New York SBDC Research Network

The folks at Bplan.com have completed the first full season of their podcast, The Bcast. They're on hiatus now, so this is a great time for you to catch up on all the episodes. Click here to check out The Bcast » Season one covered a wide range of topics to help you start and run a better business, from bank loans and lean business planning, to niche marketing and customer service. Subscribe to The Bcast on iTunes » Here are some of season one's most popular episodes:

Today's small business success story comes from the Small Business Development Center at Onondaga Community College. Christopher R. Resig Christopher R. Resig, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, became President and owner of N.K. Bhandari Architecture & Engineering, P.C. (NKB) in January 2015. Chris has been with the firm a total of 18 years. For over 35 years, NKB has provided architectural and engineering services for Federal, State, Health, Corporate, Industrial, Higher Education, K-12 Education, and Facilities clientele. Representative projects include: Customs and Border Protection Renovations at Robert McEwen Custom House in Ogdensburg, NY; Hanley Federal Building Façade Restoration, Syracuse, NY; Massachusetts National Cemetery Phase III Expansion, Bourne, MA; New Parking Structure, Veterans Administration Medical Center, San Juan, PR; Corning Inc. Process Research Center North Addition, Corning, NY; and Grant and Scott Barracks Restoration at USMA, West Point, NY.

Have you found a mistake in one or more of your credit reports?  The Mid-Hudson SBDC has compiled guidance on how to fix an error on your report.   How To Dispute an Error in Your Equifax Credit Report If you find an error in your Equifax Credit Report or in any of the products that contain information from your file, you should initiate an investigation with us free of charge using one of the three methods described below. We will investigate your concerns directly at the source (creditor, collection agency or courthouse), respond to you within 30 days, and send you an updated copy of your Equifax Credit Report via US Mail. If you are in the process of applying for a loan, immediately notify your lender of any incorrect information in your file. Your lender will need to reorder your credit file and score once any changes have been made to your information at Equifax. To initiate an investigation, you will need to have a current copy of your Equifax Credit Report. If you do not h

This week we’re sharing some helpful worksheets you can use to evaluate and plan your social media marketing.  They come from our “ SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING FOR SMALL BUSINESS ” planning guide.  Come in to your local SBDC for a copy of this book - 65 pages of step-by-step social media instructions.   Social Media Marketing Worksheet #5: Social Media Platforms Choose the platforms that will be best for your business and focus your energy on doing those platforms well. Don’t try to manage social media accounts on every platform out there. Select the ones that will work best with your company culture, brand vision, and available resources. Once you’ve decided which social networks you want to join, use this worksheet as an example for organizing your account information in one location. Keep this information updated and on hand. It will be especially helpful if you have multiple people managing the company’s social media accounts.

Bplans.com knows a thing or two about what it takes to start a business. The Managing Editor of Bplans, Candice Landau, distills what entrepreneurs and the leadership at Palo Alto to get to what entrepreneurs need to figure out as they stand on the threshold of being business owners. It includes legal issues, working through business ideas, and resources for helping to figure out your vision. Here is an example of the type of things you need to know before you start a business: 2. Start working through your business idea Do your research and validate your idea: You’re probably going to be doing this at the same time as you write your business plan. This is why we strongly recommend starting with a one page pitch first. It’s the lean format of the business plan—the format that will allow you to adapt fastest as you progress through the startup phase. More importantly, it will allow you to play with ideas before you even start. As you work through this section, the key things t

This week we’re sharing some helpful worksheets you can use to evaluate and plan your social media marketing.  They come from our “ SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING FOR SMALL BUSINESS ” planning guide.  Come in to your local SBDC  for a copy of this book - 65 pages of step-by-step social media instructions.   Social Media Marketing Worksheet #4: Social Media Goals: Your social media marketing goals should be unique to your business and overall company vision. First, determine current challenges facing your social media presence. These might include: no current content or presence, low website traffic, weak audience engagement, minimal brand awareness, or poor brand reputation or customer service. Once you’ve identified current challenges you should produce strong social media goals and clear plans of action to meet these challenges.  This worksheet shows what a completed goals worksheet would look like.

This week we’re sharing some helpful worksheets you can use to evaluate and plan your social media marketing.  They come from our “ SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING FOR SMALL BUSINESS ” planning guide.  Come in to your local SBDC for a copy of this book - 65 pages of step-by-step social media instructions.  Social Media Marketing Worksheet #3: Competition Investigation: Dig deep and analyze the competition. Use this worksheet to examine your competition’s social media platforms, content, and engagement.