Tag: 2020

The 5 Best PPC Companies of 2020

Paid advertising offers a 200% ROI. So for every dollar you spend, you get two dollars in return. It’s no surprise that nearly 80% of marketers consider PPC profitable and beneficial for their businesses. 

But it’s not as easy as throwing ads up, seeing what sticks, and hoping people buy from you. 

There’s a reason PPC agencies exist — managing countless moving parts, and continuous algorithm updates take time. Plus… none of those things are easy to stay on top of, either. 

To make matters worse, choosing the best PPC company for your business presents a new set of challenges. So in this article, I cover my top recommendations, characteristics to look for, and what to expect working with an agency. 

Let’s get started!

The 5 top PPC companies in the world

PPC is an exciting type of digital marketing because you can quickly and directly evaluate your investment return. 

But whether you’re an excellent PPC manager looking to outsource or have no experience running pay per click advertising campaigns, choosing the right PPC agency isn’t always straightforward.

So to help you out, I put together this list of my top recommendations for different types of businesses. 

Let’s dive in!

1. Neil Patel Digital — Best data-driven multi-channel PPC agency

Ads in search engine results aren’t the only type of PPC advertising. 

Other examples include social media, programmatic, and Amazon, each with their own set of quirks and best practices. 

At Neil Patel Digital, we specialize in running multi-channel PPC campaigns using first-party data from our partners. Furthermore, we take this information and use it to create strategic, high-profit campaigns that meet your audience where they are. 

All while helping those in your audience make an informed decision to buy. 

We’ve helped companies like Intuit, GM, and Facebook make more money authentically, using our data-driven approach to digital marketing. 

2. Directive Consulting — Best for B2B, SaaS, and enterprise businesses

If you’re a B2B, SaaS, or enterprise business looking for consulting services or a dedicated PPC management partner, Directive Consulting is an excellent option. 

They specialize in helping software companies around the world run high-ROI campaigns with a dedicated team running and optimizing things behind the scenes. 

Directive Consulting says one of their key differentiators is the predictability of their results. 

They prove it by showcasing numerous case studies outlining their results. In one example, they facilitated a 91.1% increase in lead generation in the first three months on top of decreasing their client’s cost-per-lead by 21.8%. 

So you can rest assured that you’re in good hands.

3. Stryde — Best for B2C and eCommerce businesses

B2C pay per click campaigns are vastly different from B2B campaigns. With different markets and trends, it’s essential to understand your industry’s specific ins and outs. 

And who better to do that than an agency specializing in eCommerce? 

Stryde is an eCommerce-specific digital marketing agency working with small and large companies all over the world. 

While they focus on other aspects of digital marketing like SEO and email marketing, PPC is a huge part of what they do. 

They helped Lime Ricke, a swimwear brand, achieve a 5.2x ROI. Furthermore, they helped  Lucy Ave, a women’s clothing company, obtain a 4.3 ROI. 

With repeatable and impressive results like these (and others outlined in their extensive portfolio), you know you’re making a smart choice.

4. Loud Mouth Media — Best small agency producing big results

If you’re looking for an expert partner in search advertising or paid social, Loud Mouth Media has your back. They’re a small agency based in the UK specializing in PPC (specifically paid search and social) campaigns for businesses of all sizes. 

Loud Mouth Media is partnered with Google, Bing, and Facebook as well. So you know they’re always up-to-date with the latest trends and research across those platforms. 

They’re a small team of 23 expert marketers, creatives, and strategists producing impressive results for companies of all sizes around the world. 

And with numerous digital marketing awards under their belt and past clients like Volvo and BBC, their credentials and portfolio make them stand out as the best small PPC agency producing massive results.

5. KlientBoost — Best for PPC management + landing page design

Strong PPC campaigns go beyond excellent ad copy, design, and targeting. Where you send your targeted traffic matters.  

Which… is why it’s crucial to have well-designed landing pages optimized to convert visitors into leads or customers. At KlientBoost, they understand the importance of conversion-focused landing pages. 

Their in-house team of developers, conversion designers, and top-notch marketers gives them the power to design excellent customer experiences from start to finish. 

They’ve produced repeatable results like:

  • 300% conversion rate increase for Juniper Networks
  • 315% increase in click-through rates for Lemon Stand
  • 97% decrease in cost-per-acquisition for Caresync

So, if you’re looking for a bit of help optimizing your landing pages and a dedicated PPC advertising team to target the right people and turn them into buyers, KlientBoost is for you. 

7 characteristics that make a great PPC company

Now you know my top PPC recommendations based on what you need. 

Let’s move on to what makes these PPC companies the best at what they do. We’ll also walk through what to look for on your hunt for the best option for your business. 

1. Extensive industry knowledge

The best PPC campaigns focus on the right audiences and the right keywords. But not all audience segments or keywords are equal. 

Understanding what works and what doesn’t comes from experience and in-depth industry knowledge. Without the two of those, you’re banking on intuition. 

Which… works sometimes, but that’s not what you should expect from a top PPC agency. 

Take a look at who’s a part of the agency’s team and take some time to evaluate their experience level and expertise in your specific industry. 

You can also look at their published case studies in different industries to see the types of results they produce for their clients. 

If you’re not confident in their knowledge in your industry, move on to an agency that feels like a better fit. 

2. Advanced analytics and reporting

Analytics and reporting are essential aspects of any PPC campaign. 

They help you get a better understanding of what segments and copy work well to shift your budget toward high-profit ads while reducing ad spend on those that don’t work. 

So your PPC agency must provide accurate and transparent reporting, so you always know where every dollar goes and the ROI it produces. 

Furthermore, top PPC agencies aim to collect as much information as possible regarding everything about your campaign. 

This insight helps them to adapt and produce higher ROI campaigns with first-party data directly from your business. 

You may not be able to find out much about this from an agency’s website. So it’s important to ask questions regarding the data and metrics they measure to influence their suggestions and future campaign strategies. 

3. Intent-driven keyword selection

The top PPC marketers know the best way to improve ROIs and reduce wasted ad spend is by focusing on transactional keywords rather than informational keywords for paid search marketing. 

Why? Because people searching for transactional terms are more likely to spend money. 

And good PPC strategists know this is the best way to get your business in front of the right people at the right time without wasting ad spend on irrelevant terms that aren’t going to turn into purchases. 

You may have a hard time learning about this from their website. So be sure to ask questions and gauge their knowledge around intent-based search queries before moving forward. 

4. First-party data sources and strategic partnerships

Search engines and social media platforms are continually updating their algorithms to be as human as possible to provide the best experience for their users. 

So the best PPC companies to partner with are on top of these continuous changes. 

