Kirby Smart pleads Georgia's case for College Football Playoff bid after losing SEC title game

For the first time in two years, the Georgia Bulldogs lost a football game Saturday.

The top-ranked, two-time defending national champions were upset in the SEC title game by No. 8 Alabama, creating chaos for the College Football Playoff committee.

Georgia was riding a 29-game winning streak entering Saturday afternoon, and its last loss came Dec. 4, 2021 in the SEC championship against Alabama.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

But that loss didn’t keep the Bulldogs out of the 2021 College Football Playoff. And Georgia got its revenge by beating Alabama in that season’s national championship.

Georgia coach Kirby Smart says Saturday’s loss shouldn’t keep his Bulldogs out this year either. 

“[Committee executive director] Bill Hancock said it’s not the most deserving,” Smart said after the game. “Simply, it’s the best four teams. You’re gonna tell me somebody’s sitting in that committee room and doesn’t think that Georgia team is not one of the best four teams? I don’t know if you’re in the right profession. 

“It’s a really good football team. It’s a really talented football team. It’s a really balanced football team. They have to make that decision, but it’s the best four teams.”

WASHINGTON HOLDS OFF OREGON TO WIN FINAL PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIP, ALL BUT SECURING COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF SPOT

Georgia scored a touchdown on its first possession of the game, but the Crimson Tide earned its seventh conference title in the last decade.

It’s rare a team has made the CFP without winning its conference. But it happened with Ohio State in 2016, Alabama in 2017 and the 2021 Georgia team.

No. 7 Texas remains in the mix with its Big 12 title. At the time of publication, No. 4 Florida State looks like it will finish 13-0 with an ACC title, which still might not even be enough. And who knows what happens if No. 2 Michigan is upset by No. 19 Iowa in the Big Ten championship?

The Bulldogs will find out their fate Sunday afternoon.

Follow the Smart Business Timeline for Credit

Your Smart Business Timeline for Building Business Credit Starts NOW

You’ve heard of business credit, right? It’s credit in the name of a business and not its owner. It is an ongoing process and you must do it proactively. That is, it won’t just happen – you have to make it happen. But did you know that you can hit the ground running and build business credit? You can start your business timeline for credit right now!

Your Business Credit Building Timeline

Any business can build credit, even nonprofits. This timeline is designed to work in order

It takes advantage of the passage of time, so you don’t pursue options that require a certain amount of time in business before that time has elapsed.

Get Started by Getting Fundable

There are a number of things you can do to make your business more fundable. That is, more likely to get funding. Here are some acts you can take which are fast. They will give you quick bang for your buck.

Getting Fundable Goes Beyond Building Business Credit

These tasks also have the added bonus of being helpful in other areas of your business

Building fundability bakes credibility right into your business. This will help you attract prospects, and it will help you convert more of them into customers.

Getting fundable helps your business to get money. And it will do so for years to come. It’s worth the time and effort to get it right the first time, this also saves you any lost ground from having to undo older mistakes.

A lot of these steps will require a phone call to a provider or chatting online. To expedite matters, get someone to help you, so you can get the preliminaries done faster, if absolute speed is your objective.

Start Your Business Credit Building Timeline With a Great Business Name

Does your business, or the business name you want to use,  contain the name of its industry?

That can be problematic if you’re in what is considered to be a risky industry.

Risk is usually defined as:

  • A higher chance of injury on the job and/or
  • Businesses which perform more cash transactions than most other companies

To become more fundable, don’t add the name of a risky industry to your business name

There’s nothing underhanded, immoral, or illegal about doing this

Start Your Business Timeline With Consistent Information

Just copy/paste business information – name, address, and everything else. Why? Because retyping opens up opportunities for error. Differences will be interpreted as fraud by lenders and credit providers. Keep records of where your business name is, so, you can be sure you catch everything. These are records both online and offline.

You want an exact match across the board. This means deciding between spelling a word out or abbreviating. It also means choosing between an ampersand (&) and the word ‘and’. Pick one and stick with it.

Get our business credit building checklist and build business credit the fast and easy way.

Continue Your Business Timeline With Your Business Phone Number

A cell phone or home phone number can harm your business in your quest for fundability. But you can use VOIP (voice over internet protocol). This enables any phone number to ring any device. So you can still use your cell phone.

