America’s SBDC Blog

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America’s #SBDC Congressional Showcase – Elevate Systems

January 22, 2016

10 Days to the Showcase!

Elevate Systems
San Antonio, Texas
www.elevatesystems.com 

Elevate-Systems-StaffElevate Systems is a full-service organization providing engineering services, primarily for the Department of Defense; energy services, including lighting assessments and LED retrofits in the commercial sector; executive and professional consulting services; information technology services; and senior program and project management support services.

Once Maricela and Scott Gray started their new firm in December of 2012, they contacted the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) for advice and guidance. They had their first meeting at the SBDC PTAC in early 2013, with SBDC PTAC business advisor and project manager Sheriley Smith.

Sheriley provided contact information for all of the local Military Installation small business specialists in the area. She also provided information concerning certification programs for small business owners, including local, state and federal certifications, so that Elevate Systems could maximize its opportunities when bidding on contracts.  (more…)

America’s #SBDC Congressional Showcase – Bear Creek Smokehouse

January 21, 2016

11 Days to the Showcase!

Bear Creek Smokehouse
Bear-Creek-Smokehouse-logoPremium Smoked Meats Since 1943
Owned and Operated by the Shoults Family
10857 State Highway 154, Marshall, TX 75670
(903) 935-5217 / (800) 950-2327
www.bearcreeksmokehouse.com

Kilgore College SBDC Success Story

Bear Creek Smokehouse recently won the “Marshall Star Award,” the “Longview Small Family Business of The Year” award and was featured on the FYI Network’s Food Factory show.

Bear-Creek-Smokehouse-storefrontNestled in the East Texas piney woods of Bear Bottom, four generations of family tradition surrounds Bear Creek Smokehouse. Originating in 1943, Hick and Nellie Shoults have raised and cured their own smoked meats. Since then, the Smokehouse has grown from a backyard venture with 600 birds to one of East Texas’ largest facilities producing a wide variety of smoked delights. Bear Creek Smokehouse is one of the oldest stores in the United States, offering products such as ham, peppered pork tenderloins, smoked ribs, pork loins, brisket, a variety of birds and much more! The store also offers a range of soups and beverage mixes, along with chocolate fudge and praline pecan desserts.

Over the years, the Smokehouse has prided itself on never surrendering the quality and taste of the “old-fashioned” way of hickory smoking. They believe their customers keep coming back because of the way they continue to create smoked meats without compromise. Locally, the Bear Creek Smokehouse salesroom presents the Shoults’ down-home country atmosphere, accentuated by the family’s next generation of traditional values.  (more…)

America’s #SBDC Congressional Showcase

January 20, 2016

12 Days to the Showcase!

America’s Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) are excited to announce the America’s SBDC Client Showcase & Reception is back again this year! The following SBDC clients will be joining us on Capitol Hill on February 1st:

• Bear Creek Smokehouse – North TX
Client-Showcase-2015• Elevate Systems – South-West TX
• Green Technologies – FL
• Helios Remote Sensing – NY
• House of Design – ID
• KuKuRuZa Popcorn – WA
• Luke’s Toy Factory – CT
• McClintock Distilling – MD
• The Eats Place – DC
• Zeigler Bros – PA

To prepare for our big day, we will be doing a 12-day countdown to the showcase reception. Each day we will share a story about one of the clients attending the reception, who they are and how they worked with their local SBDC.  (more…)

Preparing to Buy a Business: Part 2 of 2

January 13, 2016

In our previous installment, we touched on the benefits of buying an existing business, determining client readiness to buy, and organization. With such a small percentage of business searchers completing the purchase, it’s important to get clear on criteria and what is going to be the best fit for your client’s lifestyle and abilities.

Choosing the Right Type of Business

Many times, buyers will spend too much time looking for what they think is the “perfect” business, and end the search prematurely after realizing it doesn’t exist. Helping your client establish the right type of business to target will not only get them closer to a purchase, but it will open up options that fit within their ideal without having to hit every checkbox. (more…)

New Year, New Beginnings and New Businesses

January 11, 2016
By Nancy Jeng

Google-New-Years-2016-blogEach new year brings the dream of new beginnings and, for many, that includes the dream of starting a new business. In fact, Google Trends data shows us that interest in “starting a business” peaks every January. To support the millions of businesses that are created each year, we’re sharing some of the ways you can use the web (and Google) to launch your new business:

Use Google Trends to size up your market opportunity. Before you launch a business, you want to make sure there is a viable market for your product or service. You can use Google Trends to help gauge your market potential. For example, if you’re looking to open a pet store, see when searches for ‘pet supplies’ peak or which geographic regions clocks in the most searches for pet supplies.

Find a domain, create a site and get custom email. Picking out the right domain name is often the starting point to building a successful online presence. With new domain endings like .pizza and .photography, there are now more options to choose that fit your new business. Google Domains helps you get started with registering a domain, building a site with trusted partners and setting up custom email.  (more…)