On the previous post I reviewed two business credit builder products at Dun & Bradstreet that were great for start-ups and companies that had a few trade experiences they wanted to add to their credit profile. In this post I’m going to cover two more advanced products that have received a makeover that’s definitely worth mentioning.
Now remember that obtaining a DUNs number does not cost anything to your company but receiving your number can take over 30 days if you choose the free route. However, you can obtain your DUNs number in less than 24 hours by either purchasing one of its business credit builder programs that I’ve reviewed or if you are a government contractor, government vendor, or grant recipient. (Full disclosure: AllBusiness.com is a wholly owned subsidiary of D&B.)
Let’s take a look at these business credit solutions and how they can help build small business credit for your company.
DNBi Self Monitor Plus Inquiries
Price $799
This product is similar to the DNBi Self Monitor Basic except that it allows you to submit up to 24 references over a period of 3 months for a total of 12 payment experiences to be added. The basic version allows you only a total of 4 payment experiences to be added. They provide this extra cushion just in case they are unable to contact one of your references for payment experience verification.
In addition you have the ability to track the inquiries that others are making into your business credit file. This is a great way to make sure you are up to speed on the latest information that vendors, banks, suppliers and customers are seeing and an effective way to determine if your business is generating the positive interest it needs in the marketplace.
If you choose to purchase this product then most likely they will waive the DUNs File Creator fee so don’t hesitate to request it. This product is ideal for you if you already have existing trade references that you want to add plus closely monitor the activity and inquiries on your file.
Some other product features include:
- Key D&B scores & ratings including D&B Rating, Financial Stress Score, Commercial Credit Score and Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating.
- Comprehensive overview of payment history including D&B’s PAYDEX
- D&B’s Credit Limit Recommendation
- Financial performance including Key business ratios that measure financial strength.
- An overview of public filings including Suits, Liens, Judgments and UCC filings.
- Notification (alerts) when significant changes occur within your credit file.
- Easy-to-use web-based interface
* Tip – there are business credit builder companies like the Business Credit Insiders Circle that provide access to vendors, suppliers, and companies that report to DNB for building small business credit.
DNBi Self Monitor Premium
Price $1,399
This product is the grand daddy of DNBs business credit solutions. In my opinion it’s a big upgrade to DNBi Self Monitor Plus Inquiries product because it allows you to submit up to 200 references over a period of 6 months for a total of 100 payment experiences to be added. The ‘Plus Inquiries’ version allows a total of 12 payment experiences to be added. That’s 88 additional references you can add with this product and a six month time frame to do it.
Some of my members who have been in business for years have just now realized they needed to build business credit history found this product to be a no brainer. Since they already had long standing relationships with many companies they quickly had the ability to add dozens of trade experiences to their files and create a paydex score of 80 in a matter of weeks!
*Tip – there are companies like BCIC that report your payments to your Dun & Bradstreet Business Credit Report. Not only do they give you access to business training,vendors, suppliers, and companies that report to the business credit bureaus but they also help you build business credit history too!
If you decide to purchase one of these DNB products or need some guidance regarding the status of your DNB report then call Dun & Bradstreet at 866-203-3151.
I hope that you found these product reviews helpful to you so you can get started building small business credit for your company.
Marco is founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle which helps small business owners establish business credit.
You may contact Marco directly at: ceo@startbusinesscredit.com
Follow Marco on Twitter @MarcoCarbajo and read more of his insights on building small business credit.