Toll-free numbers are often best. That is, 800 or an equivalent exchange. You can get a toll-free number fast through a provider like RingCentral. But if your business is purely local, you may be able to go with just a local number.

You also want to have a 411 listing for your business phone number(s). You can get one via ListYourself.net. Lenders and credit providers will be looking for your phone numbers, so make them findable.

Do you really need a separate business phone number? It’s not a complete, 100% dealbreaker if you don’t. But if you don’t want clients to ring your home phone all day long, or have your toddler pick up (!), then a separate business phone number is the best way to go.

Continue Your Business Credit Building Timeline With Your Business Address

Working from a residence can be a problem to lenders and credit providers if your business is a retail establishment like a clothing store. They will check your business address on Google Street View, and you could be denied business credit. A separate address fixes this issue.

A separate business address is also better for your family as no customers will be coming and going in your home, and taking up parking spaces on your street. But what if an office just isn’t in the financial cards right now? A virtual business address is a terrific solution. It can address all these issues.

Virtual Business Addresses

With a virtual business address, you get a deliverable address – not a PO box or UPS box, which would be flagged and generate a denial. This means an actual brick and mortar address.

Some plans give you access to clerical help, conference rooms, mail forwarding, and more.

Three we really like are:

  • Alliance Virtual Offices
  • Da Vinci
  • Regus

But recognize that there are some lenders and credit providers that will not work with virtual addresses.

Continue Your Business Timeline With Your Business Website

Lenders and credit providers will be looking for your business online. It would be a lot better if they got their information directly from you, and not a competitor. As a result, you must have a professional-looking website and email address. Your domain needs to be yourcompany.com or .net if you can get that.

Never use Wix or Weebly, so your domain is yourdomain.com versus yourdomain.wix.com. You will need hosting through a hosting company like GoDaddy or HostGator. You can buy a domain and set up a website. Larger hosting companies will provide services to help if you’re inexperienced with this.

Your Business Email

Your business email address needs to be on the same domain as your website. Generic professional names work well, something like admin@yourwebsite.com or gethelp@yourwebsite.com. Do not use Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, or the like. But don’t worry about checking yet another email address; you can have any email forward to any other email. You can set all of this up at the same time you set up hosting.

Get our business credit building checklist and build business credit the fast and easy way.

Follow Your Business Timeline to The Secretary of State’s Office

The first steps already outlined will probably take you between a month to three months at the least. Now it’s time to move onto the Secretary of State for your state.

The Secretary of State’s office has info on every license needed to run your business

They also have helpful information, like if you need to take continuing education to maintain your license. Processing time varies.

You may need to register your business. It’s possible that the SOS will require that your business name be unique. And they may want corporations to be defined with a term like ‘Inc.’ at the end of their names. For anything you need to pay for at the SOS, be sure to print and keep copies of receipts and forms.

Continue Your Business Credit Building Timeline With Your Business Bank Account

Many business credit providers will insist that you have a business bank account. It must be devoted to your business. This will also help to keep you from accidentally commingling funds. This will make tax time a lot easier. You can apply for a business bank online at many banks, even if the bank has brick and mortar locations.

In particular if you have a personal account with a bank, and you’ve managed it well, you can get a business bank account fast. You can often be approved in as little as 15 minutes online. For some more risky industries like cannabis, it may pay to look online for a bank to work with

Continue Your Business Timeline With Your EIN and Business Entity

Visit the IRS website and get a free EIN for your business. Choose a business entity like corporation, LLC, etc. It’s best to choose a type of corporation. This is to minimize risk and maximize tax benefits. It also creates an entity separate from you, the business owner.

Doing these things at this stage of the game means you’ve got a set business address, phone numbers, etc. So you wouldn’t have to change them later.

Note: a DBA is not a separate business entity.

Proper NAICS Codes

You also choose NAICS codes at IRS.gov. SIC and NAICS codes classify your business and show what it does. The IRS works with NAICS codes. But D&B still works with both. If your business can fit under one or more code, choose the less risky code. There’s nothing illegal, immoral, or underhanded about doing this.

Get our business credit building checklist and build business credit the fast and easy way.

