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How Business Credit Card Funding Benefits You

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Business Credit Card Funding

In today’s post we’re going to cover everything you need to know about business credit card funding. This funding program is by far one of the easiest and fastest ways to obtain cash credit for a startup or existing business. business credit card funding

That’s quite a bold statement but we’re going to back up that claim in this post. Where else can you get up to $150k in unsecured credit for a business with no documentation, no personal credit reporting, plus build your business credit reports.

If you’re new to this type of funding let’s first cover what business credit card funding is. Business credit card funding is a service that acquires business credit cards under the name of the business, using the personal guarantee of the applicant.

The business credit cards obtained under our funding program only report to the business credit reporting agencies. This enables you to get access to working capital, establish a credit file for the business while protecting your personal credit at the same time.

So, let’s start with the first question most people ask.

Who is Business Credit Card Funding For?

If you answer ‘yes’ to any of the following, business credit card funding may be for you.

  • Do you want to separate your business and personal expenses?
  • Do you want access to working capital at any time, to use anywhere and for any business purpose?
  • Do you want to protect your personal credit?
  • Do you want to build your business credit?
  • Do you want access to revolving sources of cash & credit?

At the end of the day, whether you’re a startup or existing business, this funding is a fast, easy and truly hassle-free way to get access to business lines of credit.
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Capital One Spark Cash for Business Review

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Capital One Spark Cash for Business Review

Capital One Spark Cash for Business Review

As you know I’m a big advocate for getting business credit cards that only report to the business credit reporting agencies. That’s why I’m so passionate about our Unsecured Business Credit Lines program because it’s specifically designed to help you acquire 4-5 business credit cards that report only to the business credit agencies not personal credit.

However, another type of card that is important for you to be knowledgeable about are business credit cards that build your business credit but also report to your personal credit as well.

In today’s post, we are going to review one of those types of business credit cards that reports to both personal and business credit reporting agencies: The Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business card.

The Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business card is one of the best and easiest business rewards credit card programs out there.  In a nutshell, if you want to earn money back on your business expenses then this card may be a card worth checking into to.

What first got my attention is the incentive for opening this card. You get a welcome offer of $500 if you spend $4,500 in the first three months. But what was even more exciting was the 2% cash back on every dollar you spend.

So, in the first 3 months of having this card you can get a total of $590 cash back from the $4,500 spent. A $500 bonus + $90 cash back reward. Not bad at all!
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Before You Get a Business Credit Card Know These 5 Factors

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Get a Business Credit Card

Should you get a business credit card?get a business credit card

Did you know using a personal credit card for your business and putting personal expenses on it is a formula for a bookkeeping disaster?

Unfortunately, statistics show that of the 65% of small businesses using credit cards, only 50% of those cards are in the company’s name.

When it comes to keeping personal and business expenses separate, using a business credit card is by far one of the best tools. “There are plenty of benefits to using a business credit card versus a personal credit card for your small business,” says Alison Rouse, a spokeswoman for Capital One. “You’ll also have access to business-specific benefits, such as employee cards and spending controls, and specialty services tailored to meet small businesses’ needs.”
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Are Business Charge Cards A Better Alternative to Business Credit Cards?

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Business Charge Card 

Business Charge Card

 

Even though business credit cards allow you to make purchases and carry a balance from one billing cycle to the next the disadvantage of having to pay interest on that balance can become pretty costly.

 Another kind of credit card for your business that may be a better alternative is the business charge card.

 A business charge card is a specific kind of credit card that has all the convenience of a credit card without the costly interest. The balance on a charge card account must be paid in full when the statement is received and cannot be rolled over from one billing cycle to the next like a credit card. Because you can’t carry a balance, a charge card doesn’t have a periodic or annual percentage rate, so there is no rate for a charge card issuer to disclose.

 The specific impact to your business credit bureau is significant because charge cards will not allow you to incur a revolving debt like a credit card will. The larger the balances you carry on your business credit cards the more harm it can cause in your overall debt to credit utilization.

