Small Business Connections                                               December 2013

Welcome to Small Business Connections!
 

 

The Illinois Small Business Development Center at Waubonsee Community College is here to serve your small business needs. We offer free business counseling to entrepreneurs and business owners, as well as a variety of small business workshops. To stay up to date on events, happenings and general IL SBDC information, we invite you to click below.

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Call us today at (630) 906-4143 to learn how we can help you start or grow your business.
 
Small Business Spotlight

Bella Monograms
 

 

For years, Yvonne Tarnowski coached entrepreneurs through the start-up process, so she knows firsthand the value of business assistance. So when Yvonne made the decision to launch her own business last March, she reached out to the IL Small Business Development Center at Waubonsee Community College for help with her business plan.

 

Looking for a business that would enable her to be a stay-at-home mom to her two daughters, Yvonne got her inspiration from a baby shower, where gifts included many personalized items. She made the decision to investigate customized embroidery, and even found an embroidery business for sale. The sale did not work out, but Yvonne learned a lot about the business in the process, including price and cost details and product sourcing information. She stuck with her idea and last month launched Bella Monograms, custom embroidery and monogramming.

 

Bella Monograms offers a wide variety of products that can be custom embroidered and/or monogrammed to your liking. Yvonne offers items for corporate logo marketing, as well as for special interests, events and occasions. She is happy to help you come up with a unique way to customize the product you want for the occasion you need. Monogrammed iPad covers are one of her popular items right now.

 

In addition to focusing on growth, Yvonne is passionate about incorporating a charitable aspect into her business. She is partnering with a local hospital's SHARE program to offer personalized bibs to new mothers, and is also supporting a local homeless shelter for women and children.

 

She wants to pass on the social entrepreneurship message to her daughters, and it appears she has succeeded. Recently her daughter was busily engaged in an activity when Yvonne asked what she was doing. The response was, "I'm starting a business just like my mom."

 

 

You can shop online at www.bellamonograms.com, or contact Yvonne at (815) 715-5131 for information and more product ideas.

 
Biz Buzz

 

Trends for the coming year        

 

It's hard to believe that we are winding down another year. Seems like it was just getting started. The SBDC is always keeping an eye on market and industry trends, but year-end seems like a fitting time to report what's on the horizon for 2014.

 

There are lots of trend reports out, and we'll share some of them with you to read in their entirety. From these reports, here are a few trends that seem particularly relevant to our SBDC small business owners:

 

Back to the (marketing) basics - This is number one on the crowdSPRING 2014 trend report. While social media is certainly not going away, the importance of having a comprehensive, integrated marketing plan is critical. Listening to competitors and customers, and staying on top of market and industry trends is key.

 

You might also want to check out these 5 Social Media Marketing Trends for 2014.  

  

Mobility is Number Four at techday.com. Of course, mobile technology is hardly a new trend. But, if you haven't already done so, make 2014 the year to upgrade your website and identify ways to make it easy for customers to connect with you via their smartphones and tablets.

 

We believe that Number Three on Forbes' list of Online Marketing Trends is right on target: Image-Centric Content Will Rule. Whether it's image-based social media like Pinterest, or increased use of video in your marketing strategies, look for ways to make your business more visually appealing to customers.

   

While we aren't seeing it on trend reports, the numbers tell us that Succession Planning is an important topic for your small business to consider in 2014. Ninety percent of U.S. businesses are family owned, but only 30% are handed down to the next generation, and only 15% to the third generation. Whether you plan to hand down your business to your kids, or just want to sell it before you retire, a succession plan is critical. Check out these articles on succession planning, and contact the IL SBDC at Waubonsee for help creating a plan.

 

 http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/managing-your-business/succession-planning.html  

 

 http://www.forbes.com/sites/jimblasingame/2013/11/04/how-will-you-leave-your-small-business-the-last-time/  

 

Biz Bitz


Small Businesses Compare Themselves to Competitors with Free New QuickBooks  Tool 

 

The QuickBooks Online trends widget allows users to look at businesses within a specific industry, location and annual income parameter to see average percentage of sales growth, percentage of new vs. existing customer sales, expenses by category (advertising, rent, insurance, etc.), income by category (products, services or other) and many other valuable statistics.   

 

This is a tool that helps small businesses work smarter and with greater confidence by enabling them to make decisions based on data instead of hearsay. The widget will be valuable for users who need to find out whether an industry is profitable before making the leap to open a business. Users may utilize this insight as part of their package to a bank to show the profit potential of the business they are trying to obtain a loan for. In addition, small business owners can use this to help decide whether they are overspending on rent and need to look for a new business space, whether they are under-spending on advertising vs. competitors, and whether their office expenses/utilities are greater than other businesses like them and more.  

