-90s to, well, they’re not sure when. 2010 seems to come up a lot as the endpoint. But so do 2012 and 2014. 

And no, we don’t know what the post-Generation Z cohort is going to be called, either. 

That means the eldest among them are turning 25 this year. So, these are people who can drive, vote, drink, join the armed forces, and marry. They’re already done with their bachelor’s degrees (if they have them). They may even be past a master’s degree by now. And they may be parents by now – more than once.

For Generation Z Marketing, Find Out What They’re All AboutPost-Millennial Marketing Credit Suite

Generation Z was born into the internet – and it was already a place where a lot of non-technical people were hanging out. Their celebrity heroes are folks like Pewdie Pie, Kylie Jenner, and Millie Bobby Brown. 

How Do You Get Started with Generation Z Marketing?

Start with shareworthy content. That’s easier said than done, though.

Catchy information with a high level of expertise is a great place to start. 

Another tip we really liked was to share your content in bits. For one thing, this cohort has an average attention span of – gulp – 8 seconds. Perfect for Twitter, eh?

So, instead of sharing the entire article (like this one), a better tactic for Generation Z marketing is to just refer to tip #5 in one tweet. And then tip #10 in another tweet. Then, feature tip #3 in an Instagram post. You get the idea.

Oh, and share user-generated content. And if you can convert your content to video, do so.

Is this perfect for Generation Z marketing? Maybe not. But it’s a dang fine start.

Generation Z Marketing Credit Suite

If you are as passionate about succeeding in business as we are, please help us spread the word about how to take the plunge and save time and money – and your sanity! Start Generation Z marketing today, and more!

#4. Up Your Business Growth with Terrific Online Listings

Check out this spectacular tip, all about leveraging your online listings to help your business grows. Succeed as Your Own Boss notes that how you list products and services online can make a difference when it comes to sales.

And, we might add, when it comes to search.

As is often the case, we highly recommend reading this article in its entirety. But one tip really stood out to us.

Tell Your Product’s (or Service’s) Backstory

What does that mean? 

In fiction, it’s the history of your character, before the book or series started. In fiction writing and presentation on TV and film, the backstory is generally better told in pieces. Otherwise, it rightfully feels like an information dump.

But in your online sales listings, you kind of have to. So, our suggestion is to do this, but also to edit the heck out of it. Consider your Generation Z customers and, really, all of us. After all, everyone is busy, and we are all bombarded with information all day long. 

Hence, you probably shouldn’t be writing about how your widgets are locally sourced, unless you can spread that story out across several pages. Maybe the first bit of the production process can be a part of the online listing for one product, and then the second step can end up on the online listing for another.

Experiment!

#3. You Can Lead a Prospect to Your Business…

It’s not your imagination: this winning tip can help you with lead generation. United Capital Source tells us that generating low-quality leads is a surefire way to basically just waste money and time. And, probably, the goodwill and energy of your sales staff.

Hence the article is devoted to various forms of lead generation. We recommend reading it in its entirety as one or the other of their strategies may work for you. Hence, we’re only going to zero in on one of their tactics.

Swap Leads with a Partner

This makes so much sense, and we are kind of surprised we haven’t seen anything like this before!

That is, get to know noncompeting businesses which serve the same demographic niche(s) you do. Their leads could work as your leads, and vice versa.

So, let’s say you have a nail salon, but you don’t do hair. There’s nothing wrong – and a lot right – with talking with nearby hair salon owners and seeing if you can do a lead trade. It will probably be beneficial to both of you.

And you’re not left out if you offer services! If you have a long-haul trucking company, there may be freight companies with a similar lead profile. After all, if a business knows it needs shipping of some form, it may start with air or rail. But then they would quickly realize that there also has to be good, reliable, and fast ground transportation to complement those methods.

So, look for the jam to your peanut butter. And you might just create a partnership in other areas, like sponsoring a local Little League team or running a conference together or – whatever! 

#2. Go and Get More Done

Our second to last unbeatable tip can give you a new perspective on multitasking while on the go. Addicted to Success reveals all about stretching the hour, almost like some people stretch a dollar.

Now, multitasking gets a bad rap at times, because it’s sometimes a not so efficient way to get things done. So, we’d like to concentrate on one tip which just might help save the planet.

Rethink Your Commute

Unfortunately, not every area allows for this. But for those that do, why not use public transportation to get to the office? Yes, the bus is probably not as fast as your car – and you’re beholden to their schedule.

But if you can make it work, having someone else do the driving means your time can be spent on something else. And, it just may be less stressful. Commuting time will never come back to you, so you may as well make the most of it.

