How to find out who owns a business
It’s not that tough to learn who owns a business. It just needs some detective work.
There’s a local business with prospect potential. You would like to talk to the person at the top. How do you get the right name? Here are some ways to find it.
Researching business owners
In films and TV programs, plots often involve “shell companies” making ownership appear murky. In reality, doing this research on businesses can be pretty straightforward.
The Chamber of Commerce. They have a directory of member businesses on their website. In most cases, it’s on the public part of their site because they want local people doing business with Chamber members! The profile of the business usually includes the name of the Chamber member. For smaller businesses, the Chamber member is usually the owner of the business.
State licensing information. Businesses need to be registered with the state, There is an office of the Secretary of State. Within the office is the Department of Corporations. They usually have a search feature allowing you to search for a business by name. (You don’t want two businesses to have the exact same name!) The records on file usually have the name of the owner, officers or agent of record. In most cases, this information is free to access. Only one or two states try charging!
Manta.com. This is a private company that has a national version of the state search feature described above. You enter the name of a business, city and state. It comes back with likely matches. The profile shows information like annual revenues, date started, number of employees and key contacts. The problem is there are lots of unclaimed pages. Business owners have not provided the necessary information. You might get lucky. You might not.
Dunn & Bradstreet. They have profiles on almost every company. Although they are in the business of selling information, there’s a small amount you can get for free. Visit www.dnb.com. Search for a company name. They have estimates of annual revenue, company snapshot, year incorporated, number of employees and key contacts.
System for Awards Management. Is the business a contractor to the Federal government? You can search for certified government contractors on www.sam.gov. The site gives an in depth profile of companies including who the government talks to at the company. At smaller businesses, it’s usually the owner.
Compliance is looking over your shoulder
Your firm has definite opinions about what you can and can’t do on the internet. So do the sites you visit. Here are three big concerns:
- Always read and respect the legal and privacy notices on the websites you visit.
- Only use the sites for the purposes originally intended by the site. If it says “Not for Commercial Purposes” don’t think, “Who will know?” They know you were there. They might plant a few dummy names on the list. Contact one and they know where you found that name! You might find they simply say “Not for commercial purposes” because they also sell the data as a separate product to those interested. Like you.
- Get approval from your compliance or branch manager before starting internet prospecting projects. They should know the rules and can advise you.
It’s not that tough to learn who owns a business. It just needs some detective work!
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