Banks

Choose a small business bank for its branch banking and personal banking For a small business bank, the best bank is the bank that's nearest or has the most convenient branches, especially if you handle a lot of cash and checks. A local banker is likely to be more aware of your business and its prospects, and there are often personal connections that can help.

I recommend:  Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citibank, Wachovia and Regions are busy expanding branches with plenty of small business bank products.

Choosing from national business banking networks As your small business grows, it can help to have access to more sophisticated financing. A large banking institution can be more impersonal but often have departments for medium-sized to large-business banking.

I recommend:  Some of the largest banks in the United States are Bank of America, J. P. Morgan Chase, Citibank, Wachovia, Wells Fargo, Suntrust and HSBC.

Bank online and use automated banking services Increasingly, if you manage your small business online or use software like QuickBooks, the most efficient means of keeping track of your company's finances is to bank online, using direct deposit and other online-only business banking products directly connected to your banking institution.

I recommend:  Once a competitive advantage, small business banks now routinely offer online banking services. Find out how your local bank ranks in the bank online business by checking its ranking with Gomez.

Watch out for banking institution fees Fees, particularly credit card fees and ATM charges, have spiraled in recent years as banks have competed to bring in customers but then used fees to 'punish' other customers out of their system. Review carefully what types of business banking services you actually use and then ask for a printed fee disclosure first.

I recommend:  Keep track of bank fees through Bankrate.com, which does regular 'roundup' coverage of the trend and offers this complaint form. CNNMoney, too, has a good fee-by-fee guide to fighting back against a banking institution.