Georgia Business Owners – Prepared for Disaster?

Nobody expects a business disaster to happen but, they happen more often than you might think.

This podcast is a short interview by Ron Johnson of the SBA with Lori Adamo, the president of Code Red Business Continuity Services.

Highlights from the podcast:

Ron Johnson: Lori, how does a business owner develop a disaster preparedness plan?

Lori Adamo: Business ownerships start by identifying the company’s internal and external vulnerabilities.  Look at the external risks, such as flooding or wood damage.  Is your business in a flood plain, or is it located in an area were tornados or hurricanes can occur?

Historical data will help your internal review.  Frequency of power outage, violent behavior, or any other high-risk activities that may have been documented are very helpful.  Create your disaster plan with the aim of mitigating those risks.  Develop plans to remain in operation if your office, plant, or store is unusable.  Store in multiple locations and keep accessible a current list of critical phone numbers – your employees, vendors, suppliers. Identify your critical functions and make sure you know how to keep them operational after the event.
The plan will provide a road map of how to operate your business during and after a crisis.  You will then want to test the plan to make sure it works for you.  Test to find the failures so you can fix them before the real event occurs.

There is a lot of great information for Georgia business owners in this podcast – listen by clicking the link further down the page.

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Disaster Preparedness for Business Owners

Having a contingency plan will help any business when disaster strikes. Listen to this podcast by clicking the link below and see whether you’re covering all your bases.

( Transcript)

Have you experienced a business disaster, and, were you prepared for it? Have you any advice on the matter?

Georgia Veteran Entrepreneurs

This podcast from the Small Business Administration (SBA) covers programs made specifically to help veterans of the armed forces become new entrepreneurs in Georgia, or any state in the USA.

Ron Johnson from the SBA interviews Bill Elmore who also works in the SBA.

Highlights from the podcast:

Ron Johnson: What does the SBA have available to veterans who want to start or expand their small businesses?

William D. Elmore: Ron, usually when I’m asked that question I walk people through a sort of a simple quick overview at the agency so veterans will have a better understanding of the answer.  Veterans are used to dealing with the Department of the Veterans Affairs, but we are nowhere near that size and scale.

Most of our work is delivered through third party and partners.  So from a size perspective, we are your guides into the full range of services and programs that we offer, and I’ll give you sort of a basic overview of that.  For example, we have about 1,500 different kinds of small business development centers around the country.  Some are focused on women, some are focused on veterans, many are focused on technology, and a broad range of issues or arenas or opportunities.  But, any one of those 1,500 centers, whether it is a score chapter or are small business development center or a veterans business development center offer and will provide assistance to any veteran that request it.

There is a considerable amount of information in this short podcast – have a listen to it by clicking the link further down the page…

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SBA Programs Support Entrepreneurial Veterans

There are numerous programs in place to help veterans that want to start a new small business or grow a small business they already operate… Assistance can come in the form of advice, loan guarantees, and other programs.  If you’re a veteran living in Georgia or any other US state and you want to start your own business this podcast is a must-listen.

( Transcript )

Have you used any of the SBA veteran-specific programs – and, what was your experience? Please leave in the comments below. Thanks!

Checklist for Starting a Georgia Business

Starting a business checklist podcast for new Georgia business owners by Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corp., Wendy Baumann.

Highlights of the podcast:

Ron Johnson: Now, Wendy, what are the key items on the checklist?

Wendy K. Baumann: Well, really, you first have to identify and understand the reasons of why you want to start a business.  I often ask entrepreneurs or business owners in the early stage to hold out their hands.  What is the “who” behind this business?  The “what” behind this business?  When, where, and most importantly, really, why?

You need to begin at this early stage of doing a self-analysis of your own skills and your experience.  You really have to look very carefully early on.  Is this business idea viable or feasible?  And then ask yourself the hard question, do you have the capacity and the interest to carry out this viable business idea?

And then, finally, still at this early stage is, I think we really need a plan, a written business plan as ideas, something ideal.  Something happens when you take all those ideas in your head and really begin to put them down on paper in a formidable plan for yourself and then other supporters along the way.

