Community & educational development

PRESS RELEASE

 

The American Grants and Loans Catalog is now available. Our new and revised
2013 edition contains more than 2800 financial programs, subsidies, scholarships,
grants and loans offered by the US federal government.

 

In addition you will also have access to over 2400 programs funded by private
corporations and foundations. That is over 5200 programs available through
various sources of financial providing organizations.

 

NEW: You will also have access to our live Database that is updated on a daily
basis. This product also provides daily email alerts as programs are announced.

 

The Database is also available with IP recognition. This allows you to login
without a username or password (Great for libraries or educational institutions
who want their users to access the database).

 

Businesses, students, researchers, scientists, teachers, doctors, private individuals,
municipalities, government departments, educational institutions, law enforcement
agencies, nonprofits, foundations and associations will find a wealth of information
that will help them with their new ventures or existing projects.

 

The document is a fully searchable PDF file for easy access to your particular
needs and interests. Simply enter your keywords to search through the publication.

 

It is the perfect tool for libraries and educational institutions to use as a
reference guide for students who require funds to pursue their education.

 

Contents of the Directory:

 

-Web link to program announcement page
-Web link to Federal agency or foundation administering the program
-Authorization upon which a program is based
-Objectives and goals of the program
-Types of financial assistance offered under a program
-Uses and restrictions placed upon a program
-Eligibility requirements
-Application and award process
-Regulations, guidelines and literature relevant to a program
-Information contacts at the headquarters, regional, and local offices
-Programs that are related based upon program objectives and uses

 

Programs in the Catalog provide a wide range of benefits and services
for categories such as:

 

Agriculture
Business and Commerce
Community Development
Consumer Protection
Cultural Affairs
Disaster Prevention and Relief
Education
Employment, Labor and Training
Energy
Environmental Quality
Food and Nutrition
Health
Housing
Income Security and Social Services
Information and Statistics
Law, Justice, and Legal Services
Natural Resources
Regional Development
Science and Technology
Transportation

 

CD version: $69.95
Printed version: $149.95

 

To order please call: 1 (800) 610-4543

 

Please do not reply to the sender's email address as this address is only for outgoing mail.

 

If you do not wish to receive information from us in the future please reply here:
rem218@mail.com

 

This is a CANSPAM ACT compliant advertising broadcast sent by:
American Publishing Inc. , 7025 County Rd. 46A, Suite 1071, Lake Mary, FL, 32746-4753

Get your product to go VIRAL.

If you are thinking about how you can get your product to go viral, it may be easier than you think by utilizing some key elements in your marketing process.

Many products that are popular today existed 10 or even 15 years before they got noticed. Nobody knew about them because they were still in the developing phase or were just waiting to go viral. Today, many small businesses go through the same. They believe they have a great product but don’t know how to make it popular in the market.

Nadia Goodman said in a recent article on Entrepreneur.com, “You don’t need a huge advertising budget nor luck...you just need to know how to incorporate some key elements to make your product go viral.”

Read the full article here to learn what these key elements are.

Take care of your customers' needs.

People always say how customers are the lifeblood of any business......well, they are right! Many small business owners forget about this and take their customers for granted. Once the business gets rolling, many people focus more on profits and sales than on their customer. Remember, without customers you won’t have sales nor profits.

It seems obvious how business owners should ask customers questions about the service or products being offered, but amazingly many don’t. Even more amazingly, many forget to listen to what customers have to say about their business. Customer’s opinion on their services or products, just add value to what you can offer.

Complaints are also something you shouldn’t take for granted. With these, you will know what areas you need to improve on and what you can eliminate from the business that is not serving you or your customers.

So always remember, listen to your customers and don’t be scared to ask them questions. That’s the only way you can get feedback and know what is good and bad for business.

Social Media Marketing To Mobile

We all know that the world is changing and that people are starting to become more technology oriented and “mobile”. By mobile, I mean people using their phones or tablets to do more things than one can even imagine. Research shows that last year the time people spent via mobile checking Facebook increased 85%, Twitter 140%, Linkedin 114% and Pinterest 4,225%. This is something you as a business owner or as a potential business owner should consider when it comes to your Marketing.

The article below explains these 5 easy tips on how you can optimize your social media content for you mobile customers.

