As we celebrate the New Year let’s take some time to review a few key business credit building strategies that can put your company on the path to creditworthiness. I’m sure there have been plenty of lessons that you’ve learned from in the past twelve months but what steps are you planning to take in 2011?

Here are my top twenty business credit building tips:

Tip #1

Get listed with all three major business credit reporting agencies – This is a major factor for a lender or supplier to determine the creditworthiness of your company without relying on your personal credit.

Tip #2

Obtain a merchant line of credit – An excellent source of cash credit that does not require a personal credit check, guarantee, or collateral since the credit line is determined by your monthly credit card transactions.

Tip #3

Develop a well written business plan – When it comes to bank financing a well written plan can help support a loan request.

Tip#4

Monitor, protect, and manage your business credit files – It’s one thing to build a good company credit rating but it’s vital that you also protect and maintain it too.

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Tip #5

Establish a ‘low 5′ bank rating – Even though bank credit is different from business credit they both play an integral role in your company’s ability to secure financing. A healthy balance rating and bank rating can play a positive role in a lender’s decision making process.

Tip #6

Make business purchases with suppliers and creditors that report – If your good payment history with existing suppliers is not being reported how can you expect to show that you’re a creditworthy company?

Tip #7

Add positive trade references to your company profile – This is a solution for non reporting suppliers but does require that your company pay a small fee. Dun and Bradstreet is currently the only business credit bureau that allows you to submit trade references.

Tip #8

Become a data furnisher with a business credit bureau – Extending credit and supplying payment data to the bureaus can benefit your business in multiple ways including increased product/service sales by as much as 50%.

Tip #9

Maximize your personal and business credit scores – Strong personal and business credit ratings will open you up to many more financing opportunities. More choices simply give you much more leverage.

Tip #10

Build a strong diversity of credit accounts – A healthy blend of credit further shows that your business can handle different types of financing programs.

In 2011 your business will at one point require an influx of cash in order to cover certain business expenses. The worst mistake you can make is not preparing ahead of time and instead seeking funding when your business needs it most. Always remember that lenders prefer to extend credit to companies that don’t need the capital.

Instead of relying on your personal credit scores every time your company needs financing, you can use your business’ credit rating to secure the financing you need with even more favorable terms and lower interest rates. Make 2011 your year for business credit building!

Credit tips can help you make your credit score a good one. This means that you can get better rates on loans, and that you’ll look more responsible to prospective landlords and employers. Raising your score is really not that hard if you follow a few everyday tips. Here are just three that will help you get started on building a stronger credit profile.

First, only use your credit card when you know you can pay it off at the end of the month. A credit card shouldn’t be a way to make ends meet. If it is, then you need to cut back on your lifestyle by moving into a smaller home or apartment, cutting out unnecessary shopping trips, or even shopping at a discount grocery store.

If you use a credit card just for gas or other minor purchases and pay it off at the end of the month, you’ll have a low debt to credit ratio. This means that you won’t be carrying a big balance on your credit cards, and this can be very helpful for your overall credit score.

Second, make more than the minimum payments on your loans whenever possible. This is especially true of revolving debts like credit cards and lines of credit or home equity loans. These things need to be kept with the smallest possible balance. To do this, you simply need to pay as much as you can on them each month, at least until you’re carrying less than a 50% balance. This will seriously help your credit score. Plus, it can eventually mean that you have to pay lower monthly payments, which can free up some serious cash in your monthly budget.

Third, make sure that you’re paying all of your bills on time. Any organization from your utility company to your cell phone provider can report late and unpaid bills to the credit reporting bureaus. These are major strikes against you, especially if you already have a high credit score.

If you need to, set up automatic bill pay for all your bills so that you don’t have to worry about missing due dates. If you have trouble making payments on time because of the timing of your bills and paychecks, call your creditors and utilities companies. Many times they’ll work with you to create a new due date. Another option is to scrape together the cash to pay one month ahead at some point, then you can pay when your paycheck gets in without being late.