Happy New Year 
from the Staff of the 
Dalton-Whitfield Co. Joint Development Authority 
and Greater Dalton Chamber!!!
 SMALL BUSINESS BANNER:                                      January 2015
Did You Know?

According to the Georgia Department of Labor, 77.5% of Georgia's business establishments employ fewer than 10 people. 

Discover resources offered by the State of Georgia: www.georgia.org/smallbusiness
Georgia Small Business Week

February 16th-20th, 2015

 

Governor Nathan Deal will proclaim the third week in February (February 16-20) as GEORGIA SMALL BUSINESS WEEK.

 

To celebrate Small Business week, join us at our Small Business Mixer! 

 

When: Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Time: 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.

Where: Pottery Play House, 204 N. Hamilton Street

Fee: FREE to attend! 

Featuring: Consultants from UGA's Small Business Development Center will be on hand to discuss all the benefits the SBDC can offer local small businesses FREE of charge! Whether you are just in the planning stages or already an established small business, the SBDC has something for you. 

 

Contact Summer Nix (nix@daltonchamber.org) or Beth Morrison (morrison@daltonchamber.org) for more information! 

SMALL BUSINESS BANNER
Survey

 

We want to hear from YOU! 

 

Click HERE to take a short, 5 question survey.  

 

Your feedback will help us to improve Small Business Banner. 

Congratulations to our locals who made the list!

 

 

Most Influential: 

Brian Anderson, Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce

Vance Bell, Shaw Industries

Charlie Bethel, State Senator, District 54 & J+J Floor Covering

 

Notable Georgians: 

Don Cope, Dalton Utilities

Jeff Lorberbaum, Mohawk Industries

 

Georgia Trend's 2015 list of 100 Most Influential Georgians includes, as always, some new names and some old ones, as leadership changes and recent achievements combine with resignations, retirements, course corrections and shifts in power to shake the list up.

 

Some of the 100 wield their influence in the limelight; others work behind the scenes. But all of them impact the daily lives of Georgians everywhere. Click HERE to see the full article... 
Classes in Your Area...
Sponsored by the Small Business Development Center through UGA.
Starting a Business 
(Class will be in Spanish)

January 27, 2015
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Dalton Community Center
218 N. Frederick St. 

 

Issues to discuss: 

  •          Features traits for successful entrepreneurs
  •          Research  the Market 
  •          Legal Business Structures
  •          Projections and budgets
  •          Options for funding
  •          The most common causes of failure
  •          Planning 

Because lack of good planning is one of the common causes of failure, it is a good idea to take this class before opening your business. A book called "How to Start Your Business" and other forms of instruction are included.

 

 Click  HERE to learn more!
Take Advantage of these FREE Opportunities... 
Provided by SCORE 
 
Marketing for Your Future, Not Your Present

Thursday, January 29th
1:00 PM / EST

Are you building your business to be long term and making plans to market your business in the future? Or are you surviving to fight another day?  
 
In small businesses across the nation, most owners just struggle with keeping their doors open each and every day.  With this webinar, we will discuss ideas and strategies to grow your business utilizing collaboration and unique opportunities to keep your business sustaining for growth.  
 
This webinar will provide you with strategies to execute and marketing concepts that will keep your business relevant today and into the future.   

   

Click   HERE to register today!

______________________________________________________________________
 
How to Develop a Killer Marketing Plan

Thursday, February 5th
1:00 pm / EST

 

Marketing is the fuel that drives any small business. but most small businesses have two major challenges: limited time and limited resources. Which means you need to pick a target customer you can actually hit.  To develop a killer marketing plan, you need to define your target customer, your niche, your differentiator and most importantly how you are going to tell the world you are open for business.  You also need to know how much money you'll need to conduct all your marketing efforts. Let Melinda Emerson, "SmallBizLady" America's #1 Small Business Expert, walk you through her system for developing a killer marketing plan for 2015. 
Marketing is the fuel that drives any small business. But most small businesses h
Attendees will learn: 
  • How to develop your #1 sales tool
  • How to identify your target market customer
  • How to figure out your niche
  • How to find your customers online 
  • Build sales activities that achieve your marketing goals
Click  HERE to learn more.
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Tax Strategies to Ensure You Pay #NotOneDollarMore

Tuesday, February 10th
1:00 pm / EST
 

Do you feel like your small business pays too much each year in taxes? Small businesses should not pay one dollar more than they are legally required to in taxes each year. If you're like most entrepreneurs, this is one of the most challenging aspects of running a business.

Most SMBs are paying more than they should for a variety of reasons. They may not have all the resources that larger businesses have. They may not understand all the new rules that come out each year. Or they mix too much personal with business. Whatever, the reason, SMBs can reduce their payments by following the best practices contained in this session.  

Join Jennifer Warawa, Vice President and General Manager, Sage Accountant Solutions, to learn 7 things small business owners should know before tax day in order to maximize tax savings.

You will learn: 

  • The top mistakes SMBs make leading to paying more than is required
  • How SMBs can best reduce payments
  • How to best work with accountants and tax advisors during tax season to get the best results 
  • What are the latest tax changes that small business owners should know 
  • How to best track expenses that have tax impact
  • How to navigate around common IRS audit triggers 
  • How the SMB legal entity affects your tax percentage
Click HERE to learn more. 
What is LinkedIn & How to Use it Effectively
By: Kinsey Hicks Terry

I hear it all the time, "I've set up my LinkedIn profile but now what do I do?" 

 

Or I hear, "How does my LinkedIn profile differ from my Facebook profile?" 

 

LinkedIn and Facebook are different and you do need both. Facebook and LinkedIn are both social networks but LinkedIn is mainly used by professionals. LinkedIn is there to build your professional identity and discover professional opportunities while gathering the latest news and insights. Currently there are over 300 million registered users on LinkedIn. So how do we make the most of our LinkedIn profiles? I have put together a series of points you can use to start to make the most of LinkedIn.


 

Click  here to read the entire story.
For Small Business Assistance contact: 
         
Andrew Carnes                                     Summer Nix
Executive Director                       Project Manager
706-712-0958                                    706-712-0953
          
Contact:
100 S. Hamilton Street, Dalton, GA 30720
Made possible by Grow Greater Dalton 2.0 Investors