Search and social partnerships provide those deep insights and industry trends non-partners don’t have. 

Furthermore, agencies with a pool of first-party data sources have a first-hand look at your audience’s attributes and behavior to make strategic decisions regarding your campaign before using your ad spend to test the market. 

Look for partnership badges for major search engines and social media platforms on their website. You can also look for an indication of first-party data sources. 

5. Mobile optimization

Fifteen years ago, mobile browsing and searching weren’t around. But today, mobile devices account for more than 50% of all searches made around the world.

But there’s something else a bit more interesting. Mobile devices account for 53% of paid clicks, which means there’s a huge opportunity (and need) to optimize your paid search strategy for mobile.

On top of that, there are nearly 3.5 million mobile social media users across the globe. So the opportunity for mobile-optimized paid social media campaigns is massive as well.

This makes an excellent case for mobile PPC campaigns. And the best PPC companies know this. So make sure the company you choose is prepared to strategize and optimize your campaigns for mobile devices. 

You may have to ask questions if you can’t find this information on their website. 

And if you’re not confident in their mobile capabilities, move on to a different PPC agency. 

6. Local PPC capabilities

90% of shoppers turn to search engines when looking for information on local businesses, and 33% perform these types of searches every day.

Pair that with the fact that 40% of total clicks go to the top three ad spots for transactional keywords, and you have a strong argument for local paid search marketing. 

So if your business operates in specific areas or you have a physical location to sell products or meet with potential customers, local paid search experience and capabilities are must-haves. 

Some PPC agencies specialize in local PPC, but that doesn’t mean those that don’t can’t produce impressive results. 

So be sure to ask questions to ensure you’re a good fit for each other. 

7. Multi-channel PPC services

If you’re looking for a specific type of PPC marketing, this isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker. 

But if you’re interested in cross-channel marketing, it’s easier to run all your campaigns through a single agency. 

And the more you work with them, the more in-tune they become with your business, industry, and specific campaign goals. Plus, you have the benefit of communicating and coordinating with one agency rather than managing several at the same time. 

Furthermore, you don’t have to worry about misaligned messaging from one platform to the next. 

So carefully consider where your target audience hangs out. Don’t forget to consider search engines, social media, paid shopping, and programmatic advertising on sites they frequently visit. 

Then, choose a PPC agency experienced in those areas.

What to expect from a great PPC company

If you’ve never worked with a PPC company before, it’s hard to know what to expect. So now that you know what to look for let’s talk about what working with one of the best PPC companies looks like. 

The details of each phase look different depending on the company you’re working with, but the general approach is typically the same. 

Phase 1: Discovery

The best PPC companies do everything they can to learn everything there is to know about your business and what you’re looking for. So, the first step to any new PPC project is discovery and onboarding. 

During this phase, you and your agency should hash out:

  • Your budget (including monthly ad spend)
  • The goals for your PPC campaign
  • What makes your business different from your competitors
  • How to improve your landing pages to increase conversions
  • Specific details about your business and target audience like where they hang out online, when they tend to shop, and where they live
  • What happens next

This is your chance to share everything you can possibly think of with your PPC agency. Even if it doesn’t feel relevant, it may be crucial to your success. So come into this phase as an open book with an open mind. 

Phase 2: Planning and testing

Once the agency understands your business, target audience, and marketing goals, it’s time to plan your upcoming campaign. This includes defining critical metrics and KPIs as well. 

This phase may also include running a small, low-budget pilot campaign to test different audience segments, copy, and overall execution. 

So, the more information you know about your target audience, the easier this will be. 

By the end of this stage, you’ll have a plan in place for full-scale execution and a deeper understanding of how you’re going to work together moving forward. 

Phase 3: Full-scale execution

Now it’s time to launch the full campaign. The specifics of this depend on the type of advertising and the agency you’re working with. 

Your project could be short-term, long-term, or ongoing. But during this time, you should get regular feedback and thorough reporting outlining everything about your campaign. 

And when your campaign comes to a close, you should have a clear picture of your results. 

Phase 4: Next steps

Lastly, your agency will walk you through the data they collected and explain what everything means. They’ll also probably provide suggestions and feedback on what they can improve if you want to continue working together. 

This stage should also cover what happens next. 

Strategy + creative + the right audience segments = high ROI

Hiring a top PPC company is a smart choice if you’re looking to save time, strategize with experts in your industry, and enjoy short-term results (when compared to something like SEO). 

But choosing a PPC agency you can trust is harder than it sounds. 

So whether you’re looking for advice or someone to take over and manage your campaigns, use these tips and recommendations when making your decision. 

Do you have any experience vetting and hiring a PPC agency? What criteria did you consider when making your decision?

The post The 5 Best PPC Companies of 2020 appeared first on Neil Patel.

The 6 Best Digital Marketing Companies of 2020

Digital marketing covers everything from SEO and content marketing to email campaigns, social media strategy, and video marketing too. 

With new digital marketing companies popping up left and right offering a bit of everything (and truly speaking to no one), it’s no surprise you’re having a hard time finding the right one. 

The best thing to do is narrow down your options by bypassing those digital marketing companies trying to do too many things at once. 

Why? Because true highly-niched experts are the best way to get the results you want (and deserve) for your business. 

But, it’s not always easy to find those experts when you need them. 

So, I put together a list of the top digital marketing companies who genuinely excel at what they do to help you find the right fit for your business depending on what you need. 

Then, we’re going to talk about what makes them great and what to expect when working with them. 

Let’s get started!

The 6 top digital marketing companies in the world

Digital marketing can be done from anywhere in the world. 

So, it doesn’t matter if you’re living in New York and want to work with a company in Houston. Or living in London interested in an advertising specialist in Australia. 

All this freedom does make it difficult to narrow down your choices. 

But this list is a great place to start. 

1. Neil Patel Digital — Best for content marketing and SEO

Let’s face it — consistent content creation and effective content marketing are the banes of a lot of business’s existence. 

Pair that with constantly evolving search engine algorithms and you have a recipe for burnout and frustration (on top of your every-day to-do’s). 

Thankfully there’s an easier way than staying on top of it on your own. 

Neil Patel Digital was built by marketers — not bankers — interested in disrupting the way brands (and their target audience) think about the content they create, publish, and promote. 

We’ve helped businesses like Facebook, Intuit, and Google, as well as small to medium-sized businesses, disrupt their industries with our holistic and authentic approach to content creation and search engine optimization. 

From research to execution to promotion and ongoing optimization, we know a thing or two (or twenty) about helping your brand create the best content for the right people… and putting it in front of them as well.

