Being a small business owner is tough. As owners, we wear many hats from accounting to human resources to marketing to IT and beyond. The important thing to know is that we are never alone on our journey. There are a lot of helpful and free resources available to assist.
Two of the resources that I want to talk about in this post can help both the new startup business owner as well as the seasoned veteran.
The first resource is the Small Business Development Centers (SBDC). The SBDC offers free resources to business owners, including starting a business, business management consulting, online marketing audits and much more.
I recently had the opportunity to work with Cassie Fly, an SBDC marketing specialist. She assisted me with a free audit of my online marketing channels, including my website and my social media channels. As someone with a background in marketing, I was pleasantly surprised by the in-depth reports she prepared as well as the follow-up conversations to implement a plan of attack.
I recently recorded a podcast with Cassie. She explained about the free resources available through the SBDC as well as how to connect with the organization to setup an initial discussion.
The other resource for small business owners is how to file for the right kind of business license (LLC, S Corp and C Corp). I recently uncovered this article from The Hartford Insurance Company. I thought it did a good job of explaining the pros and cons of each as well as providing a podcast with more in-depth details.
While being a small business owner has it challenges, the rewards and the possibilities it opens are pretty special. I hope these resources can help along your journey.