MBE – MBE Certification

Free MBE certification starter kit just for entering your email.

MBE Certifications provide specific proof that your business is 51% or more owned, controlled, and operated by one or more minorities.  “MBE” stands for minority business Enterprise.  The term can generically be used to refer to any minority-owned business, whether or not that business has a formal certification.

Now that we have some definitions, let’s explore a few of the ways that you can use multiple levels of MBE certifications to grow your minority-owned business.  An MBE certification may be obtained at a local government level, state government level, federal government level, and at a national level (for selling to Corporate America).  Thus, you would want to obtain an MBE certification at the proper level depending on what type of agency or company you would like to have as a client.

For example, if you are interested in selling to a state government agency, then consider a state MBE certification, but if you want to sell to various large corporations then you should consider a national certification. 

Although not always required to have a certification to do business with a government agency or Corporate America, as a practical matter some of them do require or encourage you to have a certification. You can increase your chances of getting business from them by having an MBE certification.

Why would having these certifications increase your success in obtaining business from the government and Corporate America?  Because many state and local government agencies and large corporations that receive government funding are required to award a certain percentage of their contracts to minority owned businesses.  Furthermore, while the federal government does not have specific projects set aside just for minorities, they do make efforts to award a specific percentage of their contracts to minorities as well.  Thus, with an MBE certification, you can increase your chances of getting work from the government and Corporate America to help them meet their quotas.

If you sell products or services that government agencies in your state would be interested in buying, then you should explore the option of obtaining a mbe certification in your state (if your state offers a MBE certification program). 

A very effective strategy for growing your business immensely may be to obtain MBE certifications in multiple states.  It is a common misconception that you can only obtain a MBE state certification in the state in which your business resides.  That is not true.  You can get a state MBE certification in multiple states to increase your chances of getting work from those state governments.

Yes, it does take some extra effort to obtain your certification in multiple states, since each state has a different MBE certification application.  So if you are not interested in selling to  state government agencies in a certain state,  there would not likely be any value to obtain a certification in that state.

Many successful MBE’s use one or more state MBE certifications to aid in selling to state government(s), use the federal MBE self-certification to aid in selling to the federal government, and also use a national MBE certification to aid in selling to large corporations. For example, businesses that sell a product or service that any or all of these entities would buy can benefit from obtaining these multiple levels of certification.

The bottom line is that you should first carefully consider the ideal customer is for your products and services.  You would then need to identify the level of certification that will best increase your chances of obtaining them as your customer.  If you are not interested in Corporate America, or government agencies, then it would not likely be worth your time to pursue any of these certifications.

With these MBE certifications, you increase your chances of gaining business from those “deep pockets”.   If you do want to have those deep pockets your clients, you should consider those certifications that give you a serious competitive advantage because of their mandatory requirements.  Why not use any competitive advantage you can get your hands on?

.

.

How is it that I certifiy as a women and minority owned business in California. Also, if you know… How do I certify as a small disadvantaged business. Also… does anyone know the benefits to these things? Thanks!
The fact is, the government will set aside projects SPECIFICALLY for your category which dramatically cuts out a large portion of the competition. There is lot’s of paper work, time and effort, but worth it. I’m in the middle of it right now in PA. The 2 links below might be a good place to start. as well as your closest SBA in CA. http://www.sba.gov/localresources/district/ca/ http://www.scmbdc.org/programs_services/certification.asp They will have all of the forms and guidance which you will need. Submission of the forms will ask for 2 years of federal and state tax forms, proof of citizenship, business plans, resumes, contracts in the past, financial obligations, company structure and proof of everything, narrative on why you’re disadvantaged, even if you are….and that’s

just for starters. Then there are various other status and registrations that you should get in order to obtain federal and state contracts. The site below might be a good place to start. You might also want to get a DUNNS number at http://www.dnb.com/us/ You can get one free, but it will take 30 days, so start that process now. This is only if you want business from the government which is the REAL benefit of certifying as a women and minority owned business. Then register with the state: http://www.pd.dgs.ca.gov/smbus/default.htm Some certifications require a time period to be in business such as 8(a), but ownership must be in one of the disadvantage categories (at least 51%). Hope this helps!

Automotive yes, government yes, anyone else?
And companies that contract with the government. Probably your best source. If they are a federal contractor they have to do a minority set aside

http://www.businessthrival.com/freestuff/mbewbesecrets Learn the secrets to selling your goods and services to the Government and Corporate America by leveraging Minority, Woman, and Veteran-Owned Business Certifications.

Duration : 0:1:8

Read the rest of this entry »