Free Online Course in International BusinessDun & BradstreetThe largest general reporting agency is Dun & Bradstreet (D&B). It has information on more than 92 million firms worldwide, although not all of it is complete. While firms have to voluntarily give trade data, D&B is the one of the few agencies that uses reporters to gather information about companies. Business Information Report A basic credit report developed by D&B reporters provides information obtained from direct interview with a business owner, partner, or corporate officer. It is then confirmed and expanded through investigations with the business accountant, banks, and supply sources (for payment experiences); by checking public records at federal, state, and county levels; and from a review of D&B's own internal files. After all the information is analyzed to determine the strength and desirability of the account as a credit risk, a D&B rating is assigned and the data compiled into the written Business Information Report. While reports are normally scheduled for updating every six months, revisions are made whenever circumstances warrant. Other information, when uncovered, is issued in a report form called the Special Notice. These flyers contain data on such items as fires, floods, deaths, tax liens, suits, judgments, new products, and branch openings. When the information is of such nature as to affect the credit rating, either upward or downward, the entire report is revised and a new rating is assigned.D&B RatingEach full rating involves two factors: first, a doubleletter or numberandletter combination identifying financial strength; second, a singledigit number on a scale of one to four, indicating the composite credit appraisal as high, good, fair, or limited. Ratings are a convenient method of measuring accounts in addition to serving as a broad basis for credit insurance classifications.D&B Reference BookKey information extracted from the Business Information Report forms the basis for listing in the D&B Reference Book. A "P" at the end of the listing indicates that a Payment Analysis Report is available on a particular business. Some listings are prefixed by the letters "A" or "C." The "A" identifies a business listed for the first time. A "C" prefix signals a change in rating since the prior edition. The Reference Book contains nearly three million listings of commercial enterprises in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, arranged alphabetically by cities within states. The Reference Book is updated and republished every 60 days.Payment Analysis ReportA PAR features the PAYDEX numerical scoring system. It gives an instant overview of a firm's payment habits. Seasonal variations, payment performance trend, and the historical payment pattern are graphically illustrated.ExperianExperian is the credit reporting business that was formerly TRW. It differs from the other reporting services by including very small businesses and sole proprietorships as well as larger companies in its data base. Experian has an easytofollow menu on its website that allows a credit manager to obtain either of the two reports below via the Internet using a credit card to pay the fee.Experian IntelliscoreExperian uses statistical methodology to give each business in its data base a composite credit risk ranking between 1 (worst) and 100 (best). It is designed for credit managers processing large volumes of credit applications or transactions. Companies using this service can establish multiple scoring ranges with assigned actions, so accounts that need further investigating are clearly indicated. Relationals Information Experian also offers companies relational credit information that they can use with electronic filters to enhance their credit decisions, set benchmarks, and finetune sales tactics.Standard & Poor's Business ProfileCompanies can obtain a business profile of a customer that includes financial information from Standard & Poor's, the average number of days late (DBT) a company pays its bills past the invoice due date and a predicted DBT 60 days in the future, payment trends for the company and its industry, and UCC filing data.
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