Your business deserves to be heard and there’s no one more dedicated to making that happen than our team of professional experts equipped with my world-class digital marketing strategies.

Plus, with seven offices around the world, our team is here for you when you need us. 

2. Cubicle Ninjas — Best for brand design and app/website development

You can have the best ideas and products in the world but without a brand that portrays your story and core values, you’re going to have a hard time connecting with your audience. 

But cohesive brand design goes beyond the basics of graphic design best practices and Googling for free information until your eyes gloss over. 

That’s where an experienced specialist comes in and saves the day. 

Cubicle Ninjas uses a strategic combination of design and technology to develop innovative, inspiring, and one-of-a-kind branding design paired with the mobile apps and websites brands need to stand out in our online world. 

They’ve designed high-end customer experiences for companies like Red Bull, Microsoft, IBM, and Hilton but they also work with smaller boutique brands as well. 

Cubicle Ninjas believe the best brands encompass visual, written, and interactive elements to create a cohesive customer experience through every stage of their journey from casual visitors to loyal repeat customers. 

Their client-proven process works for businesses and projects of all sizes interested in developing a brand and creative assets that help them tell their story. 

3. Storm Brain — Best for advertising and social media marketing

Social media seemingly changes by the second. 

It feels impossible to keep up with new platforms, updated policies, and ever-changing social media marketing techniques on top of running your business. 

But thankfully, you don’t have to. 

Storm Brain is a digital marketing company specializing in effective advertising campaigns and social media marketing that helps brands of all sizes generate more leads, build brand ambassadors, and make more money with a strong focus on ROI. 

They’ve worked with some big names like Zillow, Ford, and Citi Bank but they also work with smaller brands in a wide variety of industries. 

Storm Brain focuses on planning, creating, and executing both paid and organic social media campaigns that help your audience connect with your brand across social media channels. 

However, they specialize in Facebook and paid social media advertising. 

Their four-step strategic approach centers around your target audience and capitalizes on paid media, owned media, and earned media to ensure your brand is in front of the right people. 

4. Mad Mind — Best for eCommerce development and product branding

As a product-based business, you have different marketing roadblocks than service-based or blogging-based businesses. 

And there are a lot of other branding elements coming into play as well.

Thankfully, Mad Mind is here to help. 

They’re a creative digital marketing studio for both large and small eCommerce brands looking to develop cohesive branding from their website design down to the smallest details of their product packaging. 

Brands like Lyft and Sony Music trust Mad Mind to help them create an impactful brand, attract the right people, and turn them into lifelong paying customers.

Furthermore, they’ve been featured on Shark Tank, The Los Angeles Times, and Vogue. 

From WordPress, WooCommerce, and Shopify development to custom websites and thoughtful eCommerce branding, their team of “marketing geniuses” delivers powerful results and dynamic marketing strategies you can leverage for years to come. 

5. Pop Video — Best for video and visual content marketing

Video and visual content marketing are booming right now. 

But it’s no secret planning, creating, and producing videos feels overwhelming and downright difficult, to say the least. 

The good news is… you don’t have to do it all yourself. 

Pop Video specializes in doing the heavy lifting (read: video creation, execution, repurposing, editing, etc.) for you. 

They know your audience expects more than one-off videos and other types of visual content. And they also believe your business deserves better, as well. They don’t call themselves a “lean, mean, content-generating machine” for nothing. 

Pop Video has partnered with hundreds of brands including Phillips 66, Academy Sports + Outdoors, and Mattress Firm to revolutionize the way their audiences consume and interact with digital content. 

However, they don’t just produce great videos. 

They help you create a library of visual assets by repurposing content as well so you can walk away with all the visual content marketing material you need. 

6. Action Rocket — Best for email marketing and design

There’s a reason 93% of B2B brands use email to distribute the content they create — it works. 

But starting your email list and growing it into a database of raving fans and customers isn’t easy. Most businesses know this and do everything they can to avoid it like the plague. 

Good thing you have another option. 

Action Rocket is an email marketing studio leveraging strategic approaches, creative thinking, and in-depth customer journeys to develop results-driven email marketing campaigns. 

Furthermore, they’ve worked with some huge names you may have heard of like QVC, Unicef, and American Express. 

However, they also work with businesses of all sizes anywhere in the world. 

Action Rocket offers courses, workshops, and training as well as world-class email campaign creation services so you can start leveraging one of the most effective forms of digital marketing for your business. 

7 characteristics that make a great digital marketing company

Now you know my top recommendations. 

So, let’s talk about what makes these digital marketing companies great and what to look for if none of the companies above match what you’re after. These are the key steps in how to pick the right digital marketing agency.

1. A great website and digital marketing strategy

Smart digital marketers understand the importance of having a well-designed website and an effective digital marketing strategy. 

So, it makes sense to expect your digital marketing company to have both, especially if they offer web design or custom development services.

Take a look around their website, sign up for the email list, and peek at their social media profiles to make sure they’re practicing what they preach. 

And if they’re not… move on to a digital marketing company that is.

2. An impressive portfolio

Agencies use their portfolio to show off their best work. 

So, look through their published portfolio pieces to see examples of the types of work they produce for their clients. 

This also gives you an idea of the types of clients they frequently work with. 

Pay close attention to the style and quality of what they do and make sure it closely aligns with what you hope to get out of working with them. 

Furthermore, look at the list of clients they have to see if you recognize any of the names. 

If anything seems off or doesn’t fit what you’re looking for, move on to a digital marketing company that feels like a better fit for you and your business. 

3. Aligned company culture and core values

It’s important to work with companies that value the same things and have a strong company culture you can appreciate to get the results you hope to achieve (without wanting to pull your hair out). 

Do you prefer a creative and collaborative atmosphere or a more rigid and structured approach? 

Look at the words, phrases, and photos they use on their website to get an idea of how they work and make sure it’s a good match to what you’re looking for. 

Some digital marketing companies use humor and playfulness while others are more serious. 

So, decide what type of experience you want to have and find a company that matches that. 

Example: Would you use the word “disruptive” to describe your brand and vision?

4. A diverse team with appropriate specializations

It’s important to hire a digital marketing company with the right team that can deliver the results you’re hoping for. 

If you’re looking for high-end brand design services, make sure they have an experienced team of designers to take on your project. 

Or maybe you’re interested in a custom-coded website. 

Check out that company’s team on their about page (if they have everyone listed there) or on LinkedIn to make sure they have an experienced designer and a coder or developer on staff. 

5. Timely and effective communication

Strong communication is one of the most important parts of a fruitful and beneficial partnership between a company and its digital marketing company. 

So, it’s important to consider their communication skills and overall customer service before hiring them. 

