EP45 - The Steps to Building a Strong Business Credit Profile with Stephen Wible
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I'm still too small for a business credit...
I don't have enough sales yet...
I don't want to take too much debt...
Joining us in this episode of the FastTrack Your Fashion Brand Podcast is Stephen Wible, the OG Business Credit connoisseur. He was a Marine Corps Veteran, real estate developer, and now the director of business development for Credit Suite. Stephen is someone who has invaluable experience and wisdom to share. He has a checklist of crucial steps that will help you find the resources for your own business launch. Finances can be such a scary topic to approach, but it’s one we all need in order to progress in our business dreams!
I love how Stephen was very much willing to answer all my questions! From the seemingly silly ones to the high level nitty gritty ones—Stephen was all out to provide enlightenment as to what we needed to get our businesses ready to go! I'm so thankful that we got to have this conversation and debunk several myths behind opening up business accounts, the difference between a line of credit and vendor credit, along with many other business topics. If you're at the stage of your fashion business where you look for more ways to finance your orders, you can't afford to miss this episode!
Click the image below to get Stephen's FREE Step-by-Step Guide to Get Business Credit & Grow Your Business!
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL HEAR ABOUT
- The difference between personal credit and business credit
- What's preventing you from getting the loan/credit you need
- What you need in your business profile
- Business planning basics
- Shifting your mindset
What’s the Difference Between My Personal Credit and Business Credit?
The real difference between personal and business credit is something Stephen breaks down for us by defining two differences.
- Business credit is not tied to your personal credit. Business credit doesn’t impact your credit score at all, which is already a huge weight off your shoulders when you’re building a business and are strapped for cash!
- The limits are 10-100x higher than personal credit limits. That means, money, money, money! This gives you some options for financial planning that may arise, like all the upfront expenses in working with purchase orders, international production, or labor costs. A line of credit can look like a lot of different things, this includes vendor credit, labor credit, and materials you may need to source.
What Am I Missing in My Business Profile?
Starting a business is not an easy task, there are so many little details that all of us are trying to remember and maintain as the business grows. Luckily, Stephen is here to lay out some of the common mistakes that new businesses make when applying for SBA loans and how to have a complete Business Profile.
- Email - They’re important as lenders and vendors are looking for legitimacy, something like an information email that can be linked back to you. Although this seems like a no brainer, Stephen reminded me how crucial it is to have a professional business email where lenders can find you.
- Website - You don’t need a crazy beautiful website, honestly just a URL with a clean webpage can do the trick! Again, this is all about establishing legitimacy! This is because most of the time lenders aren’t even looking at your application. They are using AI to check their boxes on what makes you a legitimate business, and part of that check list is having a URL.
- Phone Number - Remember landlines? The curly cords that reached hundreds of feet? Well we substituted those for cellphones years ago, but that doesn’t mean you should give out your cellphone number on your website. What you want is something like Google Voice, but a local number you can buy and own that can connect you to the 411 national database. Because once you’re in that database, you’re GOLDEN, and that AI we were talking about earlier, can identify you as a legitimate business.
These are a few simple but easy ways to make sure your profile is seen by lenders and vendors as you start your business profile and application journey!
Business Basics, What is a Business Plan?
“What's in a name?” according to Stephen it's a lot!
There are certain “buzzwords” that are considered “high risk” when it comes to naming your business. That is why making sure that your business name doesn’t have any kind of high risk wording is super important when it comes to registering your business name.
The next step in the process is ensuring that all your information is congruent! Registering a name with the IRS first doesn’t necessarily secure your business name, because someone could already own it. Registering your name with the Secretary of State FIRST is how you can avoid having different names and confusing lenders.
Then you want to go get a DUNS Number. This is like a social security number for your business. This number is FREE, so don’t fall into any marketing traps that make you pay for it! After you get all these, then you need to secure yourself a bank account. This bank account will be your business account--NOT your personal account.
Stephen and I discussed the importance of keeping a business account because according to lenders who pull your bank credit score, this will share when you open your bank account and what your average balance is. But the most important is when you opened the account. Because if you opened your account 3 years after you registered your name this is a huge red flag to lenders because, according to them, when you open your bank account is when you started your business.
All of these steps and more are intimidating but so important for how to have the best experience in creating your business plan and future business strategy!
EPISODE BREAKDOWN
10:42-12:30 - Introducing Stephen Wible
12:35-14:17 - Personal Credit Vs. Business Credit
14:20-21:15 - What is a Business Profile?
21:20-28:10 - Business Planning
28:13-42:45 - Shifting Your Mindset
42:48-48:13 - Recap!
CONNECT WITH ME
INSTAGRAM: @nicole_di_rocco
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/nicoledirocco
PODCAST FB GROUP: www.facebook.com/groups/fasttrackyourfashionbrandpodcast
WEBSITE: www.fashionbizmentor.com
SUBMIT YOUR FASHION BIZ QUESTIONS: www.fashionbizmentor.com/breakthrough-coaching
SEE MY DESIGNS: www.mynicolita.com
THE SOLD OUT CHECKLIST FREE DOWNLOAD: https://bit.ly/FASHIONCHECKLIST
CONNECT WITH GUEST
LINKEDIN: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwible/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/
WEBSITE: www.creditsuite.com
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