Continue Your Business Credit Building Timeline By Incorporating Your Business

Even incorporating online may take a few business days. In general, you will need Articles of Incorporation. If you want them drafted quickly and correctly, you’ll probably need to hire a corporate attorney to get this done. At the very least, it’s best practices to have a lawyer look over your completed documents.

Get Your D-U-N-S Number

Business Timeline Credit SuiteTo build business credit, you will need a D-U-N-S number from Dun & Bradstreet. A D-U-N-S number + 3 or more reported payment experiences will generate a business credit report with a PAYDEX score. And, therefore, you’ll have built business credit. The free product will send you a D-U-N-S number within around 30 days. Don’t let them upsell you!

By now, you’re about one to two quarters into your business credit building timeline

Continue Your Business Timeline By Establishing Positive Payment Experiences

Lenders consider credit history as one of the chief factors when determining creditworthiness. Making timely payments will demonstrate to anyone looking to do business with your company that you’re low risk. Work with vendors that will report positive payment experiences to the business credit reporting agencies. That way, you won’t waste your time.

Most vendors don’t report positive experiences, but have no problem reporting if you default. But here are three that will report positive experiences:

We don’t just recommend these vendors because they report, we also recommend them because they have great products and service.

Continue Your Business Credit Building Timeline By Working With Vendors Which Report

Even vendors that report may need you to reach a certain minimum before they will report. They may also want some time in business. So check the fine print and call or chat online with a representative to get information, which you know will be correct. And keep in mind, it can take over 30 days for reported purchases to show up on your business credit report. By now, your timeline has stretched to three-quarters of a year to a year, AND you’ve got good business credit!

A Smart Business Timeline for Credit: Takeaways

Following the steps in order assures that you take the shortest distance between the point of startup, and the point of having good business credit. You don’t meander, you get straight there, in a year or less. For more guidance, and to extend your timeline into getting more credit and funding as your business grows, contact us.

The post Follow the Smart Business Timeline for Credit appeared first on Credit Suite.

Get a Recession Business Loan the Smart Way

Get a Recession Business Loan the Reliable Way

Do you know how to get a recession business loan, even if your credit is less than stellar? We break down what’s out there, even if your personal credit is not so hot.

Poor credit does not need to be a dead weight around your company’s proverbial neck. Nevertheless, it does make it more difficult to get a small business loan. For a brand-new small business particularly, your business credit will be poor by definition.

This is because you just will not have the kind of background and seasoning which can make your commercial credit score go up.

And, for this reason, such seasoning would make lenders wish to loan your small business money.

As a result, lending institutions are not going to be too excited about granting your business a company loan. This is because they genuinely have no idea if your small business will be able to pay back the loan.

But you are still, not surprisingly pondering how to subsidize a company with bad credit.

Recession Era Financing

The number of United States banks and thrifts has been decreasing slowly for a quarter of a century. This is from consolidation in the marketplace in addition to deregulation in the 1990s, decreasing obstacles to interstate banking. See: https://www.fundera.com/blog/happened-americas-small-businesses-financial-crisis-six-years-start-crisis-look-back-10-charts

Assets concentrated in ever‐larger financial institutions is problematic for local business proprietors. Big financial institutions are much less likely to make small loans. Economic slumps mean financial institutions come to be more careful with financing. The good news is, business credit does not rely upon financial institutions.

Lenders May Take Out UCC Blanket Liens When You Get a Recession Business Loan

As a result of this, lenders will oftentimes obtain a UCC blanket lien in the event that they do give your company a loan. A UCC blanket lien is a note which is included with your credit report. It says that the creditor has an interest in all of your company’s assets until you pay off the loan completely. For that reason, there might be dire repercussions if you need to default.

Plus, many of these loans will also involve personal guarantees.

What is an Unsecured Recession Business Loan?

Having said that, if a loan does not require a personal guarantee, then your small business is typically going to be looking at unsecured business loans, and those are coupled with high interest rates.

These sorts of business loans can be short term. So, you must pay them back fast. Or they can be receivables financing. Hence this is where you are able to get a loan based on business you anticipate to be coming in. This is because you have pending bills which your own customers have not paid out to you yet. Or, it can be vendor cash advances.

These all come with lending rates which are often 40% or higher.