Plus, we think there are a few things you can do which the article didn’t go into.

First, could you carpool? Maybe just one day per week to start. Save gas and spend time with someone, maybe someone on your team. You can meet, after a fashion. Or just spend time together quietly sitting or even having some fun. Getting to know your colleagues better is probably not a bad thing.

And another idea is, if it’s safe and feasible, how about bicycling to work? We all know that more aerobic exercise is good for us. You may even live longer. Bring a change of clothes – don’t wear your good clothes to bike. No good bike paths or bus routes by you? Then talk to your local government. 

Because you may not be the only person who wants to change their commute.

#1. Hire the Right People, the First Time – and Keep Them

We saved the best for last. For our favorite remarkable tip, we focused on developing and keeping top talent. HBR says keeping top talent is an ongoing process. You don’t just offer (for example) a company gym. You give your best people a chance to better develop themselves.

This kind of individual treatment is what we’ve been advocating for customers and prospects, too.

Treat people like they were the only person in the world. What a concept.

So, which one of our brilliant business tips was your favorite? And which one will you be implementing now? 

Generation Z Marketing Credit Suite

If you are as passionate about succeeding in business as we are, please help us spread the word about how to take the plunge and save time and money – and your sanity! Start Generation Z marketing today, and more!

The post Great Generation Z Marketing and More –10 Brilliant Business Tips of the Week appeared first on Credit Suite.

New comment by aziaziazi in "Ask HN: Who is hiring? (January 2020)"

Meetic (Match Group) | Front End JS | Paris, FR | ONSITE & REMOTE 1d/week

Do you know Meetic, Match, OkCupid or Tinder? That’s us!
In 15 years, 8 million couples have been formed through Meetic. Dating services available in 15 languages, in 16 countries and answering millions of searches per day.

We are looking for 2 Front End positions to join a ~100 R&D team in Paris:

– Lead Tech React : very good experience in React, lead and tech management skills

– Senior React JS developer : at least 3 years of experience in JS/React

Our stack: React, Redux, styled-component, Cypress, Webpack, Jenkins, Kubernetes.

Our organisation: Tribe/Squad, scrum-ban, AB Test, pair programming, KPI driven.

Read about open positions and apply here: https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/MeeticGroup

New comment by cdenson in "Ask HN: Who is hiring? (January 2020)"

Virtu Financial | UI Developer | Full Time | ONSITE (New York City)

Virtu is a leading financial firm that leverages cutting edge technology to deliver liquidity to the global markets and innovative, transparent trading solutions to our clients.

Our development team is looking for an exceptional candidate to join our Development team. This candidate will have the opportunity to help us build the next generation of scalable web-based UIs and internal trading tools, while leveraging the latest technologies.

Members of this team collaborate closely with clients, traders and other developers to gather and understand their needs and implement real-time trading, visualization, analysis and reporting tools.

We are looking for candidates with expertise in web client languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) and experience with Node, TypeScript, Java, and C#.

If interested, please apply here: https://boards.greenhouse.io/virtu/jobs/4534064002

New comment by ujjain in "Ask HN: Who wants to be hired? (January 2020)"

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands Remote: Yes Willing to relocate: No Technologies: • Cloud Platforms (e.g. AWS, OpenStack) • Ansible and Puppet (Certified Professional) • Docker Containers • Linux Infrastructures • Scripting in Bash, Python, Ruby • CI/CD pipelines with Jenkins • Hashicorp Tools as Terraform, Consul, Serf, Packer, Vault • Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana, Graphite, Grafana Résumé/CV: … Continue reading New comment by ujjain in "Ask HN: Who wants to be hired? (January 2020)"

Outschool Is Hiring a First Product Manager

Article URL: https://jobs.lever.co/outschool/19e1866e-b599-4296-b452-0f40ca4de630 Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22134165 Points: 1 # Comments: 0

Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one

Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one

Paying various financial debts is an extremely typical issue that many of us encounter extremely usually. Exactly how can we come out of these financial debt problems? And also the response is, combining all financial debts right into one- choose for combination finances.
Debt consolidation finances are fundings that settle all your fundings right into one that is easier to pay off. You have actually taken car loans from 3 various financial institutions at 3 various passion prices. Currently, with combination finances, you will certainly have the ability to integrate all lendings right into a solitary lending with a fairly reduced rate of interest.
There are 2 type of combination finances- protected debt consolidation lendings and also unprotected combination fundings. Like various other guaranteed car loans, safeguarded debt consolidation fundings are offered versus a security.
Unlike guaranteed car loans, no security is needed for unprotected debt consolidation car loans. Like various other unprotected financings, unprotected debt consolidation finances lug high price of passion.
Combining financial debts, debt consolidation fundings are adorned with great deals of advantages. Like, with debt consolidation financings, month-to-month settlement quantity is smaller sized as well as you will certainly obtain remedy for all bothering as well as unfortunate telephone calls of loan providers.

