By Karen E. Klein

SALES BOOST.  "Certification helps us compete against huge corporations like 3M (MMM ), because our customers promote their diversity of their suppliers to the corporations they sell to," Whistler says. "That helps us get a level of exposure that would be difficult for us to reach alone." Some major companies set diversity goals, and certification is often something they use to sort the wheat from the chaff. "It's one more competitive advantage," Whistler says.

Wanting her firm, Hollister Construction, to be judged solely on its merits, company President Holli Dorr had always rejected women's-business certification. But one of her customers -- a Fortune 500 company -- requested that she get certified because they wanted 5% of their business to go to women-owned companies. After she did so last January, the customer sent $6 million worth of business her way, doubling her company's annual sales volume.

Dorr has also been invited to join bid lists for large corporations such as Pepsi-Cola (PEP ) and Pfizer (PFE ). "It's been phenomenal for us," she says. "I was too proud to do this before, but once I got my ego out of the way, [certification] has given us opportunities we never dreamed of."

NATIONAL EFFORT.  Becoming certified by a private agency also typically gives you access to Internet databases, networking events, and directory listings that promote women-owned businesses. Private corporations are not mandated by law to do business with women-owned companies, but many feel it garners them goodwill with customers if they make the effort. The WBENC has become one of the most widely recognized certifications in the nation and is used by more than 700 major corporations. (You can visit its "Opportunities for WBEs" site , or call 202 872-5515 x20 for more information.)

A second private-certification organization to consider is the National Women Business Owners Corporation (NWBOC). NWBOC has launched a national certification program for women-owned and -controlled businesses as an alternative to the multiple state and local certifications required by many public- and private-sector agencies or prime contractors. More than 100 private and public agencies now accept NWBOC certification. For more information, check out the nonprofit group's Web site , or call 800 675-5066.

Have a question about your business? Ask our small-business experts. Send us an e-mail at Smart Answers, or write to Smart Answers, BW Online, 45th Floor, 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10020. Please include your real name and phone number in case we need more information; only your initials and city will be printed. Because of the volume of mail, we won't be able to respond to all questions personally.

| 1 | 2 |  <<previous page

Karen E. Klein is a Los Angeles-based writer who covers entrepreneurship and small-business issues