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Protecting Small Businesses from Fraud and Scams – Trends for 2024

October 3, 2023

By Earl Gregorich, CBA – South Carolina Small Business Development Center, Greenville

It’s a crazy world out there and small businesses are being targeted by scammers, fraudsters, hackers, thieves, and bad actors. So how do we run a business and keep our cash, data, employees, and clients safe? Let’s take a look at some of the upcoming trends in cybersecurity that might help small business owners create a defensive strategy:

Attacks Will Continue – More Frequently and with Greater Sophistication

OK, this prediction certainly isn’t a surprise but it certainly sets the stage for why it is important to establish a defense against these attacks. Ransomware and phishing attacks have been around for a while now but the days of just scanning for poor grammar to stay safe are over. (Thanks AI!) Hackers can now take more sophisticated approaches, using traditional email with more effective narratives, graphics, and fake email addresses. Attacks will also become more widespread with improved voice dubbing for phone and audio attacks and more powerful computers to drive the hacking.

Take The Quiz! 3 Questions To Identify The Essential Business Insurance Coverages For Your Small Small Business

August 28, 2023

By Gild Insurance

Introduction

Starting and running a small business comes with its own set of challenges and risks. While you focus on growing your business, it’s crucial to safeguard it against unforeseen events that could potentially disrupt your operations. This blog post will walk you through the essential types of business insurance your small business should consider and provide a quick quiz to help you make informed decisions on how to protect your business’ future.

Driving Quality Counseling with Hybrid Learning: 10 Tips for Gaining Traction from Training

August 22, 2023

By Barbara Nuss, CPA, Profit Soup

Nothing surpasses the warm feeling business trainers and counselors get from witnessing the “lightbulb moments” new skills and knowledge can bring, followed by real positive changes in individuals’ lives and their businesses. With financial resources scarce, and funding for training in decline, how can you leverage your time and reach more clients in a scalable, efficient way? Enter online learning.

Many were forced into the online universe due to the restrictions on in-person interactions. Others had embraced it far earlier. Today many SBDC Centers use online platforms to deliver training and counseling. As a nation, we are not going back anytime soon: more than half of American adults who expect to need more education or training now say they would do it online. Still, we question whether we make the same impact when we lack face-to-face engagement.

Stargate Ventures

August 15, 2023

Stargate Ventures — A Success Story

He was just a senior in high school when the light bulb went on for Stargate Ventures owner, Robert (Rob) Lavine. Like many teens, he was watching YouTube and finding ads popping up showing the glitz and glamour of making money online. And, of course, there were videos to show you just how to do.

“I remember being in class and just kind of skipping lunch,” says Rob. “Everybody laughed, and I watched that whole entire video. And that was really, I would say the change, the light switch that for me, I was like, ‘Alright, I really want to pursue becoming an entrepreneur’.”

Strategic Planning and Business Foundations from University of Georgia SBDC Help Brokerage Gain Sales and Success

August 8, 2023

Client: Practice Sales Advisors, St. Simons Island, GA
Consultants: Jordan Tippett & David Lewis, UGA SBDC Brunswick

Rebecca Robinson Davis of St. Simons is a people person, so much so that she left a lucrative position as a residential real estate appraiser in 2004 in search of a job – any job – that would replace the isolation of appraising homes with more personal interactions. She never thought that move would bring her such success thanks in part to a deep partnership with University of Georgia Small Business Development Center.

“I was looking in the newspaper and there was one job on St. Simons. One job,” she said. “It was for a national vet brokerage, but the description was vague. I turned in my resume anyway and did the interview. They hired me immediately because of my valuation background, which really helped because a business valuation is the foundation of a vet practice sale.”

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