“There are a lot of resources business owners can take advantage of,” says Benjamin Conger, a business banker at Community Bank, N.A., which is based in DeWitt and operates more than 200 branches across upstate New York, northeastern Pennsylvania, Vermont, and western Massachusetts. Many of those resources are available right at the bank, he adds. […]
“There are a lot of resources business owners can take advantage of,” says Benjamin Conger, a business banker at Community Bank, N.A., which is based in DeWitt and operates more than 200 branches across upstate New York, northeastern Pennsylvania, Vermont, and western Massachusetts.
Many of those resources are available right at the bank, he adds.
“It’s a lot more than just opening up a deposit account and using their debit card,” he says. Community Bank, like many others, features a full commercial-banking team, which brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to business customers.
Some of the resources Community Bank offers business customers include fraud-protection services, online invoicing, online payroll, and merchant services, Conger says. He and his team members work with businesses to help them tailor the services that best suit their needs.
“It’s just presenting them with all these ideas and trying to streamline from there,” he says.
Sometimes, the best resources are found elsewhere, and that’s where the team’s knowledge comes into play to direct customers to them, Conger notes.
Just having someone who can tell them about various business-lending programs — like the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 504 program — is a huge benefit to business owners. That program, which can be used to purchase an owner-occupied building or for equipment, offers a lower down-payment option for most qualified borrowers, allowing a business to preserve more of its working capital, Conger says.
“Most business owners, when I first mention it to them, they’ve never heard of it before,” he says. “It’s just a fantastic program.”
Other resources out there for small businesses include regional Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) located around the state, the WISE Women’s Business Center in Syracuse, and SCORE.
WISE offers services including one-on-one business counseling, training on small-business topics, and networking for women entrepreneurs.
SCORE, a resource partner of the SBA, has more than 10,000 volunteers around the country that provide services free business mentoring. Other services include workshops, training sessions, and a library of online resources.
In the end, Conger says, it’s all about connecting business owners with the best resources out there to suit their needs.
“We’re always trying to think of ways we can help them.”