CALENDAR OF EVENTS
November 2011

Small Business Technology Tour 2011 

 

The WBDC invites you to join us at the Small Business Tech Tour on November 10th at Microsoft/Aon Center. Learn tips for marketing your product or service online, how to use mobile technology to boost productivity, how to use hot new technology to grow an existing "old school" business and more.

 

Complimentary tickets are available for the first 20 people to sign up using this link.

 

Additional discounted tickets for 50% off are available using this link.

 

 

___________________

 

 

WBDC 2011 Technology Makeover Competition

 

The WBDC is excited to announce our 3rd Annual Small Business Technology Makeover Competition!  

Apply to win over $100,000.00 in FREE technology products and business services to help your business grow.  Applications are being accepted now through December 9, 2011. Click here to learn more and to apply.

 

__________________
 
 

Partner Events

 

November  1- 6: Latino Fashion Week

Click here to use discount code WAGPASS for 10% off all tickets. 

 

 

November 9: Doing Business with the City of Chicago Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT)

Learn how the City contracts with technology vendors.

 

November 10: Vistage All-City 2011

Network with Chicago area Vistage members and chairs. Presentations by Brian Beaulieu and Chris Brogan.

  

November 10: Womenetics Chicago Conference

An in-depth look at what the corporate sector is doing to focus on the value and strength of women's leadership.

 

 

November 10: Exporting for Growth

This event, presented by Washington Post Live, will focus on small business exporting.

  

November 16: Illinois Department of Central Management Services (CMS) Business Diversity Summit

An opportunity for businesses interested in doing business with the State of Illinois to learn about CMS initiatives and meet agency representatives. 

  

November 16: Chicago United Changing Color of Leadership Conference and Bridge Awards Dinner

The "go-to" forum for business leaders, diversity professionals and minority business owners in Chicago to discuss strategies and create organizational change.

 

November 18: 1st Annual Midwest Conference for Women 
Hosted by the Midwest Chapters of the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW).


November 30: Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise Strategy Forum

A capacity building forum for emerging MWBEs hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR CURRENT GOVERNMENT AND CORPORATE CONTRACT OPPORTUNITIES.

 

 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER FOR WORKSHOPS ONLINE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.WBDC.ORG 
OR CALL US AT (312) 853-3477 X. 0

 

 

 

 

Follow us on Twitter

 

 

Find us on Facebook

  

 

Visit our blog

Greetings!

New 25th Anniversary Logo

 

WBDC WORKSHOPS 

November 2011

 

November 2: Financial Smarts for Business Starts (Part of JumpStart Series)

Learn to analyze costs and revenues for your business. This workshop will address the importance of decreasing risk by employing monthly record keeping, the critical role of the tax professional/accountant, how financial analysis (record keeping) and marketing work together and the difference between cash flow and profit and loss. Learn to apply five types of financial statements and know the purpose of each statement.

 

November 3: How to Respond to a City of Chicago Request for Proposal (RFP)

This workshop is designed to teach business owners how to respond to a City of Chicago Request for Proposal (RFP). Learn what evaluators look for in a RFP and how to avoid common mistakes. 

 

November 3: Website Development for Naked Businesses (e-Marketing Series)

In the Digital Age, the absence of a strong website is a missed opportunity to connect with both potential and current customers.  This workshop will discuss the basics of designing and developing a website. By the end of this session you will be able to work with a web developer/designer to create your business' website, build a site map, determine your "must have" web-pages and know how to select an appropriate website host that will serve you well.

 

November 8: Webinar: Crowd Funding & Other Alternative Sources of Funding

Are you thinking about starting a new business or offshoot of your current business that needs creative funding?  This webinar will discuss non-traditional sources of funding including crowd funding and other sources of micro-capital.  Learn about alternative funding resources such as Kickstarter, ACCION and angel investors and what they fund that might get your project up and running. 

 

November 8: Are You Ready for a Government Contract?

This workshop focuses on determining if your business is at the right stage to pursue opportunities with government agencies, and how to market your business to them. Learn the steps to identify contract opportunities, including which website to visit to find bid opportunities. 