 

To learn more about the widget, visit http://quickbooks.intuit.com/trends/ and  www.qbsbdc.com. 

 

Affordable Care Act 101 Webinars

With new health insurance marketplaces now open, the Small Business Administration and Small Business Majority are excited to announce the next set of Affordable Care Act 101 weekly webinar dates. Each week, small business owners can learn the basics of the Affordable Care Act and how they can enroll in small business health insurance marketplaces. Other topics discussed include insurance reforms, the small business health care tax credit, and employer shared responsibility provisions. SBA representatives help small business owners understand the facts of the Affordable Care Act so they can make informed decisions about providing health insurance for their employees.

 

The Affordable Care Act 101 takes place every Thursday at 2 PM ET. Below are the registration links for upcoming presentations.  

 

� Thursday, December 5 at 2:00 PM ET: Click to Register 

� Thursday, December 12 at 2:00 PM ET: Click to Register

� Thursday, December 19 at 2:00 PM ET: Click to Register

For more information on how the new health care law affects small businesses, check out www.businessusa.gov/healthcare.  

 

Small Business Energy Efficiency Program

  

Your small business could lower its energy usage and costs by participating in the Small Business Energy Savings (SBES) program offered in partnership by ComEd, Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas. If you are a Nicor Gas customer, you can also participate in their Small Business Energy Efficiency Program.

 

Designed with your small business in mind, SBES offers free energy assessments and incentives up to 100 percent off recommended energy-efficiency projects. If you own or
operate a small business such as a retail store, office, auto shop, light manufacturing facility, restaurant, bakery, dry cleaner, warehouse or a non-profit organization you could
be eligible to start saving now. Our qualified SBES Trade Allies will assist you every step of the way to help you achieve energy savings for your business. Click here to view the flier and the fact sheet

 

Visit NicorGasRebates.com/smallbusiness or call (877) 886-4239 to learn more.  

 

Get Smart: Small Business Workshops at Waubonsee

Starting Your Business in Illinois ($30)       

Tue., Dec. 3, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora) 

Wed., Jan 15, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)

Tue., Feb. 11, 6-9 p.m. (Sugar Grove)

Wed., March 12, 6-9 p.m. (Copley) 

 

Marketing for Small Business ($30)

Thu., March 13, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)
Thu., May 1 6-9 p.m. (Copley) 

 

Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Law ($30)
Thu., April 10, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)

 

Business Plan Boot Camp - #1 Markets & Marketing ($30)
Tue., Dec. 10, 1-4 p.m. (Aurora)  
Tue., Jan 21, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)
Tue., Feb. 18, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)

Business Plan Boot Camp - #2 Forecasting & Financing ($30) 
Thu., Dec. 12, 1-3 p.m. (Aurora)
Tue., Jan. 28, 6-8 p.m. (Aurora)
Tue., Feb. 25, 6-8 p.m. (Aurora)

Secrets to Retail Success ($30) 
Tue., March 4, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)

Business Foundations ($25) 
Tue., May 12, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)  
 
Is Franchising Right For You? ($30)
Wed., Feb. 12, 6:30-8:30 p.m. (Aurora)

 

Social Media Marketing for Small Business ($30)

Thu., Dec. 5, 6-9 p.m. (Sugar Grove) 

 

Google for Business ($30)

Wed., March 5, 6-9 p.m. (Aurora)

 

Facebook for Business ($15)

Thu., Jan. 30, 7-8 p.m. (Online) 

 
LinkedIn for Business ($15) 
Wed., Dec. 11, 7-8 p.m. (Online)
Register at Waubonsee Tickets

 

Tweet Like a Pro ($15) 
Thu., Feb. 27, 7-8 p.m. (Online)
Register at Waubonsee Tickets 

 

Pinterest for Business ($15) 
Wed., April 24, 7-8 p.m. (Online)  

Check seminar details for the full list, class descriptions, locations, ticket numbers, and pricing. To sign up, complete and submit the registration form. For additional  information call the Illinois SBDC office at (630) 906-4143.   

QuickBooks and Excel

A variety of QuickBooks and Excel classes are available to meet your small business accounting needs. Click here for complete class descriptions, locations, dates, times and costs.

Illinois SBDC at Waubonsee Community College  

Funded  in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration and Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.  All opinions, conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA or DCEO.
WCC does not discriminate based on any characteristic protected by law in its programs & activities.
 
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