Of course, www.sbtv.com is my favorite online resource for small business owners--but here are a few others:
SCORE-Counselors to America's Small Business - www.score.org
America's premier source of free and confidential small business advice for entrepreneurs. Volunteers are working or retired business owners, executives, and corporate leaders who share their wisdom and lessons learned in business.
National Association for the Self-Employed - www.nase.org
The nation's leading resource for the self-employed and micro-businesses providing a broad range of benefits and support to help the smallest businesses succeed.
Count Me In - www.countmein.org
Champions the cause for women's economic independence by providing access to business loans, consultation, and education. The first online microlender, Count Me In uses a unique, women-friendly credit scoring system to make loans of $500 to $10,000 available to women across the United States who have nowhere to turn for that all-important first business loan. Provides access to networks that expand contacts, markets, skills, and confidence.
Golden Seeds - www.goldenseeds.com
Identifies and invests in women-led ventures with the potential to grow into multimillion-dollar businesses while enabling accredited investors to invest alongside Golden Seeds. Provides entrepreneurs with strategic business advice as well as access to funding and the tools to enable them to grow into multimillion-dollar businesses.
Ladies Who Launch - www.ladieswholaunch.com
Provides content and community to help women start and expand their businesses and creative ventures. Connects thousands of women to each other by giving them multiple forums in which to connect and ultimately propel their entrepreneurial visions forward in ways they may never have dreamed possible.
Make Mine a $Million Business - www.makemineamillion.org
A program of Count Me In for Women's Economic Independence, and of founding partner, OPEN, from American Express. Provides a combination of money, mentoring, marketing, and technology tools that women entrepreneurs need to help grow their businesses from micro to millions.
Mom Inventors - www.mominventors.com
Develops, manufactures, and sells quality Mom InventedTM branded products throughout the United States and Europe; helps inventors take their products from concept to market by providing a highly informative, interactive community-based website and offering the best inventor-education services in the field; and highlights and publicizes the historical and present-day inventive contributions of moms by both licensing products invented by moms and publicly crediting them for their inventions.
National Association of Women Business Owners - www.nawbo.org
The voice of America's 10.6 million women-owned businesses. Helps women evolve their businesses by sharing resources and providing a single voice to shape economic and public policy. The only dues-based national organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs across all industries.
National Federation of Independent Businesses - www.nfib.org
The leading advocacy organization representing small and independent businesses. Represents the consensus views of its members in Washington and all 50 state capitals. Promotes and protects the right of its members to own, operate, and grow their businesses.
National Minority Supplier Development Council - www.nmsdc.org
Provides a direct link between corporate America and minority-owned businesses. 3,500 corporate members throughout the network (including most of America's largest publicly-owned, privately-owned, and foreign-owned companies, as well as universities, hospitals, and other buying institutions). Regional councils certify and match more than 15,000 minority-owned businesses (Asian, Black, Hispanic, and Native American) with member corporations that want to purchase goods and services.
National Women's Business Council - www.nwbc.gov
A bipartisan federal advisory council created to serve as an independent source of advice and policy recommendations to the president, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business Administration on economic issues of importance to women business owners. Promotes bold initiatives, policies, and programs designed to support women's business enterprises at all stages of development in the public and private sector marketplaces.
Small Business Development Centers - www.sba.gov/sbdc
Provides management assistance to current and prospective small-business owners. Offers one-stop assistance to individuals and small businesses by providing a wide variety of information and guidance in central and easily accessible branch locations.
Springboard Enterprises - www.springboardenterprises.com
A national nonprofit organization accelerating women's access to the equity markets. Offers programs that educate, showcase, and support women entrepreneurs as they seek equity capital and to grow their companies.
Danita Blackwood