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"One thing I appreciate about NWBOC
certification is that I have confidence in the people reviewing the applications and doing the site visits. They don't miss things that should be caught, and they
don't misinterpret normal business
arrangements as suspect."
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- Lisa K. Hickey, Douglass Screen Printers Inc,
Lakeland, FL
NWBOC Certified
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Top Stories
Top 10 Resolutions for Women Business Owners
As 2009 begins Women-Business Owners are making plans to keep their businesses alive, and hopefully even grow them, during a precarious economic time. Janet W Christy, author of Capitalizing on Being Woman Owned: Expert Advice for Women Who Have or Are Starting Their Own Business, offers her third annual version of the Top Ten Resolutions for Women Business Owners.
1) Watch government announcements very closely. The government announcements about stimulus packages, incentives and other money related actions can provide information about where they will spend their money and may include clues about if and how Woman Owned Businesses can be involved.
2) Determine if Subcontracting is a good option for my business. Many WBEs (Womens Business Enterprises) are missing revenue because they do not pursue opportunities to be a subcontractor. Very often government and large business contracts require that the Prime Contractor use Woman/Minority Owned Businesses (W/MBEs) as subcontractors. The Prime Contractors have trouble finding qualified subcontractors.
3) Look for outsourcing opportunities. As businesses and government agencies reduce staff and struggle to maintain services and functions they may outsource functions. You could be their outsource. For additional information on outsourcing read my article at http://www.leverageanddevelopment.com/Outsourcing.html.
4) Stop looking for grants and no-strings attached money. According to the SBA (Small Business Administration) and many other small business organizations, grants are typically used to fund centers or projects for the development of women owned businesses and not for supporting businesses just because they are owned by a female. Time spent looking for grants would be better spent identifying and qualifying prospects.
5) Take the time to actually identify and qualify your prospects. In tough economic and slow revenue times it is scary to spend time and money on marketing. But the best antidote for fear and depression is action. Use this time to identify potential customers/clients and conduct research to actually make sure they qualify as prospects for your business. If you do this you will not only feel more in control of your business future, you will have a bonafide list of people to market to.
6) Do the Certification paperwork! Because the opportunities for Woman-Owned Businesses is increasing there are more and more "pretenders" trying to take advantage of the situation. Because of this most Government Agencies, Education Institutions and Prime Contractors are requiring that WBEs be certified to qualify for opportunities. There is not usually a reason to be certified if your customers/clients are individuals. However, if you are trying to sell to government, schools or corporations then a certification has become more of a necessity than a differentiator.
7) Consider new direction or re-packaging of your business. The economic sands are shifting and that may mean you need to shift your direction or the way you package/market your business. I was told in a "personality types" seminar I once attended that everyone has an alternate personality - the one that shows itself when you are under stress or backed in a corner. Many businesses and government agencies have been backed into a corner, or at least stressed, by the economic situation. That means they are operating in their alternate personality. You must, therefore, meet their altered or new needs. Always remember that you are not selling your products or services, you are meeting the needs or solving the problems of your clients/customers.
8) Make your networking pay off. If your networking activities have not paid off or you have limited amount of time for networking then be sure you network with identified, qualified prospects. Attend the luncheons, meetings, and conferences that your prospects attend. Do not restrict your networking to groups of other businesswomen or your profession. Participating in the organizations and meetings that your prospects participate in provides the best (maybe only) access to the people who actually use your products/services. Also, take advantage of the Groups on the social networking sites, this is the next best thing to being in a meeting with your prospects.
9) Find partners. Government agencies, education institutions and commercial businesses do not always separate projects or purchases into small enough parts for most Woman Owned Businesses to participate. This is done to save money. The economic situation will probably increase this trend. Partnering can provide a solution for this obstacle and will likely save you money and time.
10) Take advantage of the trend, wisely. The focus on the use of Woman Owned Businesses continues to grow, but its notoriety causes businesses that are not truly Woman Owned to pretend that they are. It also brings out people who want to separate you from your money by offering "fail-proof" means of getting government and corporate contracts. Use your advantage, but be careful of those who promise you grants, qualified bid opportunities and magic formulas. Remember, if it sounds to good to be true - it is.
You can contact Janet at janet@leverageanddevelopment.com or 864-244-4117. Her company website is www.leverageanddevelopment.com
WIPP Calls For New Small Business Equity Fund
In a letter to incoming Senate Small Business Committee Chair Landrieu (D-LA) and Ranking Member Snowe (R-ME), Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), one of the nation's leading small business organizations, called for the inclusion of a $50 billion equity fund administered by the SBA for small and midsize business acquisitions. Given the tightening of the credit market, this groundbreaking idea would provide existing small business owners with the ability to grow their firms in their industry segment in a down market.
