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BUSINESS NOTES
Creative Ways to Stretch Your Marketing
Budget
Innovative ways some business owners are
using to stretch their marketing
dollars:
Take advantage of technology -
- Use email instead of direct mail
- Attend virtual trade shows rather
than traveling
Partner with others in your industry to
spread the expense and the knowledge
Build your social network by offering
free classes at libraries
Take a horizontal marketing approach:
Determine your typical client profile
and then target this group by
identifying a noncompeting business that
has that group as customers.
Read more horizontal marketing ideas in
this article from Entrepreneur.
Federal Government Small Businesses News
Setting up a Payroll System - A 10 Step
Guide for Small Business
No matter how many employees you have -
setting up a payroll system not only
streamlines your ability to stay on top
of your legal and regulatory
responsibilities as an employer, it can
also save you time and help protect you
from incurring costly IRS penalties.
Here are 10 steps to help you set up
a payroll system for your small business
from
Business.gov.
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IRS Offers Details on New Small Business
Health Care Tax Credit
Guidance from the IRS makes it easier to
determine whether small businesses are
eligible for the new health care tax
credit and how large a credit they will
receive. Connect to the details
here.
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Veteran-Owned Businesses - the Latest on
Certification
From
business.gov: clarification on
veterans' certification - click
here to read.
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SBA Small Business Loans
Explained-Availability, Eligibility and
the Application Process
- click here to
read this article from
Business.Gov.
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Learn about the special tax treatment
for expenses incurred before business
operations begin.
Business Start-up and Organizational
Costs
Business Start-up Costs
From IRS Publication 535 (2008) -
Business Expenses
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"The Child Care Tax Center"
This link to the IRS Website connects
the business owner with tax resources
for their child care business. The
Child Care Tax Center covers several
areas pertinent to running a daycare
center.
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"Business.Gov's
Licenses and Permits Tool"
This tool automatically generates a list
of appropriate licenses and permits when
you enter your business type and
city/state. Business.Gov
Licenses and Permits Tool
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"Cultivating Sound Business Practices
with the Help of the IRS"
Click here
to read an article from
Business.gov about using the 2010
IRS Tax Calendar. The calendar is
available here:
IRS Tax Calendar
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KU SBDC's Open House - New Offices
in Reading at the Berks County
Community Foundation LEED Building
The KU SBDC and the Berks County
Community Foundation welcome you to
our open house at the Berks County
Community Foundation LEED Building
on Tuesday evening, August 24, 2010
from 5-7 p.m.
We are celebrating the opening of
our new specialty program offices in
the BCCF LEED building, at 237 Court
Street, Reading. Also, this fall we
will be offering Business Planning
for Technology Entrepreneurs classes
and KU SBDC Latino Business Resource
Center bilingual business classes at
this site.
Also that evening, BCCF president
Kevin Murphy will be making a
special announcement and the PASBDC
will be recognizing
Senator O'Pake with a PASBDC award.
Where:
Berks County Community Foundation
LEED Building, 237 Court Street,
Reading PA 19601
When: Tuesday, August 24 from
5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Cost: $0 |
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Congressman Tim Holden Presents:
"The Courthouse, the Federal
Procurement Process, and You:
Winning Courthouse Contracts" - a
small business workshop
The focus of this event will be the
Harrisburg Courthouse project. The
workshop will cover:
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Step-by-step guidance on
pitching your firm for work on
this project and more through
the federal buying process
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Introduction to federal
government contracting, small
business certifications and the
advantages they can provide
The workshop presenters will be:
Helena Koch, General Services
Administration
Lisa Clark, KU SBDC Procurement
Technical Assistance Center
George Murray, Small Business
Administration
Where:
Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC,
3211 North Front Street, Harrisburg,
PA 17110
When: August 26 from 9:00
a.m. to noon.
Cost: $0
To register, please call Congressman
Tim Holden's office at
717.234.5904. |
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Website Optimization Webinar - WOW!
This 90-minute Webinar is designed
for businesses with Websites that
need tweaks, redesigns, or online
marketing plans. Its goal is to give
participants a foundational
understanding of the basic concepts,
terminology, and functionality of
traditional online marketing
elements.
After the Webinar, each participant
will receive a report which will
provide results from the analysis of
their Website's structural design.
The report will highlight areas
where the Website could be edited to
better meet the technical criteria
of the traditional search
engines. The report is intended to
assist the business owner in the
development of an action plan for
the Website, with changes being made
through your company's internal
staff or through an outsourced Web
developer.
