I am a small business owner in the start-up phase. I keep getting emails about 'building business credit' services where you pay a fee to a 'business coach' of sorts and they help your business build/obtain credit/credit lines that are in the name of your business.

Currently, we had planned to fund our business with some savings and for credit, planned to use a personal credit line, but I'm not sure if that is a good idea. But then again, paying $400 bucks and a monthly service fee to a company to help me build my business credit doesn't sound that smart either.

Anyone out there with experience with one of these companies, or someone can direct me to articles or info about this topic?

Thanks for your input. Slow and steady wins the race, right?

I found this online from another forum. I think the information will prove useful to many people.

Establishing business credit is tough, especially for a new business. But remember: It CAN be done, and it's easier than you think. Follow these steps, and you'll be on your way to an excellent credit profile.

Here is what I have learned:

~Set up a Corp business. Smart to protect yourself and the only type of business that allows you to keep your business credit and personal credit seperate. LLCs and Sole are okay for contract work or property investment, but you still should get a Corp to manage them.

~Once you get your EIN, through registrastion, set up your business phone. You will need to make sure it is at an address not the same as your home (because it is not looked upon favorably by the lending world) and the phone will need to be registered in the 411 directory. Quite a few have had success with calling the local phone company and getting a call forwarding number. It is a business number that automatically forwards to any desired phone. Make sure it will list with 411 before signing up however.

~After receiving your first phone bill, go to www.staples.com and fax in copy of application along with copy of phone bill to apply for business credit. Use professional letterhead for coversheet. You should receive the standard $750 credit line with no personal guarentee (herein referred to as "PG").

~Also during this time go to www.dnb.com and register your business to receive a D&B number. It will take 30-40 days to receive it in the mail. If you want to establish business credit sooner, you can pay for the credit builder ($399), but it's not required. After you have at least 5 business accounts reporting, you'll receive a paydex rating (similiar to FICO for personal credit).

*REMEMBER - a paydex score will only take into account your payment history. Unlike personal credit, this is counted in days. For example, if you pay your invoices 14 days late, it will be reported as such. If you pay your account off before the statement or invoice comes, it will be reported as such. The bottom line: Pay your invoices on time, and you will get a better paydex score.

~Set up the following business accounts, and make at least one purchase, you want to pay this off BEFORE the first statement hits:

*1. UPS - www.ups.com

2. FedEx CONTACT Revenue Services Department 1-800-622-1147 press 4 then 1

3. Barnes & Noble CONTACT Purchase order department 1-212-414-6000

4. Quill Corporation 100 So Schelter Lincolnshire, IL 60069 CONTACT Credit Department 1-800-634-3090

*5. Viking 8200 East 32nd St No. Wichitas, KS 67226 CONTACT Credit Department 1-888-454-5457

6. Rapid Forms 301 Grove Rd Thorofare, NJ 08086 CONTACT Billing Departement 1-800-257-5287

*7. Nebs - www.nebs.com

*11. Office Depot www.officedepot.com Apply online

(*- Really easy to get)

~Need a cell phone? Once you have a EIN and D&B# apply for a business account. Usually T-Mobile is the easiest to get credit with, but I've heard that Sprint, Cingular, and Verizon are easy to get as well. Nextel? Good phone, but you have to jump through a lot of hoops, and you usually have to put down a deposit.

~If you have at least 30-45 days to use, the following companies automatically report to D& B creating your business file:

-FedEx

-UPS

-Staples

-Viking

-Nebs

-Office Depot

~Once you have a paydex score of 75+, you can apply for Lines of Credit (herein referred to as "LOC") or business Credit Cards without any sort of Personal Guarantee.

I'm curious to know if you have a specific need? If so, I may be able to help you.
If you're willing to give more details about your business and your credit needs I'd be happy to offer my assistance.

Lisa - Thank you so much!! That was a fantastic and very, very helpful step-by-step. I plan to print it out and follow it, once i get my business set up.

Donna - Thank you for your offer. However, I do not have a specific need at this time. We plan to initially fund with savings, and then eventually open a business line of credit once we need to expand.