Get a Recession Business Loan: The Advantages of Unsecured Loans

The main advantage is that you do not need to provide a personal guarantee or allow a UCC blanket lien. If you end up defaulting on the loan, then your house and any other private assets will not be seized, and neither will your inventory. However, this also implies that you normally must have strong revenue or a substantial amount of time in business. Generally speaking, your personal credit must be fair or better.

And that’s even in the absence of a personal guarantee requirement.

Get a Recession Business Loan: The Disadvantages of Unsecured Loans

It’s all about the interest. As reported by Nerd Wallet, Kabbage can deliver an unsecured business loan – yet the APR can possibly be as high as 99%! If you think that’s usury, think again. In Ohio, the usury laws don’t apply to unsecured loans.

Another drawback (although not everyone will see it in that way) is that unsecured business loans often demand that your business has been in operation for at least six months. Or they may require that you have no personal bankruptcies. Another possibility is your business needs to show a minimal yearly revenue amount.

And that means opening your books to your creditor. If any one of these demands has already been met by you, then you possibly won’t see this as a real disadvantage.

Having said that, you can have issues. They can arise if your company is brand-new, and you do not as of yet have a regular clientele and profits. Another problem is if you have had personal bankruptcy problems. Then you may be shut out of your few remaining alternatives.

For all these alternatives, you will usually have a preferable rate of interest (and you will probably have more alternatives, so you can shop around and compare plans) if your credit score is better than bad. If your business can sit tight till your credit – either small business or private or both – develops, then your options will significantly improve, too.

Let’s look at more options.

Learn business loan secrets with our free, sure-fire guide. We can help you get money, even during a recession.

Credit Lines

A credit line, or line of credit (LOC), is an agreement between a borrower and a financial institution or private investor which establishes a maximum loan balance which a borrower can access.

A borrower can access funds from their line of credit any time, as long as they don’t go beyond the maximum set in the agreement, and as long as they meet all other requirements of the finance institution or investor for instance, making prompt payments.

Advantages

Credit lines provide many one-of-a-kind benefits to borrowers including versatility. Borrowers can employ their line of credit and just pay interest on what they use, in contrast to loans where they pay interest on the total amount borrowed. Credit lines can be reused, so as you acquire a balance and pay that balance off, you can use that accessible credit again, and again.

Details

Credit lines are revolving accounts similar to credit cards, and compare to various other types of financing such as installment loans. In many cases, lines of credit are unsecured, much the same as credit cards are. There are some credit lines that are secured, and for this reason easier to get approval for

Credit lines are the most commonly requested loan type in the business world despite the fact that they are popular, legitimate credit lines are uncommon, and challenging to find. Many are also very hard to qualify for calling for good credit, good time in business, and good financials. But there are other credit cards and lines which few people know about that are available for start-ups, bad credit, as well as if you have absolutely no financials.

Get a Recession Business Loan from The SBA

Most credit line types that most business owners picture come from traditional banks and standard banks use SBA loans as their primary loan product for small business owners. This is due to the fact that SBA ensures as much as 90% of the loan in the event of a default. These credit lines are the most challenging to get approval for because you must qualify with SBA and the bank.

Recession Loans for Business Credit Suite

SBA Loans

There are two primary sorts of SBA loans you can normally obtain. One form is CAPLines. There are actually 4 types of CAPLines that can work for your company.

You can also acquire a smaller loan amount more quickly using the SBA Express program. The majority of these programs offer BOTH loans and revolving lines of credit.

From the SBA … “CAPLines is the umbrella program under which SBA helps business owners meet short-term and cyclical working capital needs”. Loan amounts are available up to and including $5 million. Loan qualification requirements are the same as for other SBA programs.

Seasonal Line

This one advances against anticipated inventory and accounts receivables. It was created to assist seasonal businesses. Loan or revolving are on offer.

Contract Line

This one finances the direct labor and material costs of performing assignable contracts. Loan or revolving kinds are available.

Builders Line

This one was made for general contractors or builders constructing or renovating industrial or residential buildings. This line is for pay for direct labor-and material costs, where the building project acts as the collateral. Loan or revolving kinds are on offer.

Working Capital

Borrowers must use the loan proceeds for short term working capital/operating needs. If the proceeds are used to acquire fixed assets, lender must refinance the portion of the line used to acquire the fixed asset into an appropriate term facility no later than 90 days after lender discovers the line was used to finance a fixed asset.