5 Tips

1. Be much more thoughtful about when you are posting.

2. Add value to the mobile experience – which differs from adding value to the desktop or laptop experience

3. Design for mobile first
4. Test different mobile platforms to understand the differences
5. Check your analytics

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/226200

What is a QR code?

Have you already thought about getting a QR for your business? Check out ours below. Scan it to see where it takes you.

Should you ask a family member for financial funding?

Are you looking into getting some financial funding from a family member but are not sure if it is a good idea? Well, it can be challenging working with family members and even more challenging when a large amount of money is involved. You need to consider how involved the family member will be in your business and how strong a relationship you have.

Before doing anything else, create a contract, just as if you were dealing with a bank; put it in writing and spell out the terms of the loan, interest, payments, time frame, etc. Also, have a plan B in mind just in case the business fails, and make sure the family member is aware of it as well. Here are some pro and some cons for you to consider.

Pros
• More than likely they will not ask for a credit score nor perform a background check
• They may not ask for interest on the loan• If you need a favor, they may be willing to help out, unlike banks
• Possible payment flexibility
• He or she will care about the long-term success of your business...because remember, you are family!

Cons
• Relationship can be ruined
• Unwanted advice
• Family member may be demanding, even more than a bank

It’s March Madness – how can you take advantage of it in your business?

If your employees are crazy about March Madness, try to find a way to use this as a morale-builder and a chance to have fun with them.

John Mahoney, COO of a staffing firm, says “When you let people enjoy the things they love instead of trying to control them, and you trust them to do the right thing, that pays off for the company”.

Mahoney found 4 lesson companies can learn from March Madness

1. Underdogs Win
2. Working together works
3. Fun matters
4. Some moments really matter

To read more on this and see what he means by all 4 lesson click on the following link to go to his complete article.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/226143

College of Business Administration - Whitton Speaker Series

Secretary of State Event

Choices in Business Structures

•March 19

•2 p.m. ~ 5 p.m.

•Whitton Auditorium, Vivian M. Carroll Hall

•Reception will begin at 5 p.m. - Macfeat House

- Choices For Legal Structures For Business

- What are my options for the leagal structure of my business?

- (LLC, S Corp, C Corp, Partnership, Sole Proprietorship)

Presented by

SC Secretary of State – Mark Hammond and

Shannon Wiley – Deputy Legal Counsel

Secretary Hammond will discuss the duties of the Secretary of State's Office as a filing entity and the different types of entity structures that file with their office. He will be discussing the form requirements for each business structure choice as well as other facts surrounding business structure choices for business owners.

How to Choose the Best Business Structure

What are the tax and debt implications?

Presented by

Joanie Winters

Attorney at Law – Winters Law Firm

This event is free and open to the regional business community

Sound exciting? Let's get you registered and we will see YOU on March 19!

REGISTER HERE

For more information or to reserve your space please contact Page Bowden, Director of External Relations for the College of Business Administration, at bowdenp@winthrop.edu or 803.323.2504

What's The Culture Of Your Business?

What do you think of when you think of culture?   A specific ethnic culture of dress, speech, or lifestyle?  Culture as it applies to knowledge of the arts or literature?  Whatever your definition of culture may be, chances are good that you haven't put much thought into defining or nurturing the culture of your business.  Does your business even have a culture, in your mind?  Sure it does -- you've probably just never recognized or identified what it is.

Generally speaking, your company's culture is going to be decided by you, and how you and your actions  demonstrate your personal beliefs.  Watching you and emulating your behavior (or not), your employees will help create your general company culture.  If you demonstrate good values, a good work ethic, good customer service practices, ethical treatment of both customers and employees, and good management skills, you probably have a good basic work culture.  But what else have you got? 

Do your employees look forward to coming to work, or do they spend the day watching the clock?  Do they enjoy each other's company or do they just tolerate each other?  Do they have ideas that you could utilize to help your business grow?  Have you ever asked?  Do they know and appreciate all you did to start your business, and what your vision is for continued growth?  Is there a place for them in your vision?  Do they know what that is?

I've found some great quotes from CEO/business owners on what they do to encourage their own special company culture.  The thing that strikes me is the sense of "belonging" they all create for their employees, actually illustrating to those employees their importance in the company's "big picture."   People who feel their work is appreciated and their opinions count become more than just people who want a paycheck -- they become invested in your success.  