 Here is a list of several business charge cards available in the marketplace:

  • OPEN from American Express offers business card members the OPEN Savings program designed for companies with 100 or fewer employees. Some perks include 5 percent to 20 percent discounts on shipping, travel and business services.
  • Diners Club International has been a leading charge card for business travelers since the 1950s. Features include club rewards, cash access, airport lounge program, a 24-hour emergency travel hotline and a rental-car insurance program.
  • Universal Air Travel Plan is accepted by over 250 airlines and thousands of travel agencies for air travel, service fees and management fees. It’s best for companies that want to restrict charging to airline-related expenses.
  • The American Express Corporate Meeting Card allows all event-related expenses to be charged centrally, so hotel rooms, meals, transportation, and so on, all go on a single bill.

 While using a business charge card makes much more sense than a business credit card there several other important things to consider.

First, a business charge card should only report your payment experience to the business credit bureaus and not your personal credit files. This prevents you from putting your personal credit scores at risk every time your company makes a purchase using your company charge card.

Secondly, some charge cards like Diners Club International will self contain your payment experience and will only report to the business credit bureaus if your account becomes delinquent. While this is good for protecting your personal credit scores it does not help your business credit file because they do not report your positive payment history.

Keep this in mind if you decide to start shopping around for a new business charge card that does not impact your personal credit. Pay special attention to the fine print and don’t hesitate to call and ask questions pertaining to how your payment experience is reported.

One of my favorite types of charge cards is ones that base their approval solely on your business’s credit worthiness. This type of card is the best of both worlds! Once approved your payment history reports solely on your business credit and there is no personal guarantee keeping the liability strictly tied to your business.

I encourage you to be as proactive as possible by selecting business charge cards that report to the business credit bureaus. Don’t hesitate to inquire with vendors, suppliers, and leasing companies how they report your payment experience with them as well. Bottom line it’s smart business to use business charge cards in order to save thousands of dollars in interest and build business credit history.

 

To Your Success!

Marco Carbajo

About the Author

Marco Picture 2009 Super Small pic

Marco Carbajo is a business credit specialist, author, speaker, and founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle. Want to learn more about how you can start business credit? Become a member and gain access to Marco’s business credit secrets, sources, and information on how to obtain unlimited financing for your business without a personal guarantee? Claim his FREE ‘Eight Steps to Ultimate Business Credit without a Personal Guarantee’ audio seminar ($597 Value), for a limited time by submitting your name and email below =>

Top 10 Credit Reporting Agencies Every Business Owner Should Know

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business-credit-reportI was excited to write this particular post because there is such a tremendous lack of awareness in the entrepreneur and small business community surrounding the business credit industry.

I have assembled my ‘Top 10 Credit Reporting Agencies Every Business Owner Should Know’ in order to full educate the entrepreneur and small business community on what’s available in the marketplace to grow and maintain their credit files.

While the majority of consumers are fully aware of the three main consumer credit reporting agencies known as Equifax, Transunion, and Experian there are a few that realize that there are six other separate business credit reporting agencies that specifically collect data on businesses. 

The tenth reporting agency is extremely important as it has to do with you’re ability to open up a checking account with a financial institution. Banks use a reporting agency known as ChexSystems which is a network comprised of member Financial Institutions that regularly contribute information on mishandled checking and savings accounts to a central location.

Here are a few examples of the difference between a personal credit rating and business credit rating.

A personal credit score is based only on credit history whereas a credit rating for a business takes into consideration other factors like company size as determined by assets and number of employees.

Also a personal credit score is based on financial information provided by credit card companies, retail stores, and financial institutions whereas a business credit report and rating is determined by information supplied by the business owner and gathered from vendors, suppliers, and other trade accounts.

For this reason, potential lenders may be different from one another in their evaluation of a business’ credit history by emphasizing certain qualifications more than others.