You can do this by evaluating the responses you get and how long it takes for them to respond to your messages and questions before giving them any money. 

This doesn’t always work but if they take weeks to respond to a simple question, consider moving on to someone else. 

6. Realistic promises and proven results

Before scheduling a consultation or reaching out for more information, look through their website to make sure their promises are realistic. 

Furthermore, look to see if you can find any data-driven case studies they have regarding the type of results they regularly produce for their clients. 

If they’re promising unrealistic things and making outlandish claims on their website, that’s a huge red flag. 

Why? Because this means they probably don’t understand how the industry works and they don’t have any actual client results to share. 

7. Real-world client testimonials

93% of consumers turn to customer reviews and testimonials when deciding to buy something. They do this because it helps justify the expense and ensure they’re going to get what they pay for. 

So, you should do the same. 

Keep an eye out for detailed and honest customer reviews or testimonials to give you an insight into what working with the company is like. 

If you can’t find any, they probably haven’t worked with many clients and they may be inexperienced. 

Which… is fine if you’re on a budget. But it’s not fine if you’re looking for the best possible solution for your business. 

What to expect from a great digital marketing company

Now you know what to look for, so let’s talk about what to expect when working or partnering with a digital marketing company.

The details of each phase look different for every business out there. But, the fundamentals remain the same regardless of the company you choose to work with. 

Phase 1: discovery and research

The best digital marketing companies want to learn everything there is to know about your business from top to bottom. 

This usually happens through a series of phone calls/zoom chats and detailed questionnaires so they can get to know you and what you’re looking for. They’ll also do a deep dive into your target market, audience, and competition. 

Phase 2: developing a plan of action

Once they know who you are and what you’re looking for, they’ll work with you to develop a detailed timeline and plan of attack to get the job done well and on time. 

Phase 3: executing the plan of attack

Once everyone agrees on the plan, it’s time to start executing. 

Your digital marketing company will work through the process of creating and finalizing everything you both agreed to during phase 2. 

This includes building infrastructure, creatives, ongoing strategies, and anything else you need to achieve the results you’re after. Again, this looks different for different types of projects and the company you’re working with. 

Depending on the complexity of your project, this could take anywhere from a few days to several months (or even a few years depending on the type of partnership). 

Phase 4: results and offboarding

After everything is complete, good digital marketing companies will walk you through the results and outcomes you achieved by working together. 

From there, you’ll discuss the next steps and how to move forward on your own (or what happens next if your partnership isn’t over).

Digital marketing = long-term relationships and results

Investing in digital marketing is a huge step in the right direction for your business. But, these strategies don’t return results overnight and they generally tend to ramp up over time. 

So, expect a long-term relationship with your digital marketing company.

The longer you work with them, the more fine-tuned they are to your needs, and the quicker they can get to work producing even better long-term results for you and your business. 

So, whether you choose one of my top recommendations or scout out your own, use the tips and best practices we talked about to make a smart, educated decision… like the future of your business depends on it. 

Because it does!

Have you worked with any digital marketing companies recently? How did it go and did you get the results you hoped for?

The post The 6 Best Digital Marketing Companies of 2020 appeared first on Neil Patel.

Overtime – Episode #418: Russia Investigation, Dodd-Frank, 2020 Candidates, SCOTUS

Bill and his guests – Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Andrew Sullivan, and Fmr. Rep Barney Frank – answer viewer questions after the show. (Originally aired 3/17/17)

The post Overtime – Episode #418: Russia Investigation, Dodd-Frank, 2020 Candidates, SCOTUS appeared first on Buy It At A Bargain – Deals And Reviews.

Google’s May 2020 Core Update: What You Need to Know

On May 4th, Google started to roll out a major update to its algorithm. They call it a “core” update because it’s a large change to their algorithm, which means it impacts a lot of sites.

To give you an idea of how big the update is, just look at the image above. It’s from SEMrush Sensor, which monitors the movement of results on Google.

The chart tracks Google on a daily basis and when it shows green or blue for the day, it means there isn’t much movement going on. But when things turn red, it means there is volatility in the rankings.

Now the real question is, what happened to your traffic?

If you already haven’t, you should go and check your rankings to see if they have gone up or down. If you aren’t tracking your rankings, you can set up a project on Ubersuggest for free and track up to 25 keywords.

You should also log into your Google Analytics account and check to see what’s happening to your traffic.

Hopefully, your traffic has gone up. If it hasn’t, don’t panic. I have some information that will help you out.

Let’s first start off by going over the industries that have been most impacted…

So what industries were affected?

Here are the industries that got affected.

As you can see, travel, real estate, health, pets & animals, and people & society saw the biggest fluctuations with rankings.

Other industries were also affected… the ones at the bottom of the list were the least affected, such as “news.”

There was also a shakeup in local SEO results, but that started before the core update.

One big misconception that I hear from people new to SEO is that if you have a high domain authority or domain score (if you aren’t sure what yours is, go here and put in your URL), you’ll continually get more traffic and won’t be affected by updates. That is false.

To give you an idea, here are some well-known sites that saw their rankings dip according to our index at Ubersuggest:

  • Spotify.com
  • Creditkarma.com
  • LinkedIn.com
  • Legoland.com
  • Nypost.com
  • Ny.gov
  • Burlington.com

More importantly, we saw some trends on sites that got affected versus ones that didn’t.

Update your content frequently

I publish 4 articles a month on this blog. Pretty early every Tuesday like clockwork, I publish a new post.

But do you know how often I update my old content?

Take a guess?

Technically, I don’t update my own content, but I have 3 people who work for me and all they do is go through old blog posts and update them.

On any given month, my team updates at least 90 articles. And when I say update, I am not talking about just adjusting a sentence or adding an image. I am talking about adding a handful of new paragraphs, deleting irrelevant information, and sometimes even re-writing entire articles.

They do whatever it takes to keep articles up to date and valuable for the readers. Just like how Wikipedia is constantly updating its content.

Here’s an interesting stat for you: We know for certain that 641 sites that we are tracking are updating old content on a daily basis.

Can you guess how many of them saw a search traffic dip of 10% or more?

Only 38! That’s 5.92%, which is extremely low.

What’s crazy, though, is that 187 sites saw an increase in their search traffic of 10% or more.

One thing to note is when we are calculating organic search traffic estimates, we look at the average monthly volume of a keyword as well as click-through rates based on ranking. So holidays such as May 1, which is Labor Day for most of the world, didn’t skew the results.

Now, to clarify, I am not talking about producing new content on a daily or even weekly basis. These sites are doing what I do on NeilPatel.com… they are constantly updating their old content.

