10 Social Media Laws

If you have a small business or are thinking about opening up one, it is vital for you to know how social media works. Nowadays social media is part of our life and one of the best ways to advertise your business. Knowing the following laws of social media, will help your business elevate its audience and take its customer base to a higher level.

1. The Law of Listening

2. The Law of Focus

3. The Law of Quality

4. The Law of Patience

5. The Law of Influence

6. The Law of Value

7. The Law of Compounding

8. The Law of Acknowledgment

9. The Law of Accessibility

10. The Law of Reciprocity

To learn more about these 10 laws, visit the following site http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/218160

Minority Outreach Program extends services of South Carolina Small Business Development Centers

SC Small Business Development Centers is home to a new and much needed program created to assist minorities in starting or growing small companies. Leading this new initiative is Minority Outreach Manager Garry James.

"We can help walk you through the development of your business plan which will assist in determining whether your idea is feasible or not. We can also assist in exploring ways to expand existing businesses and help determine markets for your products that you may not realize exist. One amazing area where we help is in government contracting. This is called procurement. We have procurement specialists with a wealth of knowledge and experience who help small companies secure state and federal contracts." - Garry James
For more information on this, please visit - http://midlandsbiz.com/articles/9349/

If we all Shop Small, it will be Huge!

This Saturday November 26th, will be the 2nd annual Small Business Saturday! This is a day dedicated to supporting small businesses on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year. So make the most of the day. From Twitter posts to posters, the link bellow has all sorts of tools to help your business get new customers and have a great Small Business Saturday!!

Small Business Saturday.com

BIG NEWS About the SBA 504 Refinance Program to Give Small Business Owners a Boost!

This could be a huge benefit for small business owners who need to consolidate debt or refinance a loan in order to increase working capital.

The funding was approved last year, but it has taken a while to develop the program and set requirements to qualify.  The criteria for qualifying for these loans for existing businesses has just been finalized. This video will give you the whole scoop!  Click here for the 504 Refinance Program Video

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS (updated by 504LoanExperts as of October 12,2011):

Refinance proceeds to be used for:

1.Owner-occupied commercial real estate.
2.Machinery and equipment.
3.Itemized Business Expenses (such as salaries, rent, utilities, inventory, paying-down payables and other obligations of the business).
4.Closing costs associated with the project.

Loan being refinanced must have been current for the past year with no past dues more than 30 days (loan deferments and/or modifications are now eligible for refinancing as long as borrowers have not been past due on these newly modified terms).

Debt must be two (2) years or older prior to the date the application is received by the SBA.
Small business concern must have been in business for two years prior to the submission of the application.
In addition to a cash contribution, the borrower’s 10% contribution may be satisfied by its equity in the Eligible Fixed Asset(s) serving as collateral for the Refinancing Project or by the equity in any other fixed assets that are acceptable to SBA as collateral. (An independent appraisal of the fair market value of the project assets and any additional assets offered as additional collateral must be provided, dated within 6 months of application submission — we will engage the appraiser).

No refinancing of loans with an existing federal guaranty (includes 7(a), 504 and USDA loans).

Once the SBA has satisfied the immediate demand, it will open the program to the other small business that have balloon notes and ultimately to small businesses that would realize a substantial cash flow benefit as a result of this program.

ARE YOU READY?

There are signs that things are improving every so slightly in the economy ... especially for small business. Jeffrey Gitomer (in spite of his unlikely wardrobe) is marketing "guru" focused on helping you improve your sales. He's proven himself over and over, and knows his subject well. Listen here while he tells you how to best take advantage of the little boom headed our way.

SBA Offers Disaster Assistance for NC and SC Counties

SBA’s Deadline is October 18 for Physical Damage

ATLANTA – The U.S. Small Business Administration reminds homeowners, renters, businesses and non-profit organizations of the deadline to submit disaster loan applications for damages caused by the severe storms and flooding that occurred on Aug. 5, 2011. The deadline to file an SBA disaster loan application for physical damage is Oct. 18, 2011.

Anyone with insured losses should not wait for an insurance settlement before applying to the SBA. “If someone does not know how much of their loss will be covered by insurance or other sources, the SBA will consider making a loan for the total loss up to its loan limits, provided they agree to use insurance proceeds to reduce or repay their SBA loan,” said Frank Skaggs, director of SBA Field Operations Center East.

Low-interest disaster loans are available in Mecklenburg County, and the neighboring counties of Cabarrus, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln and Union in North Carolina; Lancaster and York in South Carolina.

Interest rates are as low as 2.5 percent for homeowners and renters, 3 percent for non-profit organizations and 4 percent for businesses with terms up to 30 years. The SBA sets the loan amounts and terms based on each applicant’s financial condition.

For additional information, call the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955; (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET or send an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan application forms can be downloaded from the SBA’s website at http://www.sba.gov/. Completed applications should be mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

Those affected by the disaster may also apply for disaster loans electronically from SBA’s website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical damage is October 18, 2011. The deadline to return economic injury applications is May 19, 2012.

Kauffman Foundation Expands Global Scholars Program . . .

U.S. Graduates Invited to Apply
Media Contacts:
Barb Pruitt, (816) 932-1288 or bpruitt@kauffman.org
Sarah Brewster, (816) 842-8111 or sarah@trozzolo.com

Applications available online, due Oct. 17, 2011

(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) Sept. 22, 2011 — A world-class opportunity awaits U.S. college graduates with innovative ideas for a new business. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is expanding its successful Global Scholars Program to include up to 10 recent graduates from U.S. colleges and universities who will join Scholars from around the world.

During the first five years of the Global Scholars Program, Kauffman hosted students sponsored by governments and organizations from five countries representing 11 nationalities. In 2012, the expanded Program will enable selected U.S. Scholars to learn and network with an international group of fellow aspiring entrepreneurs.

"It is essential that countries seek to educate global citizens whose vision, knowledge and reach extend beyond their own national boundaries," said Wendy E.F. Torrance, Global Scholars Program director. "By inviting U.S. Scholars into this Program, we can engage our next generation of entrepreneurial talent at a global level."

The Global Scholars Program is now accepting applications from outstanding U.S. college students or recent graduates with business ideas in the science, technology and engineering fields who are U.S. citizens or legal U.S. residents. Applications can be submitted at www.kauffman.org/USglobalscholars, and must be completed by Oct. 17, 2011. The U.S. Scholars will be selected in November 2011 and will begin the six-month Program in January 2012.

The participants will ultimately develop their entrepreneurial skills, ideas, competencies, and capabilities to start a business.