Get a Recession Business Loan from SBA Express

You can get approval for up to and including $350,000. Interest rates can be different, with SBA enabling banks to charge as high as 6.5% over their base rate. Loans above $25,000 will necessitate collateral.

Approval Details

To get approval you’ll need great personal and business credit. Plus the SBA specifies you must not have any blemishes on your report. An acceptable bank score requires you have at least $10,000 in your account over the last 90 days.

You’ll also need a resume showing you have market experience and a well put together business plan. You will need three years of company and personal tax returns, and your business returns should show a profit. And, you’ll need a current balance sheet and income statement, therefore showing you have the finances to pay back the loan.

Collateral

To get approval you’ll need account receivables, but only if you have them. As for the collateral to make up for the risk, often all business assets will function as collateral, and some personal assets which also include your residence. It’s not unheard of to need collateral equivalent to 50% or more of the loan amount. You also need articles of incorporation, business licenses, and contracts with all third parties, and your lease.

Get a Recession Business Loan from Private Investors and Alternative Lenders

Private investors and alternative lenders also offer credit lines. These are a lot easier to get approval for than conventional SBA loans. They also necessitate much less documentation for approval. These alternative SBA credit lines typically need good personal credit for approval.

Unlike with SBA, many of them don’t demand good bank or business credit approval. Nearly all of these sorts of programs require two years’ of tax returns. Tax returns need to show a profit. Rates can vary from 7% or higher and loan amounts extend from $25,000 into the millions. Loan amounts are typically based on the revenues and/or profits on tax returns. At times lenders may want other financials including a profit and loss statement, balance sheets, and income statements.

Learn business loan secrets with our free, sure-fire guide. We can help you get money, even during a recession.

Merchant Cash Advances

Merchant cash advances have rapidly become the most popular way to get financing, in large part due to the easy qualification process. Companies with $10,000 in revenue can get approval, with the business owner having scores as low as 500.

Some sources have now even begun to offer credit lines that go with their loans. You must have at least $10,000 in revenue for approval. You ought to be in business for a minimum of one year, however three years is better. Lenders normally want to see a credit score of 650 or better for approval.

Loan amounts are generally about $20,000. Lenders routinely do pull your business credit, so you need to have some credit already and in some cases lenders will want to see tax returns.

Rates vary, due to the risk for this program, and there usually are not a lot of funding sources who offer it.

Get a Recession Business Loan and Use Stocks/Bonds as Collateral for Financing

You can get financing irrespective of personal credit if you have some form of stocks or bonds. You can also get approval if you have someone wishing to use their stocks or bonds as collateral for financing.

Personal credit quality doesn’t matter as there are no consumer credit requirements for approval. You can get approval for as much as 90% of the value of your stocks or bonds. Rates are usually lower than 2%, making this one of the lowest rate credit lines you’ll ever see. You can still earn interest as you usually do on your stocks and bonds.

Credit Cards and Lines are Very Similar

Credit cards typically offer 0% intro rates for up to two years. This is also very handy for startups in particular. And credit lines let you take out more cash at a much cheaper rate than do cards. These are the principal two differences that will have an effect on you between credit cards and credit line.

Investopedia even says that “lines of credit are potentially useful hybrids of credit cards.”

Both cards and lines are revolving credit. Credit lines are harder to get approval for as card approvals are frequently very quick, many times automated, while line require an in-depth underwriting review. Lines usually offer lower rates, per Bankrate card rates average 13% while lines average 4%.

Unsecured Business Credit Cards

The majority of these cards report to the consumer credit reporting agencies. They all need a personal guarantee from you. You can get approval typically for one card max as they stop approving you when you have two or more inquiries on your report.

Most credit card companies feature business credit cards including Capital One, Chase, and American Express. These have rates similar to consumer rates and limits are also similar.

Some report to the consumer reporting agencies, some report to the business bureaus. Approval requirements are similar to consumer credit card accounts.

Inquiries

Typically, when you apply for a credit card you put an inquiry on your consumer report. When other lenders see these, they will not approve you for more credit for the reason that they aren’t sure how much other new credit you have lately obtained.