Again, there is no “rubric” on how to update your old content as it varies per article, but the key is to do whatever it takes to keep it relevant for your readers and ensure that it is better than the competition.

If you still want some guidance on updating old content, here is what I tell my team:

  1. If the content is no longer relevant to a reader, either delete the page and 301 redirect it to the most relevant URL on the site or update it to make it relevant.
  2. Are there ways to make the content more actionable and useful? Such as, would adding infographics, step-by-step instructions, or videos to the article make it more useful? If so, add them.
  3. Check to see if there are any dead links and fix them. Dead links create a poor user experience.
  4. If the article is a translated article (I have a big global audience), make sure the images and videos make sense to anyone reading the content in that language.
  5. Look to see the 5 main terms each article ranks for and then Google those terms. What do the pages ranking in the top 10 do really well that we aren’t?
  6. Can you make the article simpler? Remove fluff and avoid using complex words that very few people can understand.
  7. Does the article discuss a specific year or time frame? If possible, make the article evergreen by avoiding the usage of dates or specific time ranges.
  8. If the article covers a specific problem people are facing, make sure you look at Quora first before updating the article. Look to see popular answers on Quora as it will give you a sense of what people are ideally looking for.
  9. Is this article a duplicate? Not from a wording perspective, but are you pretty much covering the exact same concept as another article on your site. If so, consider merging them and 301 redirect one URL to the other.

Fix your thin content

Here’s another interesting stat for you. On average, Ubersuggest crawls 71 websites every minute. And when I mean crawl, users are putting in URLs to check for SEO errors.

One error that our system looks at is thin content (pages with low-word counts).

On average, 46% of the websites we analyze have at least one page that is thin in content. Can you guess how many of those sites got impacted by the latest algorithm update?

We don’t have enough data on all of the URLs as the majority of those sites get very little to no search traffic as they are either new sites or haven’t done much SEO.

But when we look at the last 400 sites in our system that were flagged with thin content warnings for pages other than their contact page, about page, or home page, and had at least 1,000 visitors a month from Google, they saw a massive shift in rankings.

127 of the sites saw a decrease in search traffic by at least 10% while 41 saw an increase in search traffic by at least 10%.

Sites with thin content saw a roughly 3 times higher likelihood of being affected in a negative way than a positive one. Of course, the majority of the sites with thin content saw little to no change at all, but still, a whopping 31.75% saw a decrease.

If you don’t know if you have thin content, go here and put in your URL.

You’ll see a report that looks something like this:

I want you to click on the “Critical Errors” box.

You’ll now see a report that looks like:

Look to see if there are any “low word count” errors. If there is, click on the number and it will take you to a page that shows you all of the pages with a low word count.

You won’t be able to fix them all, as some pages like your contact page or category pages, which may not need thousands of words.

And in other cases, you may be able to get the point across to a website visitor in a few hundred words or even through images. An example would be if you have an article on how to tie a tie, you may not have too many words because it’s easier to show people how to do so through a video or a series of images.

But for the pages that should be more in-depth, you should fix them. Here are the three main questions to consider when fixing thin content pages:

  1. Do you really need to add more words – if you can get the message across in a few hundred words or through images or videos, it may be enough. Don’t add words when it isn’t needed. Think of the user experience instead. People would rather have the answer to their question in a few seconds than to wait minutes.
  2. How does your page compare to the competition – look at similar pages that are ranking on page 1. Do they have more content than you or less? This will give you an idea if you need to expand your page, especially if everyone who ranks on page 1 has at least a few thousand words on their page.
  3. Does it even make sense to keep the page – if it provides little to no value to a reader and you can’t make it better by updating it, you may want to consider deleting it and 301 redirect the URL to another similar page on your site.

Fix your SEO errors

Another interesting finding that we noticed when digging through our Ubersuggest data is that sites with more SEO errors got impacted greatly.

Now, this doesn’t mean that if you have a ton of SEO errors you can’t rank or you are going to get hit by an algorithm update.

More so it was one type of error that hurt sites more than others. It was sites with duplicate title tags and meta descriptions.

One thing to note was that many sites have duplicate meta tags, but when a large portion of your pages have duplicate meta tags, it usually creates problems.

So we dug up sites that contained duplicate meta tags and title tags for 20% or more of their pages.

Most of these sites didn’t get much traffic in general, but for the 363 that we could dig up that generated at least 1,000 visits a month from Google, 151 saw a decrease in traffic by at least 10%.

89 of them also saw increases in traffic by 10% or more, but still, 41.59% of sites with duplicate meta tags saw a huge dip. If you have duplicate meta tags you should get this fix.

To double check if you do, put your URL in here again. It will load this report again:

And then click on the critical errors again. You’ll see a report that looks like this:

Look for any errors that say duplicate meta description or title tag. If you see it, click on the number and it will take you to a page that breaks down the duplicates.

Again, your site doesn’t have to be perfect and you’ll find in some cases that you have duplicates that don’t need to be fixed, such as category pages with pagination.

But in most cases, you should fix and avoid having duplicate meta description and title tags.

Conclusion

Even if you do everything I discussed above, there is no guarantee that you will be impacted by an algorithm update. Each one is different, and Google’s goal is to create the best experience for searchers.

If you look at the above issues, you’ll notice that fixing them should create a better user experience and that should always be your goal.

It isn’t about winning on Google. SEO is about providing a better experience than your competition. If that’s your core focus, in the long run, you’ll find that you’ll do better than your competition when it comes to algorithm updates.

So how was your traffic during the last update? Did it go up or down, or just stay flat?

The post Google’s May 2020 Core Update: What You Need to Know appeared first on Neil Patel.

Essential 2020 Business Tax Tips Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

As we near the time most of us dread, when taxes are due, there is a major spin on things this year.  The Covid-19 virus has put the world completely on its head, and even the IRS isn’t immune. What does coronavirus mean for taxes, and how can you make sure you keep as much of your money in your pocket as possible? Make sure you take full advantage of all the coronavirus relief options with these 2020 tax tips.

These 2020 Tax Tips Can Help You File Faster and Pay Less In These Uncertain Times

Truly, the coronavirus has affected everything.  Currently, the economy is in a constant spiral. There are no signs of letting up any time soon.  Before any other 2020 business tax tips, you need to know how Covid-19 affects your tax return this year at the federal level.

Get funding to help your business through uncertain times.

Coronavirus Business Tax Impact

2020 biz tax tips Credit SuiteFirst, both individuals and corporations have an extra 90-days to file and pay their taxes this year.  Meaning, instead of having to turn in your tax return and pay by April 15, you have until July 15 to do both without interest or penalties.  As of right now, interest and penalties will start to accrue on July 16. 

