By Staff Reports
(Maui) – The County of Maui Mayor’s Office of Economic Development announced its workshops for the month of March. Workshops are presented at the Maui County Business Resource Center, a County of Maui facility, located in the Maui Mall across Pizza Hut in Suite B-9. Seating for all workshops is limited, and all workshops are subject to change or cancellation. To reserve a seat, call the Maui County Business Resource Center at 873-8247. Workshops are free unless otherwise noted.
The following workshops are available:
The ABC’s of a Business Plan
Instructor: Craig Swift
Wednesday, March 4, 2015 – 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.
Craig Swift, Director of the MEO Business Development Center, will discuss the reasons for writing a business plan. He has more than 35 years of experience in owning, managing, and lending to small businesses. Participants will receive an outline of the business plan taught by MEO’s Core Four Business Plan Course.
Business in the Think Tank with MBB Members
Tuesday, March 10, 2015 – 12:00 to 2:00 p.m.
Maui Business Brainstormers meet every month to discuss, share and learn about topics related to starting, running and growing your own business. Spirited discussions result in the exchange of informative hints and tips, education and fun. Attendees contribute their knowledge and experience in the featured segments:
1) Get to Know your Neighbor: an opportunity to interact with new faces and strengthen your own ability to communicate succinctly with others in fast-paced situations.
2) Business in the Think Tank: this is a 20-minute segment in which a selected business is featured for focused brainstorming with the group.
Owners of startups and small businesses benefit from this activity. You are qualified if you have a business concept fully researched and planned but with questions or obstacles remaining, or if you are a business already in operation with sales, but facing challenges to achieve further growth. The business owner needs to be an MBB member. To be featured in the 20-minute case-study “Think Tank,” fill out and submit the online form describing your business challenge. On the day of the meeting, the candidate chosen presents a 5-min overview of the business, including the current challenges. The audience then brainstorms on ideas to address the problem area with the “build it, measure it, learn from it, improve it!” spirit. We find that these brainstorming sessions provide mutual benefit both to the business in the Think Tank as well as to the participating business owners – everyone takes away a lesson or two!
3) Regular Brainstorming: Attendees have the opportunity to present a challenge they are experiencing in their own business for ideas and suggestions from the group. No prior submission is required – just come to the meeting with your ideas and questions, to help others and be helped toward your own success!
Go from Chaos to Carefree in Five Easy Steps!
Instructor: Gylian Solay, MS
Wednesday, March 11, 2015 – 12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
This workshop will help you focus on getting more done and having more time for your business. Time is money, therefore time management and being orderly allows you to find what you need when you need it. That’s a huge a time-saver. We will also review the first three steps: Clarify your present business situation. Harmonize the various aspects of your business. Actualize your business vision. Sign up for this inspiring workshop to create your “Mission Possible” by optimizing your business. Gylian Solay, MS offers her expertise as an organizer and small business owner. She has amassed a wealth of experiences, challenges, and successes to take you from overwhelming chaos to user-friendly order. The results are empowering!
Marketing Success in the Busy “Click-Click” Mobile World
Instructor: McKenna Hallett
Tuesday, March 17, 2015 – 12:00 to 1:30 p.m.
What are you doing in the digital world to remain visible and seen by your clients or potential clients? When you finally get their attention, are you creating engaging pages with strong content to keep them on your website? Are your emails hitting the mark? Did you know the average time spent on a web page is 54 seconds? And worse than that: 55% of visitors leave a page within 15 seconds. That’s less time than you have spent on this so far. Today, in this busy click-click world, everything should automatically resize. Even with that, you still need to learn how to keep people engaged. Over 50% of emails are seen on a phone these days! This 90-minute seminar will help you create emails and web pages that keep people lingering and learning. This seminar will include a review of the marketing best practices and easy to use ideas you need so you can stay in front of your clients. Come learn the newest tools – especially the new rules for successful digital marketing to mobile devices from speaker, blogger, author and “Word Nerd” McKenna Hallett of My Golden Words. Bonus materials will be distributed at the event, which will conclude with a Q&A session.
Blogging Basics 101 – For Beginners
Instructor: Nicole Fisher
Wednesday, March 18, 2015 – 12:00 to 1:15 p.m. (Q & A until 1:30 p.m.)
Do you need a blog? If so, how do you start a blog? In this workshop, Nicole Fisher will go over the differences between WordPress and blogger, how to choose a platform, and most importantly, what kind of strategies and tactics should be used for success. In addition, Nico will give examples of successful blogs. She is an energetic entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in marketing and social media. As a Marketing Strategist, Social Media Consultant and Trainer, Nico is passionate about taking businesses from good to great through various marketing avenues.
Special Evening Workshops: $45.00 per session:
Quickbooks for Small Business: Hands-on Computer Training for Beginners
Instructor: Richard Kehoe, CPA
Thursday, March 26, 2015, 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Learn to set up your company’s QuickBooks in a small class setting with personalized tutoring. This class is for new users and will teach you how to record sales, receive payments, prepare invoices and balance your checkbook. Get customized answers and schedule a follow-up appointment at no cost to discuss your solutions. Sponsored by SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) and presented by Richard Kehoe, CPA and lead SCORE counselor.
FREE COUNSELING SESSIONS WITH EXPERIENCED SCORE COUNSELORS