Thinking about applying for a business loan? Don’t walk into your lender meeting unprepared.

Join us for a free, interactive webinar on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. ET, featuring members of Pennsylvania’s State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI).

Whether you’re looking to start a business, expand your operations, or purchase an existing business, approaching a lender can feel overwhelming. What documents should you bring? What questions should you ask? How do you know if a lender is the right fit for your financing needs?

The right preparation can make all the difference.

Join Will Hooten, Director of SSBCI, and Shane Foster, Western Assistant Director of SSBCI, for a practical, candid conversation about what business owners should know before sitting down with a lender.

During this session, you’ll learn:

• What to bring: The financial documents and information lenders typically expect and how to prepare for that first conversation.

• What to ask: Important questions about loan options, requirements, timelines, and costs that every borrower should understand.

• What lenders look for: Key factors that influence lending decisions and how to position your financing request.

• What to watch out for: Common mistakes, potential red flags, and communication pitfalls that can slow down or derail the process.

• How to find the right lender: Why not every lender is the right fit for every business and what to do if your financing request is declined.

Our goal is simple: Help you walk into your next lender meeting feeling prepared, asking the right questions, and knowing what to expect.

This won’t be a technical lecture. It’s an open, straightforward conversation built around real-world lending experiences and practical advice you can put to use.

We’ll wrap up with a live Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask questions and hear directly from professionals who work with small business financing every day.

This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number SSBCI-21031-0044 awarded to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.