Giveaway: SCORE eNewsletters

Stay Current & Win!

The first 100 subscribers in November for eNews and ExpertANSWERS will win a complimentary SCORE Great Ideas notebook. Subscribe here.

SCORE eNews
Monthly tips, trends, articles and small business news.
111,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue.

 

SCORE Expert Answers
Monthly Q&A interviews with key insights from a leading expert.
100,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue with one of Oprah’s favorite financial gurus, Jean Chatzky.

Note: Winners must live in the continental United States. When subscribing, you must include your full name and mailing address in order to receive the notebook.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Marketing: Just Pick Up the Phone and Call

Make the Connection.

Email, Blogs and social media are great. Quick info and a sense of connection.

But, when was the last time you actually talked to your 10 best customers?

The recession is easing, but the economy is still in a state of flux. Do your clients have a personal connection with you?

Set aside a day and call your top clients to find out how they are doing. No rush. No pitch. Just get feedback.

Real relationships and trust take time. The investment in picking up the phone to call can reveal emerging client needs, bring feedback on your services and can build loyalty–because you show that the client is important to you as the business owner.

Workshop: Creating Customer Loyalty
5 Tips on Customer Service
Managing Client Expectations

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Leadership: Answer the Question Where to Next?

What Does the Future Hold for Your Business?

Times have changed. We can look back at the last year and learn.

As a solo entrepreneur, home office biz pro, a two-person company or a firm adding staff to meet new demands, you and everyone around you is looking for the answer to this question, “Where will we be in the future?”

Your leadership, vision and dream provide the answer. However, in the flurry of day to day activity, it’s sometimes difficult to take the time to plan ahead. This is where a SCORE mentor can really help.

Mentoring & Brainstorming Help Answer Big Questions
Add a SCORE mentor to your team as a free and confidential advisor. 1) Meet for a brainstorming session to talk about your dreams for the business. 2)Then, meet a second time to talk about the dreams that have the best chance for market success. 3) Finally, meet with your mentor to put those ideas down in a one page plan of where your business is heading next. Tomorrow planning is doable.

A mentor can guide you through the process, so you can define your big success horizon.

Make an appointment to meet in person. Find a SCORE office.
Ask SCORE for advice online.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Marketing: Sound Advice for Sales Success

Form a Connection. Deepen the Bond to Build Client Loyalty.

 Ben Franklin was an entrepreneur with big ideas. While money doesn’t grow on trees, getting your big idea across to clients does bring in the green.

Franklin said, “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”

How do you involve and engage your clients, so they connect with you and your product or services? Sales success is all about forming that connection, so prospects become clients and clients become fans.

Ask a SCORE mentor online about marketing.
Read more: Ben Franklin’s advice.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Success: Start-up Secrets for Making it Big

Energy, Optimisim and Good Advice

Could it really be that simple? Well, no not quite…but close.

It really is a start-up secret that entrepreneurs are optimists and see blue skies ahead. Always looking to the horizon.

The power of your ideas, energy and optimism are harnessed when you: focus, surround yourself with trusted advisors and plan for the future you want to create.  To begin your blue sky thinking and plan ahead, start here with:

Quiz: Be Your Own Boss 
How To: Business Structure 
Advisory Board: Forming an Advisory Council

It’s free and confidential. Don’t be shy, ask SCORE for advice online or in person.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Marketing: Twitter Stream on Small Biz for Tips

Q: Just starting off with Twitter?

A: Yes, then follow reputable sources of small biz info.

Get a steady stream of short, 140-character tweets with tips, updates and hotlinks.

Some good small biz sites: @smallbiztrends, @ducttape, @jimblasingame, @susansbtvcom, @cbanningma, @chiefhotmomma (yes, it’s a university project on small biz), @shashib, and @rieva.

Follow @scorementors of course.

On your tweet site, post news about your company and cool tips. Dip your toe in the twitter stream. Visit Twitter.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Planning: For the Good of Your Business

September 24 Attend a Free Event to Grow Sales and Protect Your Biz

On September 24th in Fort Lauderdale, Florida–join us for a great event to plan, prepare and protect your business. Register.

We are still in the midst of hurricane season and now is the time to make sure you have a plan to protect your data, key documents and your biz operation.

The event also offers great insights on marketing, sales, financing and more.
SCORE and HP present this one-day event. Don’t miss out. Register now.
More events around the country.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Start-up: Small Business Webinar September 10

First Time Start-up? Webinar Sept. 10th

Get started with a great intro to small business. Join us this week for a Start-up Success Webinar. Don’t miss out. Register Now.

SCORE bloggers Julie Brander and Steve Bloom, along with The Company Corporation share secrets for putting a biz structure and start-up plan in place. Don’t miss this great chance to plan ahead for your big start. Sign up.

Pick up a free copy of the How To Really Start Your Own Business workbook, by SCORE and The Company Corporation. Visit any SCORE office to get a free copy.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Starting: Recareering with a Small Business Idea

Your Bright Idea for Career Success Starts Here

Recession worries are starting to fade. The Labor Day holiday is approaching. And, you have a bright idea.

Recareering is becoming popular as more people look at their skills and great ideas with a view to being their own boss.

If you have a unique idea, solid business skills and are looking to reinvent your career, then small business may be fore you.

Now is the time to think about your skills, future and how to get there. Here are some tools to help you evaluate a small business career:

Do You Have an Entrepreneurial Mindset?

Start-up Advice: Ask a SCORE Mentor Online

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Leadership: Looking Ahead with a Mentor

As a Business Leader, You Look to the Future

Now is the time to identify niche business opportunities. Plan product/service line extensions. And, most important look to the future of customer demand for next year.

Forecasting is all about looking ahead. A mentor can be a great resource for brainstorming, dialogue and focusing your thoughts on future business direction.

Before labor day, commit to yourself the time to look ahead and plan for sales growth and profits in 2010.

To get started: Ask a mentor online some questions to begin your thinking. Then, meet with a mentor in your hometown who can relate to the local market conditions. Find a local SCORE office.

How do you gear up to get focused on the future?

Christine Banning, SCORE
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