If you have a poor credit rating, financial obligations, personal bankruptcy, CCJ, still you can make use of loan consolidation fundings. In this instance, loan providers will certainly bill greater passion price as the danger entailed greater.

Prior to using for combination financings, some initiatives are demanded. In the beginning, you will certainly need to approximate your economic demands. See just how much of overall financial obligations can you pay immediately to minimize the concern.

Apart from typical loan providers, like financial institution, economic companies, you can choose for on-line combination financings. It is instead simple to discover on-line loan consolidation fundings with wonderful passion prices.

Loan consolidation fundings are the best manner in which will certainly assist you to do away with debt-danger. As opposed to several repayments, just with a solitary settlement you can appear of all debt-related stress.

Debt consolidation fundings are lendings that combine all your fundings right into one that is extra hassle-free to settle. Currently, with debt consolidation finances, you will certainly be able to integrate all lendings right into a solitary funding with a fairly reduced passion price.
There are 2 kind of loan consolidation finances- protected debt consolidation car loans and also unprotected debt consolidation car loans. Unlike protected car loans, no security is needed for unprotected combination car loans. Like various other unsafe fundings, unsafe combination financings bring high price of passion.

The post Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one appeared first on ROI Credit Builders.

Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one

Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one

Paying various financial debts is an extremely typical issue that many of us encounter extremely usually. Exactly how can we come out of these financial debt problems? And also the response is, combining all financial debts right into one- choose for combination finances.
Debt consolidation finances are fundings that settle all your fundings right into one that is easier to pay off. You have actually taken car loans from 3 various financial institutions at 3 various passion prices. Currently, with combination finances, you will certainly have the ability to integrate all lendings right into a solitary lending with a fairly reduced rate of interest.
There are 2 type of combination finances- protected debt consolidation lendings and also unprotected combination fundings. Like various other guaranteed car loans, safeguarded debt consolidation fundings are offered versus a security.
Unlike guaranteed car loans, no security is needed for unprotected debt consolidation car loans. Like various other unprotected financings, unprotected debt consolidation finances lug high price of passion.
Combining financial debts, debt consolidation fundings are adorned with great deals of advantages. Like, with debt consolidation financings, month-to-month settlement quantity is smaller sized as well as you will certainly obtain remedy for all bothering as well as unfortunate telephone calls of loan providers.

If you have a poor credit rating, financial obligations, personal bankruptcy, CCJ, still you can make use of loan consolidation fundings. In this instance, loan providers will certainly bill greater passion price as the danger entailed greater.

Prior to using for combination financings, some initiatives are demanded. In the beginning, you will certainly need to approximate your economic demands. See just how much of overall financial obligations can you pay immediately to minimize the concern.

Apart from typical loan providers, like financial institution, economic companies, you can choose for on-line combination financings. It is instead simple to discover on-line loan consolidation fundings with wonderful passion prices.

Loan consolidation fundings are the best manner in which will certainly assist you to do away with debt-danger. As opposed to several repayments, just with a solitary settlement you can appear of all debt-related stress.

Debt consolidation fundings are lendings that combine all your fundings right into one that is extra hassle-free to settle. Currently, with debt consolidation finances, you will certainly be able to integrate all lendings right into a solitary funding with a fairly reduced passion price.
There are 2 kind of loan consolidation finances- protected debt consolidation car loans and also unprotected debt consolidation car loans. Unlike protected car loans, no security is needed for unprotected combination car loans. Like various other unsafe fundings, unsafe combination financings bring high price of passion.

The post Loan Consolidation Loans: Consolidate all financial obligations right into one appeared first on ROI Credit Builders.

Fundability and Credibility Go Hand in Hand

Fundability is like a huge ball of yarn, full of layers and twists and turns that all touch each other. At its core, it is how a lender views a business in relation to whether or not it will repay debt.  If a lender views a business as one that is fundable, that means that they feel the business is willing and able to repay any debt that may be extended.  However, the fundability of your business can affect so much more than your ability to get a business loan. It can affect your credibility with virtually everyone you do business with. 

How Your Fundability Can Affect your Credibility with More than Just Lenders

It sounds unlikely on the surface because most people associate fundability with credit score.  However, when you consider that credit score is only one small slice part of what makes a business fundable, your perspective will change.  

