Seven answers on a trade reference that should slow you down

Most trade reference forms ask questions that cannot produce a bad answer. "Do you recommend this customer?" collects a courtesy, not information. Useful references ask for numbers and dates.

The answers worth reading twice

• Highest credit extended is far below the limit your customer is requesting from you. You would be their largest creditor on day one.
• Average days beyond terms sits above fifteen. Terms are being treated as a suggestion, and you are the newest supplier in the queue.
• The account was placed on hold at any point. Ask when, why, and how it was resolved.
• The relationship is shorter than the customer implied. A reference of three months tells you very little about a business claiming a decade of trading.
• Current balance is zero and no recent activity. A dormant account is not a working reference.
• The reference contact's email domain matches the applicant's. References should be independent.
• The supplier declines to answer. That is data, and it should be recorded rather than dropped.

One weak reference is a question. Three weak references in the same direction is a pattern, and patterns are what a credit file is for.

Make the answers comparable

The value of structured reference questions is that the answers line up next to each other. When every supplier reports highest credit, current balance and days beyond terms in the same fields, a credit manager can see the shape of the account in seconds instead of reading four differently formatted emails.