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Why Military Veterans Should Become Entrepreneurs

July 5, 2016
By Mark L. Rockefeller, CEO, StreetShares

American-flag-on-brick-backgroundI’m one of the 2.5 million veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan. I’m also an entrepreneur. And I’m not alone. The men and women of today’s armed services are uniquely positioned to become successful entrepreneurs.

To my fellow veterans:

You have what it takes. By nature of your military service, you possess the skills that are required to run your own business. As a Soldier, Sailor, Airman, or Marine, you learned the importance of communication, focus, and drive to accomplish the mission at hand. You’ve encountered problems that need to be solved on the fly and you’ve done so instinctively. Recall one of the earliest reports from Operation Enduring Freedom: U.S. special operations forces in Afghanistan coordinated precision airstrikes from laptops on horseback—21st Century technology met old-fashioned creativity to get the job done. That’s called entrepreneurship.

You are a leader. You’ve already acted with more poise under pressure than most people do in a lifetime. You’ve shown bravery in the most daunting situations one can face. These experiences will naturally yield positive results in a position of leadership; people around you will seek your guidance and direction, knowing they can trust your judgment. Use this to confidently build a team and lead them to success.  (more…)

Art, Utility and Passion Yield Sustainable Burlington Business

June 28, 2016
VtSuccess-AOGlassGlass Blowing Operation Utilizes
Vermont SBDC Advisor Support

Combining art, utility and passion into a viable business can be a serious challenge. Few know that better than Rich Arentzen and Tove Ohlander, owners of AO Glass LLC, a production glass studio in the heart of Burlington’s Pine Street arts district. Still, they decided to tackle that challenge “in order to take a passion and turn it into a sustainable business,” Arentzen said.

But they didn’t have to do it alone. Arentzen and Ohlander looked to Vermont Small Business Development Center Area Advisor Steve Densham “in order to blow glass while making a living,” Arentzen said. The company needed better planning skills and better focus on core business matters and “existential goals,” Arentzen said. They also sought a better understanding of accessing capital, business growth and business life cycle, he said. (more…)

Go Mobile this Month with Google

June 20, 2016
By Nancy Jeng

This year, more than half of all searches will take place on mobile devices. Yet many small businesses are not optimized to serve a mobile-first audience. So how do you know if your small business site is mobile-friendly?

This month, Google releases a new tool called Test My Site to help small business owners and website managers evaluate their sites for mobile-friendliness. Just input your URL and get your mobile friendliness score. Here, we break down what mobile friendliness means, and why it matters for your business.

Mobile Design. People are five times more likely to leave a site if it isn’t mobile friendly. Your site mobile design score will tell you whether your content is sized properly, legible or even viewable on mobile devices. (more…)

#M3 Maxed Out; For Now

June 16, 2016
By DeRon Talley, LSBDC Communications Specialist

When you use the hashtag on your social media posts, it connects you with others who share the same conversation. However, if you use a hashtag that is dominated by a popular brand your conversation will be overlooked like a pink dot on a red wall. No need to deny it, we’ve all been there. But it’s always been those of us who have been able to go back and use the old traditional ways to communicate and mix this new digital-aged way to find the success we want.

M3-Event

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When It Comes to Email, Size and Looks Do Matter

June 14, 2016
By Steve Robinson
Director of National Organizations, Constant Contact

you-have-a-new-messageBefore you hit the send button on your next email marketing campaign, here’s something to think about – the average person received 91 consumer emails each day in 2015 and that number is expected to climb to 117 per day by the year 2019.1 These days, just getting a customer to open an email can be a feat unto itself. But not if you follow these insider tips.

Getting Noticed

How does a customer choose which email to open, open first, or not at all? The first thing they look at is the sender’s name and the subject line. If they don’t know you, it makes it that much harder to inspire them to open your message.

To encourage people to open your marketing emails, take these three critical
steps. First, ask your customers for permission to add them to your contact list. Since email marketing is permission-based, meaning you should have a green light from customers before reaching out, this clears the hurdle of them knowing the sender when the message appears in their inbox.

Second, your email address should be under the name that customers know. This is most likely going to be the name of your business, such as “Patsy’s Pastries,” though in some instances it might be your name, as in “Patsy Smith.” Just be sure to use the name the customer recognizes.  (more…)