There are literally hundreds of things that can affect fundability.  Before you can understand how fundability affects credibility with more than just lenders, you have to understand how all the pieces of that makes a business fundable fit together and affect each other. 

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring

A Fundable Foundation

Fundability starts with how your business is set up.  It has to appear to be a fundable entity separate from you, the owner.  This is necessary for a few reasons. First, it protects you personally.  Second, it allows you to build separate business credit, which is also a huge part of fundability. 

How do you accomplish this?  Well, like any foundation, it is best to start at the beginning.  It will be faster and easier if you do. However, if your business is already up and running, you may not have that option.  It’s never too late to start, but start now. The longer you wait the harder it will be. 

Contact Information

The first step in setting up your business to be fundable is to ensure your business has its own phone number, fax number, and address.   That’s not to say you have to get a separate phone line, or even a separate location. You can have a dedicated number forwarded to your current phone. You can even still run your business from your home or on your computer.  A fax machine is not even necessary. Find out more about how all of this works here

EIN

The next thing you need to do is get an EIN. This is an identifying number for your business that works similar to how your SSN works for you personally.  Some business owners use their SSN for their business transactions such as opening credit accounts. This is what a lot of sole proprietorships and partnerships do.  However, it really doesn’t look professional to lenders, and it can cause your personal and business credit to get all mixed up. To be fundable, you need to apply for and use an EIN.  You can get one for free from the IRS.

Incorporatefundability Credit Suite

Incorporating is absolutely necessary to set up your business to be fundable.  It lends credibility to your business as one that is legitimate. In addition, offers some protection from liability. 

Which option you choose does not matter as much for being fundable as it does for you budget and needs for liability protection.  The best thing to do is talk to your attorney or a tax professional. If you do not do this from the beginning, there will be some issues to work through. When you incorporate, you become a new entity.  This means you lose any time in business you already have. You basically have to start over. You’ll also lose any positive payment history. 

This is why you have to incorporate as soon as possible.  Not only is it necessary for fundability and for building business credit, but so is time in business.  The longer you have been in business the more fundable you appear to be. That starts on the date of incorporation, regardless of when you actually started doing business. 

Business Bank Account

A separate, dedicated business bank account is also a must.  There are a few reasons for this. First, it will help you keep business finances separate.  This is good for a lot of reasons, but the big one is tax purposes. 

However, there are also several types of funding you cannot get without a business bank account.  Many lenders and credit cards want to see one with a minimum average balance. In addition, you cannot get a merchant account without a business account at a bank. That means, you cannot take credit cards payments.  Studies show consumers spend more when they can pay by credit card.

Licenses

If anyone were to check to see if your business has all of the licenses is needs to operate and finds that you do not, it will cause a massive hit to your credibility with that person.  For a business to be legitimate, it has to have all of the necessary licenses it needs to run. If it doesn’t, warning flags are going to start waving. Research what licenses you need to ensure you have all of those necessary to legitimately run your business at the federal, state, and local levels. 

Website

I am sure you are wondering how a business website can affect your ability to get funding.  Here’s the thing. These days, you do not exist if you do not have a website. However, having a poorly put together website can be even worse.  It is the first impression you make on many, and if it appears to be unprofessional it will not bode well for you with consumers or potential lenders. 

Spend the time and money necessary to ensure your website is professionally designed and works well.  Pay for hosting too. Don’t use a free hosting service. Also, your business needs a business email address that is different from your personal one.  Make sure it has the same URL as your website. A free service such as Yahoo or Gmail will not work as well. 

Business Credit Reports

The next link is the fundability chain is business credit. Much like your consumer credit report details your personal credit history, this details the credit history of your business.  It is a tool to help lenders determine how credit worthy your business is.  

The main sources of business credit reports include Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, Equifax, and FICO SBSS.  Since you have no way of knowing which one your lender will use, you need to make sure all of these reports are up to date and accurate. 

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring

Other Business Data Agencies 

Other agencies can also impact how fundable your business is. Two examples include LexisNexus and The Small Business Finance Exchange. They gather data from a variety of sources, including public records.  This is where things can get a little sticky. These records include information on everything from arrest records to automobile accidents.   You cannot access their data or change the information they have on you or your business. What you can do is ensure that any new information they receive is positive.  Enough positive information can help negate any negative information from the past. 

Identification Numbers: Another Piece of the Fundability Puzzle

In addition to the EIN, there are identifying numbers that go along with your business credit reports.  You should be aware that these numbers exist. Some of them are simply assigned, but one of them you have to apply to get.  