As a result,individuals can defer up to $1 million, including self-employment tax.  However, corporations can defer federal income tax payments of up to $10 million. Yet, the government is reminding people and businesses to file as soon as possible in case they are getting a refund.  Having the cash-on-hand is more necessary now than ever than ever before. 

Remember, this is for federal income taxes.  Forty-two states and the District of Columbia have state income tax that currently must still be paid by their original deadline. This could change however, so watch for updates. 

Now that you know this, here are our top 2020 Business Tax Tips. 

2020 Business Tax Tips: Credit Card Rewards

It may be too late for 2019 taxes, but be sure you pay attention to credit card rewards if you use business credit cards.  You could owe taxes on those. For this year, look at the rewards you have earned and determine if you need to include them on your tax return. Making sure your taxes are accurate is the best way to avoid a lot of unnecessary time in an audit later on.

2020 Business Tax Tips: Use Your Software Wisely

Few businesses keep their books with paper and pencil these days. Most use some form of accounting software.  Many of these will print out tax forms automatically using the data already in the accounting system. Then, all you have to do is review the forms and supply any supporting documentation. 

Be sure you know what your system is capable of and use it.  Entering accurate information throughout the year and keeping it up to date will go a long way toward ensuring your tax time goes smoothly.  

Here are some great options to consider for next year if you find your software is not what you need.

Zoho

Zoho is a great option if automation is your jam. They offer a 14-day free trial.  The software compiles IRS compliant audit reports making tax filing much easier. Package prices range from $9 to $29 per month. 

Wave

 Wave has many advantages. The smart dashboard is one of the best.  It organizes your income, expenses, payments, and invoices in a way that makes preparing a tax return as quick and painless as possible.  In addition, accounting, invoicing, and receipt services are free! Fees for payroll and payment services vary.

Intuit Quickbooks

Arguably, Intuit Quickbooks is the most widely used small business accounting software on the market. The system is comprehensive and affordable for many, making it a great choice.  There is a 30-day free trial and packages range from $12 to $75 per month. Payroll add on options are available. 

2020 Business Tax Tips: File Online

There are many ways to file your tax return.  Still, the fastest, easiest, and cheapest way to do so is online.  As mentioned, this goes much faster and is a much smoother process if you have the best bookkeeping software for your business.

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2020 Tax Tips: Scan Backup Documentation

Start now scanning backup documentation for next year.  Once you are caught up, a few minutes a day can save hours next year.  While you are at it, depending on the number of transactions your business does, you could go ahead and scan backup documents for 2019 since you have extra time.  It may come in handy in the case of an audit. At the very least, take the extra time to organize all the receipts in your shoebox. 

2020 Business Tax Tips: Hire a Professional 

When it comes to 2020 business tax tips, this is the one I would like to stress the most.  If you can at all afford it, hire a professional to do your taxes. This is the best way to ensure you keep the most money in your pocket, which is hugely important amidst this coronavirus epidemic. 

2020 Business Tax Tips: Going Forward

Looking forward to next year, what can you do to ensure your tax preparation goes as smoothly as possible?  There are actually a number of things. They will not help you when it comes to taxes, but they will help you build fundability and business credit as well.  

Get an EIN

Use an EIN to file your income taxes if you do not already.  This is important for a number of reasons, including increasing fundability and helping build business credit. It’s easy and free to get one on the IRS website.

Consider Your Organization

If you are operating as a sole proprietorship or partnership, consider incorporating.  Tax wise you can see how functioning as a corporation is going to allow businesses to defer up to $10 million in taxes for 90-days due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  There are a number of other benefits as well, including some liability protection. Now more than ever you do not want to be held personally liable for business debts. 

Business Bank Account

You have to open a separate, dedicated business bank account.  There are a few reasons for this.  First, it will help you keep track of business finances.  It will also help you keep them separate from personal finances for tax purposes. Furthermore, it aids in separating your business from yourself for fundability and business credit building.

Beyond taxes, there are 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 usually spend more when paying by credit card is an option.

What Else Affects Fundability That Is Not Related to Taxes? 

While not technically under the category of 2020 business tax tips, it still bears mentioning.  Without fundability your business cannot access the funding it needs to run. How the IRS views your business can have an effect on fundability as well.  Your business has to be an entity separate from you as the owner in the eyes of the IRS and lenders. Organizing as a corporation and getting an EIN are major for this.  What else helps? 

Contact Information

The first step in setting up a foundation of fundability is to ensure your business has its own phone number, fax number, and address.   You do not have to get a separate phone line, or even a separate location.  In fact, you can still run your business from your home or on your computer. You do not even have to have a fax machine.  Be certain to use this separate business contact information on your business tax return.

Business Credit Reports

The main distributors of business credit reports are Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, Equifax, and FICO SBSS.  Honestly, you have no way of knowing which one a lender will choose.  Consequently, you need to make sure all of these reports are up to date and accurate. This is just as important in hard economic times as any other time. 

 If you have business credit, keep an eye on it right now.  Times are tough, and monitoring your business credit is essential to staying on top of any problems that may pop up so you can adjust and correct. 

Other Business Data Agencies 

In addition to the business credit reporting agencies that directly calculate and issue credit reports, there are other business data agencies that affect those reports indirectly.  Two examples of this are LexisNexis and The Small Business Finance Exchange. These two agencies gather data from different sources, including public records.  This means they could even have access to information relating to automobile accidents and liens. While you may not be able to access or change the data these agencies have on your business, you can ensure that any new information they receive is positive.  Enough positive information can help distract attention from negative information. 

Identification Numbers 

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

Business Information

On the surface, it seems obvious that all of your business information should be the same across the board.  However, when you start changing things up, like adding a business phone number and address or incorporating, you may find that some things slip through the cracks. 

This is a problem because of those fraud concerns lenders have.  When business information doesn’t match up, it sets off alarms.  Maybe your business licenses have your personal address but now you have a business address.  You have to change it.  Perhaps some of your credit accounts have a slightly different name or a different phone number listed than what is on your loan application. Do your insurances all have the same information?  

Bureaus

There are several other agencies that hold information related to your personal finances that you need to know about.  For example, many business owners do not realize that their ChexSystems report can affect fundability.  Basically, this details any bad check activity.  It makes a difference when it comes to your bank score.  In fact, if you have too many bad checks, you will not be able to open a bank account.  That will seriously affect fundability. 

Keep in mind, everything can come back to bite you.  Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Do you have a bankruptcy or short sell on your record?  How about liens or UCC filings? All of this can and will affect the fundability of your business.

