The credit briefs
A clearer understanding. A stronger starting point.
6 short reads on the credit questions business owners bring us: what the reports contain, what a score summarizes, how to address a genuine error, what a management routine looks like, and what credit improvement claims can and cannot deliver. Every brief cites its official source and links to it.
The reading list
Credit fundamentals, accuracy, and preparation.
Start with brief 01 if you read only 1. The rest follow in the order a review runs: read the file, check it, manage it, know the limits, prepare the business.
Why the owner's credit and the company's credit both matter.
2 profiles, 2 stories. How the owner's personal report and the company's business file each enter a financing decision, and why a lender may read both.
Read the brief Credit brief 02The report is the story. The score is a summary.
What a report contains, why scores differ from 1 model and 1 date to the next, and how to make a first review of your own file that produces something usable.
Read the brief Credit brief 03Found an error? Start with the facts.
How to identify a genuine inaccuracy, organize the evidence, and use the official dispute channels, which cost nothing and require no intermediary.
Read the brief Credit brief 04Better credit management starts with a repeatable routine.
Payment history, reported balances, and new credit activity deserve regular attention. The habits behind an informed approach, and why a routine beats chasing a promised score.
Read the brief Credit brief 05Credit improvement: separate the facts from the promises.
The limits of credit repair claims, the difference between an error and an accurate negative entry, and what informed credit management can and cannot do.
Read the brief Credit brief 07The business scores, named.
PAYDEX, Intelliscore Plus, the Equifax Payment Index, FICO SBSS, SBFE and PayNet: who calculates each, what it measures, who pulls it, how to obtain your own business file and what it costs, and why nearly every small business facility still carries a personal guarantee.
Read the brief Credit brief 06Prepare the business story behind a financing inquiry.
Consistent company information, organized financial records, and a clear use of funds make a financing conversation shorter and more useful. What to have ready before the first read.
Read the briefThese briefs provide general education, not individualized legal or financial advice. Sources are linked within each brief and were reviewed on September 8, 2026; refer to the original guidance for updates. The 3 funding briefs, on stacked positions, buyouts, and what a lender reads first, are on the Insights section of the homepage.
Start with the file
A straight read within 2 business days.
Send the basics through the intake form: what the file supports, what is missing, and the next step if there is one. If we are not the right desk for it, we say so.