NEWS

Incubator Entrepreneurship Survey
Take our quick survey, "Are you an Entrepreneur?" We are collecting information about entrepreneurship in the valley and want ot hear from you. It takes only seconds to complete: http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB2292FUERTTQ Thank you!

"Incubator kitchens" provide ingredients for business success
Budding food entrepreneurs are turning to rentable, fully stocked "incubator kitchens," complete with health-inspector approval, to help them get started. About 60 such kitchens exist in the U.S., providing a valuable resource for some chefs. Los Angeles Times (4/21)

Creating A Vibrant Entrepreneurship Ecosystem
Policymakers in Washington are debating how and where stimulus funding should be used to accelerate job creation and economic development through innovation clusters and business incubators. Babson College Professor Mark Rice suggests that short term stimulus should leverage the existing innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem; and simultaneously, opportunities to innovate with respect to the structure, processes and resources of the ecosystem should be explored. His article is available in Science Progress http://tinyurl.com/c6sf7p or view the short video summary at YouTube

Change is good for business
There are fewer decision makers in small businesses, which means that such businesses usually adapt faster to changes, says business coach Marvin Powell of Centreville, Va. The Wall Street Journal looks at five small businesses that have developed new products to adapt to the market: a personal trainer, a landscaper, a wood supplier, a pool maker and a commercial-property-management company. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires

Become a fan of The Business Incubator Center on Facebook
The Business Incubator Center is now on Facebook. Click here and login to become a fan and have Business Incubator Center news, events, and videos posted to your personal Facebook page.

CAMPUS LIFE

Social Networking for Business: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and more
Social networks are an increasingly important way to build customer relationships, expand your contact database and increase your company's visibility on the web. Understanding these new tools is especially valuable in a down economy. On Wednesday, April 15, from 6 to 9 p.m. at The Business Incubator Center, Andrew BE of Elegant Technologies Limited will lead a Social Networking workshop to demonstrate how these networks can be used as build your "brand".
At the workshop, you will learn how to use social networks to cultivate contacts, establish relationships with potential customers, build profiles to become more "findable," and hone search techniques and strategies. Cost: $35.
For more info go to: http://www.elegantwebsitedesign.com/blog/
When: Thursday, May 7 from 5:30 - 9:00pm

Government Contracting
Whether you’re a seasoned veteran in the government contracting arena or just getting started, this event is a must. Federal, State, and Local governments purchase billions of dollars worth of products and services from businesses through government contracts. Learn of the latest developments in government contracting, HUB zones, minority and disadvantaged business certifications. Cost is $55 and includes lunch.
Speakers include;
· Dale Wells from Sterling Innovations
· Chip Brazelton from CDOT
· Carolyn Terrell and Greg Lopez from the SBA

When: Wednesday, May 13 from 9:00am to 4: 00pm

Get the word out!
Incubator Clients, let us help promote your success! I am sure that many of you have seen the weekly articles in the Free Press featuring client companies. Well, that support is just one of many ways we can help get the word out about your business. We have a close working relationship with the Daily Sentinel and the local TV news stations as well. We have recently updated our website (http://www.gjincubator.org/) and would love post videos, stories, pictures, snippets, or blurbs about your business. Please send any news you have to creddin@gjincubator.org.

Business Incubator Center NEWS

Incubator Entrepreneurship Survey
Take our quick survey, "Are you an Entrepreneur?" We are collecting information about entrepreneurship in the valley and want ot hear from you. It takes only seconds to complete: http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB2292FUERTTQ Thank you!

Tip from Wesley Scripps of Forlio Designs LLC
http://gotvmail.com/ is a neat website that provides toll-free numbers for small businesses. It gives a big company feel to any small business. I recommend it to my clients because it makes life a little simpler and the cost is low. Forlio Designs LLC

How to be an (open) design star
German design star Ronen Kadushin is aiming to revolutionize home decor by applying the principles of open-source computing to the proprietary world of furniture design. Consumers are invited to visit Kadushin's Web site, download free specifications and AutoCAD files, and make their own pieces. Kadushin encourages creative modifications of his designs, and he even encourages users to send a photo of their adaptations. Wired

Public relations is alternative to ad-budget cut
The line between journalism and marketing has blurred in the convergence of new media, and since advertising is expensive, public relations is a solid avenue for getting the word out about what a company can offer. The key to getting a journalist to report on a company is doing the homework to find out what content is appropriate for a particular audience and focusing on how the company can offer what the audience wants. BusinessWeek