Sponsored by a coalition of national women business organizations, including NWBOC, the Economic Blueprint: the Women Business Owners' Platform for Growth, outlines the immense progress women business owners have made since the passage of HR 5050 in 1988 and their plans for future growth. To learn more, visit www.wipp.org.
e-Procurement Marketplace
It's a New Year and time to check that your information is current and accurate on the NWBOC Marketplace.
Go to the marketplace homepage: https://nwboc.economicengine.com/
Enter your current email address and password in the upper left hand corner of the page, and enter the marketplace. If you have forgotten your password, click on forgot password and a new password will be emailed to you within minutes. If the new password does not come within minutes, please call customer support 1-866-526-9266.
Please take a few minutes to go over the commodity/service codes (under Edit Company Profile) to make sure you have all selected and saved that reflect what your company provides. Change or add any other information. Be sure to click on "save" once you have updated your selections.
These changes can help make your company more accessible to bid opportunities.
If you have any questions, please call 866-526-9266 from 8 a.m. EST to 5 p.m. PST, Monday-Friday.
Marketing Tip
In these challenging economic times, you don't want to let any opportunities pass you by. Are you missing bid opportunities from other agencies? On the right-hand column on the NWBOC/Economic Engine home page is a listing of other marketplaces that are looking for WBEs. Go to their sites or contact Larry Hancock at 866-526-9266 to see how your business can be seen in many more places.
For example, there are also 1,689 housing development agencies that can view your company information and contact you by phone, fax, mail, or email. To receive email notifications of bid opportunities from the agencies within your region, and to respond electronically, the annual cost is only $100.00 (Silver Membership). You may pick also select any three of the eight housing regions for $200.00 per year (Gold Membership), or receive email notifications from all agencies across the country for only $400.00 (Platinum Membership) per year. (A 33% discount for be a minority or woman owned businesses.)
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Member News
One of our newly certifieds, Harmony Design & Engineering, wrote a letter to praise our site visitor, Beth Ann Reece: "I am pleased to write this positive letter of reference for Beth Ann Reece. Ms. Reece was very thorough and courteous during her site visit to our office in Driggs, Idaho. I was pleasantly surprised that Ms. Reece took the time to make valuable suggestions regarding our company operations, employee management, continuing education program, and marketing plan. She had great insights and I feel that her input will help us continue to grow and be successful." Jennifer P. Zung, President, Harmony Design & Engineering www.harmonydesigninc.com
Announcing the Enterprising Women Class of 2009
Congratulations to the NWBOC certifieds who will be receiving their awards March 11-13, 2009 at Disney's Yacht Club Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
OVER $25 MILLION IN ANNUAL REVENUES:
· Cynthia J. Pasky of Strategic Staffing Solutions, Detroit, MI
· Tanya C. Matthews of TMG Construction Corporation, Purcellville, VA
OVER $10 MILLION & UP TO $ 25 MILLION IN ANNUAL REVENUES:
· Hannah Kain of ALOM, Fremont, CA
OVER $ 1 MILLION & UP TO $ 5 MILLION IN ANNUAL REVENUES:
· Terri Sullivan of Meridian Imaging Solutions, Alexandria, VA
Also, congratulations to two other award winners who have dedicated listings on the NWBOC e-procurement marketplace:
OVER $ 5 MILLION & UP TO $ 10 MILLION IN ANNUAL REVENUES:
· Leah Brown of Aten Solutions, Inc., Cary, NC
· Bridget Soyka Smith of Soyka Smith Design Studios, Upper Montclair, NJ
Send us your news!
Have you won an award, launched new products and services, gained new clients, etc.? if you are a member of NWBOC, then we want to hear from you! Email your news to Mary@CommunicationBridges.com.
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Success Stories of Our Certified WBEs
 Meet Hollis Brookover of Morningside Products
Hollis Brookover, owner of Morningside Products, founded her company in 2004 with the purpose of giving everyone access to healthy and natural body care products. She didn't believe that anyone should have to read the fine print on the bottle to know if they were getting safe, quality ingredients. Morningside products include hand soaps and lotions, body soaps and lotions, bubble baths, and body butters marketed in four lines - Originals, Simple Originals, Lumiere and Morningside.
Morningside Products formulates and sells high quality bath and body products to retail buyers throughout the US and Canada. The products are manufactured in and shipped from Garden City, Idaho.
NWBOC Certification has benefited Morningside Products in two important ways: Recognition and Opportunity.
Recognition: In 2006 the US Department of Commerce recognized Morningside for outstanding achievement in exports during the Idaho World Trade Day. Later that year Brookover traveled with then Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne on a trade mission to Mexico to explore the Mexican market.
Opportunity: In 2008, through Supervalu's Supplier Diversity Program, Morningside was able to successfully present two of its product lines for sale in the SuperValu family of grocery and drug stores. The Originals and Simple Originals brands can now be found in many Albertsons, Acme and Jewel Osco stores.