So they’ll only approve you if you have less than two inquiries on your report within the last six months. Any more will get you refused.

Get a Recession Business Loan with our Credit Line Hybrid

With this form of business financing, you work with a lender who specializes in securing business credit cards. This is a very uncommon, only a few know about program which few lending sources offer. They can oftentimes get you three to five times the approvals that you can get on your own.

This is due to the fact that they are familiar with the sources to apply for, the order to apply, and can time their applications so the card issuers won’t decline you for the other card inquiries. Individual approvals commonly range from $2,000 – 50,000.

The end result of their services is that you generally get up to five cards that simulate the credit limits of your maximum limit accounts now. Multiple cards generate competition, and this means they will raise your limits, normally within 6 months or less of original approval.

Approvals

Approvals can go up to $150,000 per entity for instance, a corporation. With a hybrid credit line they actually get you three to five business credit cards which report only to the business credit reporting agencies. This is huge, something most lenders don’t offer or promote. Not only will you get money, but you build your business credit as well so within three to four months, you can then use your new company credit to get even more money.

Rates

The lender can also get you very low introductory rates, typically 0% for 6-18 months. You’ll then pay normal rates after that, typically 5-21% APR with 20-25% APR for cash advances. And they’ll also get you the very best cards for points. So this means you get the very best rewards.

Just like with just about anything, there are huge benefits in teaming up with a source who focuses on this area. The results will be much better than if you attempt to go at it alone.

Learn business loan secrets with our free, sure-fire guide. We can help you get money, even during a recession.

Qualifications

You have to have excellent personal credit right now, ideally 685 or better scores, the same as with all business credit cards. You shouldn’t have any negative credit on your report to get approval. And you must also have open revolving credit on your consumer reports right now and you’ll have to have five inquiries or less in the most recent six months reported.

Fees

All lenders in this space charge a 9-15% success based fee and you only pay the cost off of what you secure. Bear in mind, you get a number of added benefits and about three to five times more cash with this program than you could get on your own, which is why there’s a fee, the same as all other lending programs.

You can get approval making use of a guarantor and you can even use several guarantors to get even more money. There are likewise other cards you can get utilizing this same program but these cards only report to the consumer reporting agencies, not the business reporting agencies. They are consumer credit cards versus business credit cards.

Benefits

They supply similar benefits which include 0% intro APRs and five times the amount of approval of a single card but they’re a lot easier to get approval for.

You can get approval with a 650 score and seven inquiries (or fewer) in the most recent six months and you can have a BK on your credit and other derogatory items. These are much easier to get approval for than unsecured business cards.

With all earlier cards above, you should have good consumer credit to get approval but what happens if your personal credit isn’t good, and you don’t have a guarantor?

This is the time when building business credit makes a ton of sense even when you have good personal credit, improving your business credit helps you get even more money, and without having a personal guarantee.

Building Business Credit

Company credit is credit in a business name, in connection with the company’s EIN number, and not the owner’s Social Security Number. When carried out correctly, you can obtain business credit without a personal credit check and without a personal guarantee. This is something all other cards above can’t provide.

You can get three types of business credit cards. First is vendor credit, which offers net 30 terms to launch a business credit profile. Then is retail credit, where you will get credit cards with high limits at most stores.

Next is fleet credit. It’s credit to fuel, service, and maintain business vehicles. And then there’s cash credit, which includes Visa, MasterCard, and American Express cards that you can use anywhere. You can get these with no credit check or guarantee. Limits are normally $5,000 – $10,000 to begin, and can exceed $50,000.

Get a Recession Business Loan: Takeaways

A little patience is a virtue when you want to get a recession business loan.

 

 

The post Get a Recession Business Loan the Smart Way appeared first on Credit Suite.

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A Smart Business Women’s Guide to Small Business Loans: Stock Up on Tools to Help Find Loans for Women to Start Business

A Comprehensive Guide for How to Get Loans for Women to Start Business

Research shows that forty percent of brand-new business owners in the United States are ladies. Furthermore, the variety of businesses owned by women is growing at twice the rate of those possessed by males, according to Kauffman. You may assume this indicates that there are more loans for women to start business. That isn’t the situation however.

As a matter of fact, according to research done by Fundera, 3 out of 4 female local business owners do not even apply for company financing. Those that do are requesting much less than their male counterparts.