Get funding to help your business through uncertain times.

Personal Credit History

Your personal credit score from Experian, Equifax, and Transunion all matter.  You have to have your personal credit in order because it will definitely affect the fundability of your business.  If it isn’t great right now, get to work on it.  Don’t forget, the number one way to get a strong personal credit score or improve a weak one is to make 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. 

2020 Business Tax Tips: Get Past This Year and Look Forward to the Next

For now, the best of the 2020 business tax tips is to take advantage of the extra time you have to dig through and find every advantage you can.  First, if you can at all afford a professional, it’s worth it. They know what they are looking for and are the best at reducing what you pay in and increasing what you get back.  

Next, If that is just simply not possible, take advantage of everything your software has to offer.  Make sure you are fully aware of all that it can do, and that all the information entered is accurate and complete.  This will help ensure your tax bill is reduced as much as possible, but also that in the case of an audit, you are prepared.

The post Essential 2020 Business Tax Tips Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic appeared first on Credit Suite.

Fundability and How it Helps During Recession 2020

Get through recession 2020 even though loan risk factors abound. But you can fix a lot of them with assuring fundability. The easiest way to do this is via building business credit. but first, let’s look at what a bank is going to want to know. they want to assess what sorts of small business loan risk factors you bring to the table.

Get By Recession 2020 and Answer Lender Questions and Address Small Business Loan Risk Factors With Fundability

Fundability – or, not just the ability to become funded but how desirable a company is for funding – means different things to banks, venture capitalists, angel investors, and informal investors. That being said, they all agree on a few fundamental principles.

1. Do You Have Positive Cash Flow?

Lenders aren’t in the business of giving you gifts. Instead, they would like to see a profit on their investment. For that reason, if you are bleeding funds, they are not going to want to pay for a piece of what, to their minds, is an unsatisfactory financial commitment.

How do you turn it around? Do some economic triage. Perhaps your firm will not need to have an alternative site. Perhaps you don’t need to have a full-time assistant when part-time will do. Maybe you should be leaning harder on your customers with pending invoices. This is one of the biggest small business loan risk factors.

Start-ups will get a different question – see # 2.

2. Do You Have a Great Product or Service?

For startup companies, the concern is more like: do you have a fantastic product or service? A concept in itself is not going to be sufficient, so you also will want to have a comprehensive business system in place. Investors are going to want to see what you can do with your amazing idea, and how it can be successfully monetized. 

For a brand-new company this is the biggest of all loan risk factors. Otherwise, why bother making a company at all? Particularly during Recession 2020.

3. What Will You Use the Cash For?

If your reply is an unclear, “general fund”, investors are not going to be showing an interest. First of all, they want you to demonstrate you will be responsible with their money. In addition, they also want to know that your business is organized. You can be the most innovative and the very least business-oriented man or woman out there, so long as anyone in your organization is dealing with the financial heavy lifting. Somebody must make sure that the taxes are paid and the invoices go out to your clients.

Investors don’t actually want to see you using the funds for daily operations. If your business is functioning profitably (see # 1), then investors will expect that you can manage those expenses. Rather, they want to see if you are going to employ their funding for something new and different. In general, this implies you must be using their funds for improvement – a new piece of essential machinery; a new shop; a second facility; a new product line – these are just a few plans which would fit the bill for progress. 

See # 4 for the similar question for startups. This is another one of the bigger loan risk factors. Lenders want to know their money isn’t being thrown away. After all, they make a lot more money if you pay your loan off and pay interest. Getting their money back through collections is a lot less profitable for them. And they are going to be looking to maximize their returns during Recession 2020.

4. How Much Funding Do You Need to Reach Positive Cash Flow?

For startups, a similar question is: just how much funding will you need to get to positive cash flow and profitability? In this case, your use for the money is still a distinct one – it’s to bring your new business to profitability.

5. How Much Revenue Yearly Can Your Business Generate After Three Years?

This question is the same whether you are presently in business or you are aiming to get a startup business funded. This will separate the lifestyle businesses (designed to make their owners glad but not develop into bigger players) from the scalable businesses. A lifestyle business normally won’t get this sort of funding. Instead, it will be funded by virtue of secured debt or bootstrapping or secured debt.

A scalable business can still be modest and not expect explosive growth, but still be fundable. Your new widget warehouse might begin small. Investors would expect it to have more moderate funding needs.

6. What Number of Your Existing Clients, Channels, and Partners Will Support Your New Business Growth and Volume?

Introducing new markets (or going for new customers or trying to market new products) will be viewed as riskier, unless you have an established history of financial success via pioneering. See # 7 for the semi-comparable question for startup ventures.

7. How Do You Know That Anybody Will Buy Your Product or Service?

If you do not know your market, then you will not know how to target to those customers. If your clients are middle-aged women, they will most likely respond to different techniques than if your customers are teen boys. Merely making a product and flinging it out to the ether, praying someone will buy it, is not going to sit well with investors. Instead, they want you to have scouted out your prospective clientele prior to you coming knocking and asking for funding.

The rest of the questions are only for startups.

8. How Much Funding Can You Get From Friends and Family to Launch Your Business?

Oftentimes these are your most important investors, or they might be your only investors. Treat them well. This goes double in Recession 2020.

9. How Much Funding Can You Personally Add?

Investors would like to know this amount because it indicates a commitment to the startup. If you want to keep your life savings, you’ll be a lot more careful with funds than if you’re just playing around with other people’s money. Of course you should be even more careful during Recession 2020.

10. Who Comprises Your Team?

Your team does not have to be employees of your business. It can also be consultants and mentors. Contact your school. There might be an educator interested in your new business, even if you never took a class with that person. Not a college alum? Try your nearby community college just the same. A professor might even want to use your company experience and story in a lecture.

Recession 2020 Credit Suite

Learn more here and get started with building business credit with your company’s EIN and not your SSN. Get money even in Recession 2020!

But How Do You Best Address These Risk Factors During Recession 2020? Build Business Credit!

Small business credit is credit in a business’s name. It doesn’t connect to an entrepreneur’s consumer credit, not even if the owner is a sole proprietor and the only employee of the business. 

Because of this, a business owner’s business and personal credit scores can be very different.

Consumer credit scores depend upon payments but also other elements like credit usage percentages. 

But for small business credit, the scores truly only hinge on whether a business pays its debts promptly.

The Process

Building company credit is a process. It does not occur automatically. A company has to proactively work to develop small business credit. 

Having said that, it can be done readily and quickly, and it is much quicker than building personal credit scores. 

Vendors are a big component of this process.