Here are the Top Business Credit Reporting Agencies Every Entrepreneur Should Know About

Dun and Bradstreet (D&B)

D&B is the primary business credit reporting agency. For years, D&B has offered a variety of ratings tools that can be used to determine whether to engage in business with a particular company and to determine loan terms. For a business to get listed with this agency it needs to first obtain a DUNS Number. The most commonly used business credit score for vendors to determine a businesses’ credit worthiness is based off of D&B’s Paydex score.

Equifax Small Business Enterprise

Equifax, one of the three primary consumer credit rating agencies, also provides business credit evaluations for over 22,000,000 small businesses and corporations. Equifax has developed its own business credit score known as the Small Business Credit Risk ScoreTM. This evaluation is based on a combination of reported financial transactions, including banking, leases, trade accounts, public records, as well as the demographics of the business.

The Financial Services Credit Risk ScoreTM assigns a score from 101-992 with the highest score indicating the lowest risk of delinquency and the lowest score indicating the highest risk of delinquency.

The Suppliers Credit Risk ScoreTM assigns a score from 101-816 with the highest score indicating the lowest risk of delinquency and the lowest score indicating the highest risk of delinquency. These scores also include explanations of why a particular business earned that score based on a series of reason codes provided in the report.

Experian SmartBusinessReportsTM

Experian is another one of the three primary consumer credit rating agencies who provides business credit evaluations. Unlike D&B and Equifax, Experian’s SmartBusinessReportsTM doesn’t assign a business credit score. Given this information, it would be up to the lender to interpret the risk associated with this type of payment history.

Credit.net

Credit.net is a division of InfoUSA® that generates credit reports on approximately 15,000,000 businesses. There are 6,000,000 of the reports in their database that have been completed on small businesses with four employees or less. The credit analysis provided by Credit.net relies on four criteria: years in business, number of employees, public records, and stability within the industry. Its business credit score is a grading system from A through C (70-100) and is awarded as an evaluation of the company’s credit history.

AccurintTMBusiness

This is a new business that is a combination of forces between The Better Business Bureau (BBB) and LexisNexis, one of the leading providers of business services and information. AccurintRBusiness is like Experian in that they provide public and business profile information, including credit history based on payment patterns of small, medium, and large companies. This company provides a payment history only with no type of unique business credit scoring system.

ClientChecker

This is a credit reporting bureau that started in 2003 and specifically targets small businesses, freelance professionals, and contractors seeking information to help them determine which other businesses they should do business with. Rather than providing a fixed business credit score, ClientChecker compiles information based on feedback from its members.

*Another business credit reporting agency worth mentioning is Paynet

Paynet is the premier provider of risk management tools and market insight to the commercial credit industry, collecting real-time loan information from more than 200 leading U.S. lenders.

The company’s proprietary database is the richest and largest collection of commercial loans and leases, consisting of more than 14 million current and historic contracts worth $645 billion.

These business credit reporting agencies allow a business to establish its own credit profile, scores, and payment history. The challenge for entrepreneurs and small business owners is realizing that a business credit file will not be established unless the file is initially set up and activated by the business owner.

I encourage all entrepreneurs and small business owners to separate your personal credit from your business credit and position your business for unlimited financing potential.

Looking to build your business credit? Become a member of my Business Credit Insiders Circle and gain access to a proven step-by-step business credit building system. A system that provides you access to vendor lines of credit, fleet cards, business credit cards with and without a PG, funding sources and lenders that report to all the major business credit bureaus. Submit your name and email below for details and receive a free business credit building audio seminar ($597 value) =>

To Your Success In Business and in Life!

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About the author

Marco CarbajoMarco Carbajo is a business credit expert, author, speaker, and founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle. He is a business credit blogger for Dun and Bradstreet Credibility Corp, the SBA.gov Community, About.com and All Business.com. His articles and blog; Business Credit Blogger.com,  have been featured in ‘Fox Small Business’,’American Express Small Business’, ‘Business Week’, ‘The Washington Post’, ‘The New York Times’, ‘The San Francisco Tribune’,‘Alltop’, and ‘Entrepreneur Connect’.

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