Take Advantage of Free Small Business Education Opportunities

I currently donate my time twice or three times a month to teach classes to small business owners. I do so at the local SBA Small Business Development Center, other community non-profit organizations focused on helping small business thrive, or by conducting my company's own FREE webinars focused on topics of interest to small business owners. Every now and then we will get a full house of attendees when the topic is a very hot one, like the recent changes in the Texas Franchise Tax, which are thought to be the biggest increase in taxes ever on small businesses in Texas.

Even though the other topics I teach during the month are relevant and timely, we don’t get huge turnouts. We market them well, people who do attend say they are informative, interesting, and most of all useful. Over the 6 months we have been doing these classes, we have gotten excellent written and verbal feedback. Still, if we send out 2,500 – 5,000 well targeted invitations, we will get 8-10 attendees. Why is this?

I am a small business owner (partner) too, so I understand that it is very hard to set aside time to get continuing education. All the topics I personally teach are finance related. Hands on cash flow forecasting in the most beautiful well-equipped computer lab in Austin is an example. I would have expected a bumper turnout in a computer lab that accommodated about 50 students, instead we got 10.

Webinars are somewhat new to the many opportunities for small business owners to gain some critical knowledge that will help them run their business better. They are extremely easy to attend. You simply reserve your spot on the webinar session, receive a confirmation email with a link that you click on which takes you to the computer portion of the presentation, then pick up the telephone and dial into a conference line to hear the audio. You can attend these webinars from the comfort of your office, without taking the time to leave your business or spend gasoline money getting to a distant classroom. If you only get one good idea of piece of information from the session, you will have won.

If you search the Internet for “Free small business webinars” you will find that there are many that are designed to sell you something. Unless you are looking to buy that particular service, these might not be the best choices. There are many available that spend a couple of minutes telling you about their business, then spend 50 minutes presenting a topic of interest, followed by 10 minutes of Q & A. The good ones start right on time and end on-time. They are highly worth it.

My company Business Finance Solutions offers several free webinars a month to small business owners, their bookkeepers, CPAs, and other interested staff. We have never turned anyone away, even our competitors who have wanted to attend. We have a good model of webinar that we urge others to offer and focus on providing a strong hour of education.

Strongly consider taking advantage of your local sources for quality education as well as webinars that have an interest to you. Here are our July offerings.

July 2008

7/22/2008     Free Small Business Webinar

Topic:            Accounts Receivable Financing (Factoring) for Working Capital

Cost:             Free

Time:             50 minute presentation, 10 minutes Q&A

Instructor:    Sam Thacker - Business Finance Solutions

Intended Audience: Small business owners who sell products or services to other businesses, their controllers, accountants, and CPAs.

Description:    Accounts Receivable Finance (Factoring) has become a mainstream method for small and fast growing businesses to obtain working capital for their businesses. Factoring benefits businesses that sell to other businesses on credit and who may be growing very fast, have seasonal or cyclical sales, or have had a history of uneven profits and needs to generate working capital. This webinar will explore different types of factoring available as well as how to pick a reputable customer focused factoring company as well as the mechanics and cost of factoring as a source of working capital.

To Register: write info@lesliethacker.com, provide your name, company name, and phone number to reach you.

7/29/2008     Free Small Business Webinar

Topic:            Benefits of Working with a Professional Employer Organization

Cost:             Free

Time:             50 minute presentation, 10 minutes Q&A

Instructor:    Steve Stoops - Alamo Staff Leasing - San Antonio

Intended Audience: Small business owners who employ 5 or more, their controllers, accountants, and CPAs. Owners of companies required to carry worker's comp and other insurance for their customer projects should be especially interested.

Description:   Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs) assists small to medium sized businesses in outsourcing all forms of payroll, employee benefits, workers compensation, and human resources. A PEO aids these business by enabling them to focus their efforts on basic business functions rather than employee management. Services are integrated by PEO entities in order to thoroughly govern all of your human resource needs and employer risks. These services are delivered by creating an employer relationship at your place of business and contractually obtaining certain employer rights and risks. Very small to large businesses are finding that turning to a PEO makes sense because the cost of benefits and necessary insurance such as worker's comp are pooled in a larger buying group, thereby reducing cost.

To Register: write info@lesliethacker.com, provide your name, company name, and phone number to reach you.