Are There Business Loans Just for Women?

Not really.  There are not a lot of specific business loans for women to start business.  There are, however, a ton of resources to help women find loans. Organizations exists that work toward helping women business owners access all their resources and find the funding they need. Also, some loans work better for women business owners than others, and these organizations can help you find the best ones for you.

According to a survey by the Reserve bank, women owned businesses have better chances of getting funding at smaller banks. As a matter of fact, 67% of loans for women to start business are authorized at smaller financial institutions. This compares to only 50% at large banks. Those that have loans with smaller banks are generally more satisfied with the service they receive.

What’s that mean?  It’s probably best for female local business owners to stick to smaller, community banks.  There are other options though.

Hit the jackpot with our best webinar and its trustworthy list of seven vendors who can help you build business credit.

Pack Your Tool Bag

The key is to have a stock of tools you can use to help you find loans for women to start business.  These are sources and resources that every small company proprietor needs in their arsenal to enhance their chances of funding approval, especially women.  Some are even designed specifically to help women, though not all offer funding.  Those that do not, however, definitely know how to help you find and get the funding your need.

The Everyday Essential: Small Business Administration

While the SBA exists for all small company owners, their Office of Women’s Business Ownership exists to help women local business owner particularly. According to SBA.gov, The Office of Women’s Business Ownership’s is here to enable and empower business owners that are women via advocacy, outreach, and education as well as assistance.

They work with firms to make sure the best resources are available to women business owners at all stages. Whether starting a business, looking for a company financing, enhancing a currently developed business, or trying to find government agreements, their mission is to support the female company owner. If that’s you, go here first.

National Female’s Service Council

The NWBC is a federal advising council. It works as a resource of guidance to the government on women’s organization problems. The objective is to encourage campaigns, programs, and policies to sustain females in service at all phases, from startup to growth, and hopefully to expansion and sustainability.

Other Tools to Consider

Along with those firms listed above, these agencies provide support to women owned businesses.

The AWBC runs a network of business centers geared toward women.  These centers labor to help women succeed by offering training, business development, financing, and mentoring opportunities.

This organization, also known as NAFE, sponsors events, provides training, and offers other resources to help female business owners achieve success.

The NAWBO works across the country to offer training, events, and other resources to women owned businesses nationwide.

With more than 300 chapters and 10,000 volunteers, this is the country’s largest network of expert business mentors that volunteer their time.  They match female business owners with mentors, or they can participate in a workshop to help them learn what they need to know to be successful.

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But What About the Loans for Women to Start Business?

Most females carry a bag of some sort, and women business owners need a bag of tricks and tools to help them get the funding they need.  It’s not all black and white, and if the statistics listed earlier are any indication, it isn’t always fair either.  At some point, all businesses need financing, and these tools are designed to help level the playing field with it comes to getting loans for women to start business.

Make use of these resources for assistance and education, and get prepared for what the lenders will want to see.

What Other Tricks Do You Need in Your Bag to Get a Business Loan?

Now, as for traditional business finance, the best thing to do is be prepared. A lot of loan providers need to see the following:

– Company financial statements or income tax return for the past 3 years.

– Personal Income tax return for the past 3 years.

– A professional business strategy.

– They will certainly run a credit history check, and though 680 is standard, minimal credit rating varies by lender.

– Various other info at the discretion of the lender.

– Constantly ask about the application process on the front end so you can have any type of extra documents prepared.

The more of this you have prepped to go, the faster and smoother the process should run. This info is typical of what a standard loan provider may ask for. There are non-traditional lenders that may call for more, or less, info. You would certainly be hard pushed to find a typical lender that does not need a personal credit history check, but there are other choices.

The Secret Weapon: Business Credit

Business credit is a vital secret weapon to have in your bag of tools. There are choices for funding that count on your business credit rating as opposed to your individual credit score. What is a business credit score? It is like your personal credit, except it is based only on the credit history of your company. It is not influenced by your individual credit report. Also, your personal history is not impacted by anything that is reporting on your business credit history.

This is beneficial for a few reasons. First, you can access funding for your business despite an inadequate credit rating. That one is obvious. What some do not recognize is, even if you pay on time, utilizing your personal credit history for company purchases can be detrimental.