This was just a small sample of the wisdom collected in the podcast that follows. Have a listen!

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Before you listen to the podcast download our Ultimate Business Website Checklist in PDF format here (free). Best to right click and choose “Save file as” or “Save Target as” and open it later.

Ultimate Business Website Checklist >

Check List for Starting a Business

This is a good start for helping new Georgia entrepreneurs decide if they are ready to start a business. This starting a business checklist covers many of the tasks new entrepreneurs need to accomplish in starting their own Georgia (or any state) small business.

( Transcript)

Can you think of any more action items that need to be on this business checklist?

Choosing a Business to Start in Georgia

Many people that want to start a Georgia business don’t really know where to start. If you don’t have a particular business in mind and already have the ball rolling forward you should have a look at this short podcast for ideas.

Ron Johnson from the Small Business Administration interviews Lou Davenport from the SCORE in Pennsylvania.

Highlights from the podcast:

Ron Johnson: Is it true the secret to starting a successful business is to find a need and fill it?

Lou Davenport: Yes, it is, Ron.  There are many needs and many potential businesses available.  However, before you invest a lot of time and energy and money in starting a new business, you need to ask yourself several key questions.

One, is the business idea practical and will it fill a need?  And that’s a simple statement, but there’s a lot of importance to it.  I surprise my clients from time to time when I say to them in a very real way I don’t care what you think about the fantastic business that you are aspiring to create.  All I really care about is what the prospective clients or customers might think.

The old adage is that it doesn’t matter what the dog food looks like, what it smells like, how it’s packaged, how it’s priced.  If the dogs won’t eat the dog food, you don’t have a good business.  So you need to figure out whether the target market really has a need that you can fill better than the competition.  That’s another key question.  Can you outperform your competition?

In today’s world, you really need to have one or more competitive advantages in order to establish a very successful business.  If you’re entering into a business that’s simply like everybody else and you don’t have competitive advantages in terms of products and prices and services, then arguably you’re going to have a tough time and could end up on the trash heap of also-rans.  So a critical competitive advantage is another key question that you have to ask yourself.

And finally, can you make a profit?  That’s to say, can you sell your products or services to enough people at a price that not only covers your overhead expense, that provides a fair wage for your management services to the business, and still leaves a profit in terms of return on investment for the risk capital that you’ve invested as an owner.

There is a LOT more in the interview – have a listen to the podcast at the link below…

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Selecting a Business That Fits

Of course a new Georgia business should target a specific need or needs that aren’t being met or met well enough. That said, it’s also very important to start a business that you’ll continue to be excited about. How?

Choose a business that meshes well with your personality and is something you enjoy doing. In this way you’ll better ensure you’re in it for the long-haul. Often times there’s a hump to get over where you are not profitable for a couple months or longer. Choosing a business you enjoy doing is one way to choose a winner.

( Transcript)

Did you choose a Georgia business based on your interests or for some other reason? How’s it going?

Georgia Small Business Training?

Here is an informative podcast designed to bring you up to speed on the goings on at the Small Business Administration’s online training center. Interviewer, Ron Johnson speaks with Jim O’Connor, the director for the Small Business Training Network (SBTN) and it’s something you won’t want to miss if you have a Georgia business.

Highlights from the podcast:

Johnson: Tell me Jim, how do you access the SBTN?

O’Conner: On the Internet go to www.sba.gov/training.

The number of course offerings changes periodically, based on course evaluations and client needs.  However, SBTN typically offers over 40 free courses.

All SBTN courses are free.  However, plans are under way to offer some fee-based courses in the future.
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Johnson: How do you enroll or register for an SBTN online course?

O’Conner: Of the 40+ courses offered on SBTN, only 21of the courses require an online registration.

But registration is easy.  Go to the SBTN homepage at http://www.sba.gov/training and click on Free Online Courses or go directly to the menu page at http://www.sba.gov/training/courses.html and review topics and specific course offerings.

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The SBA Small Business Training Network—Log On!