Dun & Bradstreet is the largest and most commonly used business credit reporting agency.  To have a credit file in their database, you have to have a D-U-N-S number. Apply for one through the D&B website. 

Business Credit History Matters When It Comes to Fundability

Your credit history has everything to do with all that is related to your credit score.   

It consists of a number of things including: 

  • How many accounts are reporting payments?
  • How long have you had each account? 
  • What type of accounts are they?
  • How much credit are you using on each account versus how much is available?
  • Are you making your payments on these accounts consistently on-time?

The more accounts you have reporting on-time payments, the stronger your credit score will be. 

Consistency in Business Information Affects Fundability

Inconsistency in information across records can cause major problems with being fundable.  It makes your business look bad. It’s unprofessional. When you start changing things up like adding a business phone number and address and incorporating, you may find that some things slip through the cracks. 

Since a ton of loan applications are turned down each year due to fraud concerns simply because things do not match up, this is a problem.  Maybe your business licenses have your personal address but now you have a business address. You have to change it. Maybe some of your credit accounts have a slightly different name or a different phone number listed than what is on your loan application. Is all of your information up to date with your insurance agencies?  

The key to this piece of fundability is to stay on top you all of your reports, both business and personal.   Save money on business credit monitoring here

Fundability and Financial Statements

Both your personal and business tax returns need to be in order.  Not only that, but you have to pay your taxes, both business and personal.

Business Financials

It is best to have an accounting professional prepare regular financial statements. Having an accountant’s name on financial statements helps your business look more legitimate. If you cannot afford this monthly or quarterly, then at least have professional statements prepared once a year. 

Personal Financials

You need to be filing your personal taxes, and the information has to be consistent and legitimate.  Lenders will want to see it, of course, but it can affect your credibility in other ways if they are not available or correct. 

Bureaus

There are several other agencies that hold information related to your personal finances that you need to know about.  Everyone knows about FICO. Your personal FICO score needs to be as strong as possible. It really can affect how fundable your business appears, and almost all traditional lenders will look at personal credit in addition to business credit. 

Another bureau that many do not consider is ChexSystems.  They keep up with bad check activity, and it makes a difference when it comes to your bank score.  If you have too many bad checks, you will not be able to open a bank account. That will cause major fundability issues. 

For this point, everything comes into play.  Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Do you have a bankruptcy or short sell on your record?  How about UCC filings or liens? 

Personal Credit History

Your personal credit score from Experian, Equifax, and Transunion can also affect how fundable your business is.  If you need to increase your personal credit score, now is the time. The number one way to do this is to start making payments on-time, consistently.  

Also, make sure you monitor your personal credit regularly to ensure mistakes are corrected and that there are no fraudulent accounts being reported. 

Fundability: The Application Process

This piece of the puzzle affects credibility the least. It mostly affects your ability to get funding, but it is still important to understanding the entire concept of fundability.  So much plays into this that you may not even think about. First, consider the timing of the application. Is your business currently fundable? Are your business name, business address, and ownership status are all verifiable?  This also includes choosing the right loan product for your specific business and needs. 

How Fundability Affects Credibility

If a business is considered to not be credible, it will fail.  It must be credible not only to lenders, but also to customer, grantors if applying for grants, and potential investors.  If any of these sense that a business isn’t 100 percent on the up and up, it will not survive. 

Fundability Affects Credibility with Customers

I know.  You’re thinking that no customer checks a business credit score.  It’s true. I wouldn’t check on the credit score of a restaurant before going to eat there.  However, I might check online reviews. If I saw something negative, I might check to see if they have a business license.  I might also check for a report from the Better Business Bureau.  

If there is something off somewhere, it’s going to throw up a red flag to customers. While it may not deter them completely, it could certainly make them think before frequenting your business. 

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Credibility with Grantors

The same is true of those awarding business grants.  While they are likely not to check your credit score when you apply for a grant, there are other aspects of fundability that can make a difference.  For example, it they take a look at the grant application and it your personal address, phone number, and social security number are on there, it may cause them to pause.  If they compare with a business that, all other things equal, has an EIN and a separate business phone number, that business is going to appear more legitimate. 

Credibility with Potential Investors

This can get tricky. If you are looking for investors for a new business, you may not have any of the foundation laid yet because you are first looking for investors.  However, consider that investors can check on a number of the fundability pieces, though they may not yet be considering it as such, to determine whether or not they want to take a chance with your business. 

Fundability: How it Really Works

In truth, it isn’t so much that fundability affects all of these things, as it is that some of the same things affect your credibility with these groups and as well as how fundable your business appears to be.  It’s just further proof that the sooner you begin to make your business fundable, the better off you and your business will be.

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