Ideablob
Specialized in small business banking needs, the Advanta Bank Corporation began Ideablob.com as an outreach effort to help small business owners and entrepreneurs grow their businesses. Using the strength of crowds, Ideablob is a virtual location where business ideas/concepts are exposed, nurtured and rewarded. In monthly contests, rewards of $10,000 are given to the best proposal of the month voted by the website community. Virtual expert advisors provide additional assistance and guidance to those who submit ideas. Only open to participants from the United States, the website recently began a new service, Boblive, where live pitches are made in physical venues around the country with the objective of improving business concepts and ideas.
(Source: Adapted from http://www.ideablob.com/

CAMPUS NEWS

Get the word out!
Incubator Clients, let us help promote your success! I am sure that many of you have seen the weekly articles in the Free Press featuring client companies. Well, that support is just one of many ways we can help get the word out about your business. We have a close working relationship with the Daily Sentinel and the local TV news stations as well. We have recently updated our website (www.gjincubator.org) and would love post videos, stories, pictures, snippets, or blurbs about your business. Please send any news you have to creddin@gjincubator.org.

Social Networking for Business: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and more
Social networks are an increasingly important way to build customer relationships, expand your contact database and increase your company's visibility on the web. Understanding these new tools is especially valuable in a down economy. On Wednesday, April 15, from 6 to 9 p.m. at The Business Incubator Center, Andrew BE of Elegant Technologies Limited will lead a Social Networking workshop to demonstrate how these networks can be used as build your "brand".
At the workshop, you will learn how to use social networks to cultivate contacts, establish relationships with potential customers, build profiles to become more "findable," and hone search techniques and strategies. Cost: $35.
For more info go to: http://www.elegantwebsitedesign.com/blog/
When: Wednesday, April 15 from 6:00 - 9:00pm SOLD OUT (add your name to the wait-list for a second session coming soon)

Government Contracting
Whether you’re a seasoned veteran in the government contracting arena or just getting started, this event is a must. Federal, State, and Local governments purchase billions of dollars worth of products and services from businesses through government contracts. Learn of the latest developments in government contracting, HUB zones, minority and disadvantaged business certifications. Cost is $55 and includes lunch.
Speakers include;
· Dale Wells from Sterling Innovations
· Chip Brazelton from CDOT
· Carolyn Terrell and Greg Lopez from the SBA

When: Wednesday, May 13 from 9:00am to 4: 00pm
Join us on LinkedIn
Collaboration amongst peers is one of the most important benefits to being part of the Business Incubator Center community. To help enrich this aspect of the program, we would like to suggest that if you are not already a user of the social networking site LinkedIn, please consider joining! The Business Incubator Center now has a group on LinkedIn, and we would like to invite all of you to join us. The more people who are in the group, the more valuable a resource it will become to the Business Incubator Center community. As the community grows, you will be able to find colleagues who may be in similar industries or facing similar growth issues, and it will serve as just one more way that the community can help businesses grow and prosper.
The Business Incubator Centerhttp://www.linkedin.com/e/vgh/1554637/
To learn more about how to use LinkedIn to help grow your business go to: http://learn.linkedin.com/entrepreneurs/

TOASTMASTERS: Become the Speaker & Leader You Want to Be
Join us as the downtown Toastmasters meeting moves to the Incubator Campus! Toastmasters participants practice and learn skills by filling a meeting role, ranging from giving a prepared speech or an impromptu one to serving as timer, evaluator or grammarian. There is no instructor; instead, each speech and meeting is critiqued by a member in a positive manner, focusing on what was done right and what could be improved.
Good communicators tend to be good leaders. Incubator Clients are welcome! Attend a meeting or two to observe and participate as much as you like, but membership is required for additional participation.
When: Every Thursday at noon
Where: in the Training Room

The GYM is open!
The Business Incubator Center is excited to open a gym on campus that will provide all Incubator Client Companies and their Staff the opportunity to meet their fitness goals 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For more details or to get a guided tour of our 540 sf facility, contact Kjersti (khudson@gjincubator.org ) or Katie at the front desk. Here’s to a happy and healthy 2009!

Video Lab Training Session
Topic: Learn to use the new video lab…and make better use of your website.
When: Call Chris to schedule a time
Where: in the video lab on the second floor of the technology building