Here's a quote regarding something every business owner can easily implement into practice .... the daily meet.   “Each morning, we get together for the only mandatory part of our schedule: the morning meeting. We go around answering first, what we’re most excited about doing that day and then second, a silly question. (Examples include favorite children’s book, first pet’s name and No. 1 Thanksgiving dinner staple.) It’s a refreshing way to start the day and laugh a lot (one of our core values).” ~ Derek Flanzraich, Greatist

That may seem elementary, but it's important to note that in the other examples I'm sending you to, that same "work hard, but play too" theme is used in different ways.  These companies have a culture of "closeness" .... it keeps employees happy at work .... keeps them focused .... keeps them "hands on" involved with problem solving. 

To read more about different company cultures, and how they work, click here.

Get inspired and become a leader.

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.

- John Quincy Adams

SC Secretary of State Speaking in Rock Hill on Legal Structure for Your Business

Choices For Legal Structure For Business

What are my options for the legal structure of my business ?

(LLC, S Corp, C Corp, Partnership, Sole Proprietorship)

Presented by

SC Secretary of State – Mark Hammond and

Shannon Wiley – Deputy Legal Counsel

Secretary Hammond will discuss the different types of entity structures that file with their office. He will be discussing the form requirements as well as other facts surrounding each entity choice.

How to Choose the Best Business Structure

What are the tax and debt implications?

Presented by

Joanie Winters

Attorney at Law – Winters Law Firm

March 19

2 p.m. ~ 5 p.m.

Whitton Auditorium, Vivian M. Carroll Hall

on the campus of Winthrop University, College of Business Administration

Reception will begin at 5 p.m. at Macfeat House

This event is free and open to the regional business community

PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED AT http://www.eventbrite.com/event/5397197162#

The objective of the Whitton Best Practices Series, sponsored by Elaine Whitton Davis and developed in conjunction with Winthrop faculty, is to provide free or low cost access to current, state-of-the-art knowledge relevant to small business practice.

For more information or to reserve your space please contact Page Bowden, Director of External Relations for the College of Business Administration, at bowdenp@winthrop.edu or 803/323-2504

Co-Sponsors:

Marketing Mix for your Small Business

You may remember this from marketing class, but if you don’t here is an overview of the Marketing Mix and how you can apply it to your Small Business.

The Marketing Mix is synonym to the 4 Ps which are Product, Price, Place and Promotion.

Think about these 4 Ps and see how you are using each one within your business. This can be a very powerful tool for you to use in order to get your products marketed in a much more efficient way. Here are some questions you need to ask yourself about how you are using your current Marketing Mix.

Product

• What do customers expect from the product/service?
• Is the product/service satisfying customer’s needs?
• What does the product look like? Is it attractive to the customer?
• Is the size, color, etc. appealing to the customer?
• How is the product/service different from your competitors?
• Is the product/service profitable?

Price

• Is your price appropriate for the product/service?
• How is your price compared to competitors?
• Is your customer price sensitive? Will lowering prices gain you extra market share? Or will increasing the price gain you a bigger profit margin?

Place

• Where is the customer looking for your product/service?
• Are you accessing the right distribution channel?
• Where are your competitors selling their product/service?
• Are you selling online? If not, is that something you need to start doing?

Promotion

• Are you getting your marketing message across to your customers?
• Are you reaching your target market through your current advertising? If not, try new ways of getting to your customer (social media)
• How are you promoting and advertising your product/service? Is it profitable? Are you seeing results?
• What is the competition doing?

Should I use Pinterest for my business?

Have you been thinking about creating a Pinterest account for your business but you aren’t too sure what it is? Well if you haven’t yet done so, you should start thinking about creating one NOW.

Pinterest is a type of social media that allows you to say who you are through visually engaging ways. This is also a great way to create a strong brand image and reach out to new clients. Many people forget what they read, but once they see a picture, it is a lot easier for them to remember.

This is how Pinterest helps you attract new clients and make your business grow.  And just a little extra incentive for you:  Pinterest is said to have a higher click-through rate than Facebook and Twitter put together! 

How’s that for a business incentive?! The following article gives you 10 questions you should ask yourself when creating a Pinterest account for your small business.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/225936