Upon completion of the Webinar, each
participant will receive their
customized WOW report within 14 days
via email, along with one hour of
free consultation to review the
report findings with an SBDC
consultant.
Where: Simultaneous Web conference
with telephone
When: August 25 OR September 15 from
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Cost: $199
To register, click
here. |
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Certification Made Simple
This workshop is offered monthly. It
guides participants through the
application process for state
certification as either a Minority
or Women Business Enterprise
(MBE/WBE). It is presented by Curtis
Burwell of the Pennsylvania
Department of General Services,
Bureau of Minority and Women
Business Opportunities (BMWBO).
Where:
Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC,
3211 North Front Street, Harrisburg,
PA 17110
When: September 1 from 1:30 -
4:30 p.m.
Cost: $0
To register, click
here. |
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The First Step: How to Start and
Operate a Small Business
If you are in the early stages of
thinking about starting a small
business, this workshop is for you.
In fact, even if you have started
your business and are realizing that
you missed a few things, this
workshop is still right for you.
This workshop will provide an
overview of the things you need to
know and the skills you need to have
to manage a small business. Subjects
include: legal and accounting
issues, organization, and
management. The workshop offers you
the opportunity to practice
networking with other entrepreneurs.
Existing business owners can use
this workshop as a "checkup" on
their operations. This workshop is
presented in partnership with the
Small Business Assistance Center.
Where:
September 8: Chester County
Library, 450 Exton Square Parkway,
Exton, PA
September 21: Easttown
Library, 720 First Ave, Berwyn, PA
When:
September 8 OR September 21 from
6:00 to 8:30 p.m.
Cost:
$15.00
To register, click
here. |
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Business Planning: A Series of 4
Workshops
The Business Planning Workshop
Series contains the following four
workshops:
September 9 - Business Plan for
Success
September 16 - Marketing your
Product, Service, and Company
September 30 - Financial
Management
October 7 - Financing the
Business and Feasibility Decisions
Where:
Chester County Library, 450 Exton
Square Parkway, Exton, PA
When: September 9, 16, 30 and
October 7
Cost: $80 for the series, or $25
for each individual workshop
To register or for more information
on the workshops, click
here. |
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The First Step Webinar for Start-Up
Businesses
This 2 hour Webinar (live,
interactive, online workshop)
provides an overview of SBDC client
services and learning resources. It
also introduces topics relevant to
all small businesses during their
start-up phase.
The Webinar will also introduce and
discuss a business concept outline.
A business concept outline
summarizes a business concept onto
ten PowerPoint slides that
communicate the essential
information needed to assess the
business concept.
Where:
Simultaneous Web conference with
telephone
When: September 14 from 11:30
a.m. to 1 p.m.
Cost: $0
To register, click
here. |
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Business Planning (Part I) -
Business Plan for Success
This is the first workshop of the
Business Planning Workshop Series
that begins on September 9 and runs
through October 7. Registration is
available for each workshop or for
the entire series.
Where: Chester County Library, 450
Exton Square Parkway, Exton, PA
When: September 9 from 6:00 to 8:30
p.m.
Cost: $25.00
To register for only this workshop
and NOT the entire series, click
here. |
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The Basics of Government Marketing
Webinar
This Webinar covers the first steps
a small business owner needs to take
to prepare for doing business with
the Federal and Pennsylvania State
Governments. It also includes an
overview of the codes and
registrations.
Where: Webinar with
simultaneous teleconference
When: September 15 from 9 to
10:30 a.m.
Cost: $0
To register, click
here. |
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Business Planning (Part II) -
Marketing Your Product, Service and
Company
This is the second workshop of the
Business Planning Workshop Series
that begins on September 9 and runs
through October 7. Registration is
available for each workshop or for
the entire series.
Where:
Chester County Library, 450 Exton
Square Parkway, Exton, PA
When:
September 16 from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m.
Cost:
$25.00
For more information, or to register
for this session ONLY, click
here. |
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Finding Government Procurement
Opportunities
If your company has registered with
the Central Contractor Register to
qualify for government work and you
want to develop or refine your
skills for finding new
opportunities, this seminar is for
you.
Where:
3211 N. Front St., Suite 201,
Harrisburg, PA
When:
September 17 from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m.
Cost:
$0
For more information, or to register
for this session, click
here. |
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Thank you for taking time out of
your busy schedule to read our
newsletter. We appreciate your
participation in the KU SBDC
community. |
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Sincerely,
Ernie Post, Director
Kutztown University Small Business
Development Center |
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