Doing the steps out of order leads to repetitive denials. Nobody can start at the top with small business credit. For instance, you can’t start with retail or cash credit from your bank. If you do, you’ll get a denial 100% of the time.

Company Fundability

A business needs to be fundable to credit issuers and vendors. This is the best way to address any small business loan risk factors.

Hence, a business needs a professional-looking website and e-mail address. And it needs to have site hosting bought from a vendor like GoDaddy. 

Additionally, company telephone and fax numbers need to have a listing on 411. You can do that here: http://www.listyourself.net.  

In addition, the business phone number should be toll-free (800 exchange or similar).

A business also needs a bank account dedicated solely to it, and it has to have all of the licenses essential for running. 

Licenses

These licenses all must be in the perfect, accurate name of the company. And they need to have the same small business address and phone numbers. 

So note, that this means not just state licenses, but possibly also city licenses.

Recession 2020 Credit Suite

Learn more here and get started with building business credit with your company’s EIN and not your SSN. Get money even in Recession 2020!

Working with the Internal Revenue Service

Visit the IRS web site and get an EIN for the business. They’re totally free. Choose a business entity like corporation, LLC, etc. 

A company can start off as a sole proprietor. But they more than likely want to change to a variety of corporation or an LLC. 

This is to decrease risk. And it will make best use of tax benefits.

A business entity matters when it pertains to taxes and liability in case of litigation. A sole proprietorship means the entrepreneur is it when it comes to liability and taxes. Nobody else is responsible.

Incorporating is a great way to address small business loan risk factors.

Kicking Off the Business Credit Reporting Process

Begin at the D&B website and get a free D-U-N-S number. A D-U-N-S number is how D&B gets a business into their system, to generate a PAYDEX score. If there is no D-U-N-S number, then there is no record and no PAYDEX score.

Once in D&B’s system, search Equifax and Experian’s sites for the business. You can do this at www.creditsuite.com/reports. If there is a record with them, check it for accuracy and completeness. If there are no records with them, go to the next step in the process. 

In this manner, Experian and Equifax have something to report on.

Starter Vendor Credit

First you ought to build trade lines that report. This is also called starter vendor credit. Then you’ll have an established credit profile, and you’ll get a business credit score. 

And with an established business credit profile and score you can begin to get credit at even more establishments.

These kinds of accounts have the tendency to be for the things bought all the time, like marketing materials, shipping boxes, outdoor work wear, ink and toner, and office furniture.

But to start with, what is trade credit? These trade lines are credit issuers who give you starter credit when you have none now. Terms are commonly Net 30, rather than revolving. 

Therefore, if you get approval for $1,000 in vendor credit and use all of it, you must pay that money back in a set term, like within 30 days on a Net 30 account.

Details

Net 30 accounts have to be paid in full within 30 days. 60 accounts need to be paid completely within 60 days. Compared to with revolving accounts, you have a set time when you have to pay back what you borrowed or the credit you made use of. 

To start your business credit profile the right way, you need to get approval for vendor accounts that report to the business credit reporting agencies. When that’s done, you can then make use of the credit. 

Then pay back what you used, and the account is on report to Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, or Equifax.

You want at least 3, preferably 5 to 8 of these to move onto the next step, retail credit. Here are some stellar choices from us: https://www.creditsuite.com/blog/5-vendor-accounts-that-build-your-business-credit/ 

Note: it can often be possible to apply for starter vendor credit without your Social Security number. Try it by leaving that section blank, or applying over the phone.

Retail Credit

Once there are at least 3 vendor trade accounts reporting to at least one of the CRAs, then move onto retail credit. These are stores, and they can be either net accounts or revolving.

Just use your SSN and date of birth on these applications for verification purposes. For credit checks and guarantees, use the small business’s EIN on these credit applications – if you can.

Fleet Credit

Are there something like 8 to 10 accounts reporting? Then move onto fleet credit. These are businesses such as BP and Conoco. Use this credit to buy fuel, and to repair, and take care of vehicles. Only use your SSN and date of birth on these applications for verification purposes. For credit checks and guarantees, make sure to apply using the business’s EIN. But that is only if that’s possible. It isn’t always possible. So, this is because federal law requires SSNs on anything to do with banks. If a card ultimately comes from a bank, then a Social Security number is necessary, no matter what.

Recession 2020 Credit Suite

Learn more here and get started with building business credit with your company’s EIN and not your SSN. Get money even in Recession 2020!

More Universal Credit

Have you been sensibly managing the credit you’ve up to this point? Then move onto service providers like Visa and MasterCard. Only use your Social Security Number and date of birth on these applications for verification purposes. This is a federal law requirement. For credit checks and guarantees, see if you can use your EIN instead.

These are commonly MasterCard credit cards. If you have 14 trade accounts reporting, then these are more likely to be attainable.

Monitor Your Business Credit

Know what is happening with your credit. Make certain it is being reported and address any mistakes as soon as possible. Get in the practice of checking credit reports and digging into the particulars, and not just the scores.

We can help you monitor business credit at Experian and D&B for only $24/month. See: www.creditsuite.com/monitoring. 

At Equifax, you can monitor your account at: www.equifax.com/business/business-credit-monitor-small-business. That will cost about $19.99.

Update Your Information

Update the details if there are inaccuracies or the details is incomplete.

Fix Your Business Credit

So, what’s all this monitoring for? It’s to contest any inaccuracies in your records. Mistakes in your credit report(s) can be fixed. But the CRAs often want you to dispute in a particular way.

Disputes

Disputing credit report inaccuracies typically means you send a paper letter with copies of any proof of payment with it. These are documents like receipts and cancelled checks. Never mail the originals. Always mail copies and retain the original copies.

Fixing credit report inaccuracies also means you specifically spell out any charges you dispute. Make your dispute letter as understandable as possible. Be specific about the issues with your report. Use certified mail to have proof that you sent in your dispute.

Taking the initiative and handling any errors as fast as possible will also help address any small business loan risk factors.

A Word about Building Business Credit

Always use credit sensibly! Don’t borrow beyond what you can pay back. Track balances and deadlines for payments. Paying off promptly and completely does more to boost business credit scores than just about anything else. And beyond that, responsible account management will counter any small business loan risk factors.

Establishing company credit pays. Great business credit scores help a small business get loans. Your loan provider knows the business can pay its debts. They know the business is for real. 

The company’s EIN links to high scores and lending institutions won’t feel the need to call for a personal guarantee.

Getting Through Recession 2020: Takeaways

Business credit is an asset which can help your business in years to come. Learn more here and get started toward establishing company credit. And stop worrying about Recession 2020!

The post Fundability and How it Helps During Recession 2020 appeared first on Credit Suite.