That is because organization transactions are, naturally, big. Individual credit limits are typically much lower than company credit limits. Due to this, business transactions can max out individual credit scores rapidly. Consistently bringing the balances close to your credit limits negatively impacts your debt- to- credit ratio. That, in turn, lowers your credit score even if you are making consistent, on-time payments.

How to Get Business Credit: The Secret to the Weapon

Business credit opens doors to various other choices if the conventional route isn’t working out for some reason. If you have a good company credit report, your business is fundable.

The very first step in developing a business credit report is to ensure your company is recognizable as an entity separate from yourself. It needs to stand on its very own. You have to incorporate instead of operating as a sole proprietorship or partnership. You can organize as an s-corp, LLC, or corporation. They each have their own advantages and costs, but for the purposes of establishing business credit, they work similarly.

Next, you will need to take a few other actions to lay the structure for a business credit rating.

– Obtain a separate company address and also telephone number. Ensure the contact number is via a toll-free exchange, and list both in the directories under the business name.

– Get an EIN. This is a number that identifies your business so you do not need to connect it with your Social Security Number. Obtain one completely free at IRS.gov.

– Get a DUNS number from Dun & Bradstreet. It’s cost-free on their web site, but beware. They will attempt to offer you a bunch of things you do not require. Put on your blinders and power through. All you need is the free number.

– Open a specialized company checking account. Take care to run all organization transactions through this account.

– Set up a professional web site and also committed business e-mail address. The email address needs to have the same URL as the website, and it must not be from a cost-free e-mail service. Gmail and Yahoo will not work right here.

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Forging the Weapon

Once you have the foundation for a business credit report, you can begin forging your business credit score. This is performed in layers, or tiers. For example, the initial tier is the vendor credit tier. This is the beginning point because these vendors will extend net 30 terms without a credit score. Then, they will report your payments to the business credit reporting agencies. This is exactly how you start to construct a company credit score without involving your personal credit. By applying with your EIN as opposed to your social security number, you keep your personal name out of the formula entirely.

How do you find these starter vendors?  There are loads of vendors that will work with you in this tier. A few of the easiest to get started with are here. They each offer products that pretty much any business can use on a regular basis, so it’s simple to open an account and begin doing business with them.

After you have 5 or so accounts reporting from the vendor credit tier, you can apply for business credit cards from the retail credit tier. These are store cards from retailers such as Best Buy, Amazon, and Office Depot.

Get 10 or more of these reporting and you can apply to cards in the fleet credit tier. Cards from companies like Fuelman and Shell are in this tier. They can be used for automobile maintenance and gasoline purchases.

After that comes the cash credit tier. Once you have enough accounts reporting on time payments from these three tiers, you can apply for general business cards from companies like MasterCard, Visa, and American Express. At this point, your business credit is pretty well established, and it is not attached to your personal credit in any way.

Wielding the Weapon

So, say you have used every tool in your box and you still come up short.  What then?  That’s when you whip out this secret weapon you forged known as business credit.  If you have followed the steps properly and worked through all the tiers, you have business credit cards you can use to fund your business. You also now have other options.

You can use that business credit to help improve terms and interest rates on traditional loans.  They may still look at business credit, but stellar business credit can only help, not hurt, when it comes to loans for women to start business.

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In addition, a strong business credit score can help you out when it comes to loans from non-traditional lenders.   They can help you with approval and improve your terms and rates.  Sometimes alternative lenders will even accept a business score in place of a personal credit score.

Wield Your Weapon Wisely

Even though loans for women to start business specifically are not really a thing, there are options to make the process easier women.  A lot of resources are available to help women business owners be successful and find the funding they need.  In addition, the challenges female business owners face can be mitigated by solid preparation and education.

Having a strong business credit score is important too. This will open up a world of funding options that would not be available otherwise. Business credit cards and products from non-traditional lenders are a valid option if you find yourself facing issues. Do not be afraid to jump into the fire and forge that business credit weapon.  Once you have it, do not be afraid to use it.  Not only can it tear down your funding foes, but it can also serve as a key to open the doors to the kingdom.

 

 

 

The post A Smart Business Women’s Guide to Small Business Loans: Stock Up on Tools to Help Find Loans for Women to Start Business appeared first on Credit Suite.