With more than 100 million businesses in the marketplace worldwide, it’s important to establish a D-U-N-S® Number in order to identify and differentiate your business. A D-U-N-S® Number is a unique nine-digit reference number assigned to a business, similar to the way a social security number is assigned to an American citizen. However, unlike social security numbers, D-U-N-S® Numbers are public, so anyone can research a business based on its D-U-N-S® Number.
D&B links the D&B D-U-N-S® Numbers of parents, subsidiaries, headquarters and branches on more than 70 million corporate family members around the world. Used by the world's most influential standards-setting organizations, it is recognized, recommended and/or required by more than 50 global, industry and trade associations, including the United Nations, the U.S. Federal Government, the Australian Government and the European Commission.
In today's global economy, the D&B D-U-N-S® Number has become the standard for keeping track of the world's businesses.
A History of D-U-N-S®
D-U-N-S® stands for Data Universal Numbering System and is copyrighted by Dunn & Bradstreet (D&B) as a method of identifying businesses. The D-U-N-S® system was put into place in 1962.
Both commercial and federal organizations have been using D-U-N-S® Numbers since 1994 as a standardized method of identifying a business. In 1998, D-U-N-S® Numbers were incorporated into the Federal Acquisition Act (FAR) as the official contractor identification code for Federal Government procurement-related activities.
How D-U-N-S® Helps Businesses
In addition to allowing a business to go after federal government contracts, having a D-U-N-S® Number enhances the credibility of a business and enables other businesses to learn more about it. Information that is accessible by researching a D-U-N-S® Number includes:
Business name
Business physical and mailing addresses
Doing Business As “DBA” affiliations
Names of principals
Financial information, including payment experiences
Industry classifications (including SICs and NAICS)
Government data about the business
Social-economic status of the business
What You Need to Do
If you are a small business, ensure that your company is listed in D&B's database – even if you don’t plan to go after any government contracts in the near future. Establishing your D-U-N-S® Number now will help to build your history and credibility. Once you sign up, you should receive your D-U-N-S® Number within 30 business days.
You can also use the D-U-N-S® for another business as a credit reference for that business, just as another business can use your number as a credit reference for your business.
By the way, you can easily update your record anytime with the eUpdate service offered by D&B.
Please note that getting a D-U-N-S® Number alone will not establish a D&B credit file for your company. If you are requesting a D-U-N-S® Number because you need to show others that your business is creditworthy, you will probably need to establish a credit file.
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