 

November 9: Webinar: Joint Business Counseling: Teaming & Second Tier Strategies: Mentor Protege

The WBDC is now offering Joint Business Counseling Sessions for established business owners seeking to grow their businesses through government and corporate contracting. Each session is held via interactive webinar and is limited to 5 persons so that each participant has ample time to apply this valuable information to their own business. If you are seeking assistance with mentor protege programs, we hope you will try this new platform for interactive, strategic planning and learning in a small group format.

 

November 9: Financial Analysis: Building Your Financial Muscle with the Expert (Part of Jumpstart Series)

Meet with a WBDC financial specialist to dig deeper into understanding the financial pieces of running your business. Learn how to determine cash flow projections, create revenue assumptions and sales projections prior to listing business expenses, develop sales projections utilizing a variety of strategies, utilize financial ratios and what is essential in managing business banking relationships.

 

November 10: Driving Traffic to Your Website: SEO and Copywriting (e-Marketing Series)

Having a website is important, but even more important is the ability to get people to find and stay on your website long enough to build awareness and even buy something.  Learn to build benefit and value for your customers through the words you choose to describe your product/service. By the end of this session, you will be able to describe your product /service in terms of its value to the customer, know what Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is and how to maximize it and plan your SEO strategies.

 

November 16: Webinar: Joint Business Counseling: Teaming & Second Tier Strategies: Peer Partnership

The WBDC is now offering Joint Business Counseling Sessions for established business owners seeking to grow their businesses through government and corporate contracting. Each session is held via interactive webinar and is limited to 5 persons so that each participant has ample time to apply this valuable information to their own business. If you are seeking assistance with peer partnerships, we hope you will try this new platform for interactive, strategic planning and learning in a small group format.

 

November 16: Guiding Your Success Through Building a Business Plan (Part of JumpStart Series)

Do you have a written business plan? This workshop is designed for both new business owners and owners of emerging or established businesses to learn all the parts of an effective plan and why it's important to get it on paper. You will write a draft of your executive summary as an outline for creating your full business plan and your planning process.

 

November 17: Online Storytelling: Business Blogging & Email Newsletters (e-Marketing series)  

Got news?  Have great advice to give or a good story to share? Learn how you can use blogs and email newsletters to reach your audience in a way that moves them into action. By the end of this session, you will be able to create a blog and understand the logistics behind incorporating it into your website and/or social media pages, write posts in blog style, create email newsletters with optimized frequency and effective content for the customer and plan blogging and e-newsletter strategies.

 

November 22: Webinar: Is Certification Right for You?

Learn about certification from one of our experts. Local, state and federal certifications will be covered, along with the private certification offered by the Women's Business Development Center.

 

November 30: Webinar: Joint Business Counseling: Sales & Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business

The WBDC is now offering Joint Business Counseling Sessions for established business owners seeking to grow their businesses through government and corporate contracting. Each session is held via interactive webinar and is limited to 5 persons so that each participant has ample time to apply this valuable information to their own business. If you are seeking assistance with sales and marketing strategies to grow your business, we hope you will try this new platform for interactive, strategic planning and learning in a small group format. 

 

November 30: Connection Points: Networking with Women
 -Owned Businesses who are Architects, Landscape Architects, Construction Business Owners, Interior Designers, Realtors, and Anyone who Works with Buildings!

If you are looking to meet potential collaborators who are Architects, Landscape Architects, Construction Business Owners, Interior Designers, and Realtors, then this event is for you. This Connection Points event will include plenty of networking time and a short panel presentation where resources in each discipline share insights on trends in the industries and answer questions from participants.

SAVE THE DATE

for December 2011 WBDC Workshops

 

December 1: City of Chicago Certified, Now What?

December 1: Reputation Management and Analytics (e-Marketing Series)

December 6: Connection Points: Networking with Accountants, Attorneys, Mediators and Financial Advisors

December 7: Starting a Business in Illinois

December 8: Online Store Savvy (e-Marketing Series)

December 15: Workin' the Social Media Beat: Your Online Marketing Plan (e-Marketing Series)