How SCORE Can Help Small Business Owners

March 19, 2008 By Mary White

When you’re launching a small business, you can certainly use all the advice you can get. It’s even better when that advice is free, and is from experts with a history of operating successful businesses. The Senior Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) is designed to match retired executives who want to serve as mentors for those trying to launch or grow small businesses.

Visiting the www.score.org website is a must for any entrepreneur looking for tips and advice related to just about every aspect of starting and running a business. You’ll find so many different valuable resources. For example, you can connect with an online mentor, who will gladly work with you at no cost. Depending on where you live, you may even be able to connect with a SCORE volunteer who’ll work with you face to face, at no charge.

SCORE also offers a variety of free online training resources for entrepreneurs. No matter what you need to learn more about, you’re likely to find online SCORE courses that can provide you with information you need.

The free online business skills workshops available from SCORE include:

Developing a Business Plan
Conducting a Marketing Analysis
Analyze your Competition
Targeting Your Market
Maintaining an Agile Company
Creating a Competitive Advantage
Creating a Strategic Plan
Determining Your Business Legal Structure
Protecting Your Business with Patents, Copyrights, and Trademarks
Preparing a Cash Budget
Preparing a Balance Sheet
Managing Your Cash Flow
Running a Profitable Company
Creating a Profit and Loss Statement
Analyzing Your Financial Ratios
Protecting Your Business with Contracts
Assessing Your Company’s Financial Needs
Partners and Investors
Valuing a Business
Pricing Products and Services
Building Your Brand
Promoting Your Business
Advertising Your Business
Building a Web Site
Personalization Strategies to Attract and Retain Customers
Identifying Your Sales Strategy

In addition to this vast selection of training opportunities, you’ll find a wide variety of free business plan templates, business quizzes, and more on the SCORE website. You can even sign up to receive the SCORE Expert Answers eNewsletter and SCORE eNews.

Whether you’re gearing up to launch a new business, you’ve recently started operations, or you’ve been up and running for quite a while, you’re likely to find SCORE to be one of the most valuable business resources anywhere.

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