As you know it’s better to stay up to date with the latest business information or you’ll fall quickly behind. A prime factor in being competitive is training. SBA has a virtual online training campus that can help your Georgia business succeed.

( Transcript)

Have you used the SBTN? Have any other online business tools to share with other Georgia business owners? Please list in the comments section below… Thanks!

Military Veterans and Small Business Ownership

There have been inordinately high unemployment rates among not only Georgia armed forces veterans, but US-wide. Unemployment numbers for vets are the highest in the USA at the moment.

In this podcast Ron Johnson will interview Bill Elmore, Assoc. Admin. of the SBA’s (Small Business Administration)’s Office of Veterans Business Development.

Here are some highlights from the podcast:

Ron Johnson: I recently read that the unemployment rate of veterans is over 11 percent and that the economic downturn has hit Iraq and Afghanistan veterans harder than other workers, and this is sobering news. So how does SBA’s Office of Veteran Business Development assist our veterans?

Bill Elmore: The veteran’s unemployment statistics are grim but I note that veterans’ self-employment rate is the highest in the nation. There are no easy answers to veterans’ unemployment. However, it is important that veterans explore every opportunity including starting their own small business. The mission of the Office of Veterans Business Development is to maximize the availability, the applicability and the usability of all of the administration’s small business programs for veterans, for services-disabled veterans, for reserve component members and for their dependents or survivors, including their spouses. Basically, we are the liaison with the veterans’ business community.

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Ron Johnson: Now, I understand that SBA offers many resources for veterans, but what are some of the important first steps veterans should take before, say, deciding to open a business?

Bill Elmore: Well, I think there’s really a couple of things. You can start with a self-assessment but you also may want to contact one of our 68 SBA district offices. Each of those district offices has a veterans’ business development officer assigned to it, and that person can be your initial guide for all the services and programs that we offer. Now back to the self assessment. If you’ve got an idea for a business, now is the time to evaluate if your dream of starting the business can become a reality. The checklist for starting a business is a comprehensive online self-directed training tool designed to prepare you for self-employment by analyzing your responses in key areas and providing a menu of support in resources. You can find this on SBA’s website at www.sba.gov.

SBA’s Veterans Business Development: Military Service to Small Business Ownership
Learn how SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development can help veterans explore their options and learn the skills of small business ownership. In addition, learn about loan programs to start or grow a small business.
( Transcript )

I’m a veteran and when I went to the employment office I was given a lot of help that most citizens don’t get – when looking for a job. Now that I have my own business I can also appreciate what the SBA is doing for veterans to help them own their own businesses.

Native Americans in Business

Native Americans, including Hawaiians, Alaskan, and American Indian natives add a lot of money to the US economy. This podcast covers how the Office of native American Affairs does it’s job to guarantee Native Americans of all sorts have adequate access to all the Small Business Administration (SBA) programs and services – thereby enabling them to exercise their entrepreneurial spirit.

Some highlights of the podcast:

Ron Johnson: The American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian populations are small. But it seems the entrepreneurial spirit runs large in these communities.

Clara Pratte: Yes, historically, American Indians, Alaskan Natives and Native Hawaiians have always embraced small business ownership. At the time of European arrival in what is now America, there were thriving trade routes throughout this hemisphere. And commerce was not limited to North America. Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs traded goods between villages but also they navigated quite long distances to trade with other Pacific Islanders. And of course they quickly learned about international markets through their exposure to various travelers that came to their shores.

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Ron Johnson: What initiatives do you have specifically designed for Native Americans and tribal governments?

Clara Pratte: Well, for the last several months, my office has been engaged in extensive outreach in the Native community and this has included consultations, listening sessions and general outreach and education. In the upcoming months we will be providing more information on specific projects that we’ve just recently kicked off.

SBA’s Office of Native American Affairs: Engaging the Entrepreneurial Spirit of Native Americans
Featuring Clara Pratte, National Director of SBA’s Office of Native American Affairs

We’ll also learn about SBA’s government-to-government relationship with Native Americans.
( Transcript )

This is an excellent little introduction to what programs are available to small businesses owned by Native Americans. Don’t miss our other podcasts from the SBA here as well.