As Morningside continues to grow, Brookover plans to establish a non-profit foundation that will be called the Every Child is an Original Foundation and funded by a percentage of Morningside sales and private donations. The foundation will support research and education activities directed toward the public and legislators to help them better prepare America's children to meet the challenges of life in the global economy. In the meantime, Morningside is giving back through a holiday program called Shop and Share. From now through Valentines Day 2009, online shoppers can designate one of 6 local charities to receive 30% of the purchase price when they select special Morningside products.
More information is available about Morningside, its products and the Shop and Share program at
www.morningsideproducts.com |
NWBOC Reminders
NWBOC's Website! It contains more helpful information than ever before and will feature success stories, e-newsletters, etc. Go to www.nwboc.org to see for yourself.
Certification Kits are Available From NWBOC
You can always print the application from the website, but now you can purchase a kit for $39.95 plus shipping. The kit, customized to the business entity (i.e. LLC, corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship) contains a notebook, dividers, the application, helpful hints for what materials to include, and other information. And, you can charge this purchase to M/C or Visa. Call 1.800.675.5066 to place your order.
NWBOC on MSNBC
NWBOC President, Janet Harris-Lange was a featured guest on MSNBC morning show "Your Business" to discuss obtaining certification as a woman-owned or minority-owned company. Click on the following link to watch the episode. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/26591632#26591632
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| New and Re-Certified Companies
Companies Newly Certified by NWBOC
(12/3/08-1/12/09)
NWBOC is proud to announce that the following companies have qualified for WBE certification:
All Colors
Lori Bradley, Owner
Boise, ID
Cornerstone Appraisal Services, Inc.
Janet Toma, President
Valparaiso, IN
Florida Windows and Doors, Inc.
Denise DeDecker, President
Deerfield Beach, FL
Frontline Medical Corp.
Kelly Spivey, President
Tampa, FL
Great River Office Products, Inc. dba Mercury Office Supply
Sandra Schmidt, CEO
St. Paul, MN
Harmony Design, Inc.
Jennifer Zung, Principal
Driggs, ID
Infinite Recruiting Resources
Daveenia Deaver, CEO
Atlanta, GA
Lionfish, LLC
Gloria Wildeman, Principal
Bellevue, WA
Mayner Business Law, P.S.
Andrea Mayner, Owner
Issaquah, WA
Methodologie, Inc.
Janet DeDonato & Anne Traver, Principals
Seattle, WA
Naomi D. Abrams dba Worksite Health & Safety Consultants
Naomi Abrams, Owner
Gaithersburg, MD
TI Asset Management, Inc.
Margaret Stagmeier, President
Marietta, GA
Companies Renewing WBE Certification with NWBOC
(12/3/08 - 1/12/09)
A.J. Danboise
Accudyn Products, Inc.
Administrative Controls Management, Inc.
Aeroflite Enterprises, Inc.
Age of Travel, Inc.
Artscape, Inc.
Baron Sign Manufacturing
Barr-Nunn Enterprises, Ltd.
Barr-Nunn Logistics, Inc.
Barr-Nunn Transportation, Inc.
Barry Industrial Group, Inc.
Biotechnical Services, Inc.
Bross Group, LLC
C B Bovenkamp, Inc.
Cadence Keen Innovations, Inc.
Creative Ideas
D.R.B. Electric, Inc.
Dan-Shel, Inc. dba Express Employment Professionals
Ebner Design Associates, Inc.
Edwards Consulting Firm, Inc.
Executive Cleaning Services, Inc.
Farrago Holdings
Florida Silica Sand Company
Fusion Technology Solutions, Inc.
Garcia Baldwin, Inc. dba MarketVision
Greentree Consulting, Inc.
Iconma
Information Solution Services, Inc.
Integra International, Inc.
JT/SG Enterprises, Inc. dba Solutions Staffing
LatusPoint
Media Buying Services, Inc.
PersonABLE, Inc. dba Express Employment Professionals
Prime Power Services
Professional Maintenance of Michigan, Inc.
Renovo Data, Inc.
S.T.J., Inc.
Schneider Electrical, Inc.
Shrader Analytical & Consulting Laboratories, Inc.
Team Services, Inc.
The Engraver
Thompson Electric, Inc.
TRIKO, Inc.
Tri-Pen Management Corporation
Turner Doughty Corporation
Vision South Utility Construction, Inc.
Zoya, Inc.
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Don't forget..."When you need to procure goods and services, think WBEs first!"
~ Janet Harris-Lange, NWBOC President
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The NWBOC e-Newsletter is distributed by the National Women Business Owners Corporation (NWBOC). NWBOC created the first national certification program for women enterprises. NWBOC's certification program offers an alternative to the costly, time-consuming and duplicative agency-by-agency and corporation-by-corporation certification process.
If you have information for the NWBOC Newsletter, please send it to mary@CommunicationBridges.com or fax to 928-204-9835. If you no longer want to receive this e-newsletter, hit the SafeUnsubscribe™ button below this email.
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