Credit policies are like a plant grown from a seed. They need regular review and attention just like the plants in your garden to really bloom. A credit policy is simply a consistent guideline to follow when decisioning accounts, reviewing accounts, collecting and setting terms. A couple of key items to consider in reviewing [...]
In prior posts I have discussed Experian’s data model and how the data model allows us to keep our commercial file up-to-date and accurate. Today, I’ll explain how we leverage our data assets and technology infrastructure to make Corporate Hierarchy Linkage available to customers. I’m sure no one will be surprised to hear me say [...]
In the past month there have been two Google services that I’ve been keeping an eye on. First was Google+. I’m happy to say that I’m one of the 18 million users on the newest social media network. The first week it came out, I was asking everyone I knew for an invite! I was [...]
You may be familiar with your personal credit score, but do you know what factors drive a business credit score? The top three are trade, trade, and more trade information. You see, the number and percentage of trade credit lines that are considered delinquent or severely delinquent can have a major impact on your business’ [...]
We’re all aware of the increasingly bold moves fraudsters take to steal personal identities to secure jobs, cars, homes and more—but what about business-to-business fraud? As a small business owner, how much thought do you give to fraud protection for your business? You have a lot to fear and even more to lose if you [...]
I usually like to schedule my annual physical around my birthday. It’s a natural reminder to visit my physician to identify any potential issues or suggestions of how I can improve my health. Like an annual physical, benchmarking your portfolio on a regular basis is a great way to identify both risks and opportunities for [...]
Ok, that is a loaded question. We can take a look at many things, and say, “yea, with all the bad news coming out, of course small business owners are losing confidence”. The NFIB confirms that with their latest report. Reasons cited? What else….inflation fears brought on by higher gas prices, and high unemployment. But wait [...]
Which comes first – BizSource or TrueSearch? It’s a bit like the chicken and the egg – without one you can’t have the other. BizSource is the repository where all the information coming into Experian’s commercial database is housed. This repository holds the information that’s essential for creating the credit story – trade payment, public [...]
Last time, I wrote about the importance of understanding your portfolio’s exposure. Let’s get a little more specific and evaluate things from a disaster perspective. FEMA reported that there were 81 declared disasters in the U.S. last year. This year, we’ve already experienced 50 disasters. According to the American Red Cross, “as many as 40% [...]
I’m thinking that Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google and general techno-cognoscenti , must be a Joni Mitchell fan. He is credited with having coined the term “cloud computing,” a brilliant metaphor for describing the most recent digital phenomenon that promises to transform everything from the way we interact with our machines to the way [...]
