New York SBDC Research Network

From:  U.S. Small Business Administration  The U.S. Small Business Administration is interested in learning more about the needs of current and aspiring small business owners. This survey will ask for input on the resources you have used to start and manage your small business and your satisfaction with those resources.    This survey is being administered by CFI Group, an independent third-party research group. It is voluntary and will take approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete. Any information you provide will be strictly confidential. Neither names nor email addresses will be associated with any answer you provide.

Each year the  New York Small Business Development Center  recognizes outstanding small businesses in a variety of ways.  This Success Story from the   Buffalo SBDC  appears in our  2016 Annual Report .  Kerry Beiter   Alpine Made Buffalo SBDC Bieter & Sons’ Farm LLC is a certified organic goat dairy farm and Ms. Kerry Bieter is the sole owner of the business. In 2012, Kerry founded Alpine Made LLC, a soap and skin care company, through which she sells goat milk soaps and skin care products at farmers markets in Western New York, wholesale to local retailers, and nationally through a website. Bieter & Sons’ farm uses sustainable and organic farming practices to raise alpine dairy goats. The business is certified organic through the northeast Organic Farming Association of New York. The farm is located in the town of Wales in an agricultural district 30 minutes south of Buffalo. Kerry began working with Buffalo SBDC Advisor Andrea Lizak in 2011 when she was in the pl

From  Entrepenuer Every state in America picked one small business owner as its small business person of the year as part of National Small Business Week. Each one of them was up for the national award as well. These people are doing amazing things , from contracting with the Department of Homeland Security to making silver-gallium nanoneedles. Max Nisen,  Guidance Aviation  is a high-altitude flight school and John Stonecipher just won  Small Business Person Of The Year .   One piece of advice for small business owners: "Surround yourself around the best people you can and give them an opportunity to do what they love to do best. Each one of my staff and faculty are leaders themselves. I cannot succeed without them."

From:  Medium Marketing is  really  about how customer values translate into aspirations, insecurities, fears and motivations. Marketing, at the end of the day, is not just about a company’s values — it’s about understanding what these mean  to a customer , and getting that meaning to be felt strongly enough that they buy. The success of a business — and its marketing message — is partially figuring out what people want. And partially the promise of fulfilling it. There are a number of companies popping up that sell clothing with elephants on it and donate part of the proceeds to “saving the elephants.” They’re popular. And they’re popular not because donating makes people feel good, but because  elephants make people feel good. It’s not accidental. These companies aren’t donating to, say, endangered Amazonian spiders or rock moss. No. It’s elephants. Why? It’s simple. You want to sell some fast-fashion casual clothing?  Look at who’s buying it. Once yo u know who’s buying it (

From:  MarketingProfs Writing can take a lot of time. Sometimes that's because research needs to be done; sometimes the business owner you're working with may have unexpected changes; and sometimes you can be your own worst enemy by making your writing process inefficient—especially if you're a perfectionist. Trying to create a "perfect" piece as you write can hinder creativity and slow you down. But the good news is that you are in control of making your writing process faster and more productive, and today's  infographic  by  Enchanting Marketing  offers tips to help. "Perfectionism becomes unhealthy when you mix it with self-doubt and undermine your creative productivity," the graphic begins. "To speed up and enjoy your writing, become a writing pragmatist." For example, a perfectionist wants to use perfect sentences in a first draft, whereas a pragmatist simply puts down ideas on paper that can later be finessed, the graphic explains

From: eMarketer Brick-and-mortar retailers often gripe that they are at a competitive disadvantage against online retailers because of their relative inability to map a more complete view of their customers are and their traffic, browsing and purchasing behavior. As malls, department stores and other retailers struggle to drive traffic, some players are considering sharing data. Mall developer Westfield, the owner of 35 shopping centers, is seeking to persuade retailers, brands and even competing malls to share data such as what consumers have just bought to allow partners/rivals to better target potential customers for related sales.

Each year the  New York Small Business Development Center  recognizes outstanding small businesses in a variety of ways.  This Success Story from the   Brooklyn SBDC  appears in our  2016 Annual Report .  Doris Ulysse Brooklyn SBDC The story of Doris Ulysse is testimony to the grit and talent of a determined African American woman entrepreneur. Doris specializes in network design and administration. She is particularly adept at configuring and integrating hardware and software for a full spectrum of client types. She first consulted the Brooklyn SBDC after years of working as an IT professional to “test the waters” of entrepreneurship.  Advisor Janet Page expertly guided her through the business planning process and MWBE certification protocol. Doris became an MWBE subcontractor through the NYC Office of General Services and a contractor for the NYC Housing Authority. She learned that having certifications had little to do with getting contracts as a Prime or sub-contractor