Free Business Resources at the Library / Business Plan and Finances

Shannon Mantaro:

• Welcome and introduction to the services offered by the Center for Women Entrepreneurs.

Kerry Montz:

Small businesses benefit local communities in many ways; therefore, libraries have a vested interest in providing resources for their growth and sustenance. Check out your local library for meeting with SCORE mentors, logging into business databases, or attending networking events. Library cards are free to community residents.

Your local library has FREE resources to make your business more successful:

• Lynda.com: over 6,000 professionally-produced webinars on business, technology, and creative endeavors. Powered by LinkedIn.com, certificates of completion available. Examples of webinars include: “Start a Business Online” and “Quickbooks Essential Training.” (Universal Class is similar.)
• Reference USA: Large database with over 59 million businesses and 313 million individual consumers, and their purchase patterns and buying habits. (AtoZ Databases: similar information as Ref USA.)
• Gale Demographics Now: This database will give access to in-depth research on potential competitors and consumer expenditures, which will help create marketing plans and making key decisions.
• Mergent Intellect: Executive profiles, annual reports, risk ratings, credit information- a treasure trove of accurate and updated financial information.

Tracy Irby:

• Learn the basic steps of small business start-up and resources available
• Introduction to LivePlan business plan
• Know your credit history and how to address any related credit problems to obtain funding