FREE BUSINESS MENTORING

[Bellini]

Hey guys, I just stumbled upon something the other day that I am so excited about.

Some of you may know about it, but I tried to search for it in our threads and couldn't find it so I am posting info for you here:

It's called SCORE and it's a FREE business mentoring program associated with the U.S. Small Business Administration. It's national so they have chapters in almost every major city. If they don't have one near you, you can get mentored online, via email, or on the phone.

An experienced and certified business mentor will work with you one on one in whatever area you need help. They also offer online webinars, workshops, and local meetings (and they have a confidentiality code of ethics they have to adhere to. i.e., no stealing your plan)

This should be a valuable resource to those who are wise enough to utilize it. They help you at any stage too, not just start-up. There's even mentoring for exit plans!

Just wanted to share it with all of you. Hopefully you can get some valuable help

P.S. I attended one of their webinars today with the former president of Pepperidge Farms and Godiva Chocolates. It was really good. He took questions from us too.

Check it out at www.score.org

 

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[healthstatus]

Have used SCORE on several projects, they can really help in process design, quality control, sales process, marketing, accounting, pricing and that sort of thing. If you need a database consultant or someone to understand your SaaS system, not so much....

 

[damondietz]

I had a bad experience with my local SCORE chapter. Dude was super old and knew nothing about new school his lens (ie. IM, email marketing, or even websites). He was nice, but couldn't help me at all. If I was opening a 7-11 or a subway I'm sure he would've been useful.

 

[Bellini]

I had a bad experience with my local SCORE chapter. Dude was super old and knew nothing about new school his lens (ie. IM, email marketing, or even websites). He was nice, but couldn't help me at all. If I was opening a 7-11 or a subway I'm sure he would've been useful.

Really? Sorry to hear that. Couldn't you have asked for a different mentor?

They give people options to choose exactly what kind of help they need (email marketing, website building, etc) and if there's no one that can do it locally they get you help long-distance via internet or phone. At least that's what they do here.

Today they had a very informative webinar about email marketing and campaigns with the guy from Constant Contact.

I've had a good experience so far, but I haven't met with anyone in person yet (just email chat, phone, and webinars) so, we'll see.

The information I have received from the webinars alone have made it worth me finding the site.

 

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[KennyJA]

I've just signed up.

Saved me from making a thread on here. Thanks!

By the way, yes I'm bumping this because this website sounds like it could help most people here.

 

[Jon L]

I've found it very difficult to connect with people that can actually help me on Score's site, or in person. If you 'crack this nut,' please post your method here...

 

[KennyJA]

I've found it very difficult to connect with people that can actually help me on Score's site, or in person. If you 'crack this nut,' please post your method here...

Mind if I ask what help you needed?

 

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[Guest34764]

This looks really neat.I'll be checking it out as i need a sort of business mentor.Thanks Bellini

 

[JaxAttacks]

This looks like a very cool resource! Thanks OP and "bumper."

 

[Bellini]

Hey Guys,

It's ironic that you bumped this thread because I finally had my in-person meeting with a SCORE Mentor just a few weeks ago, so I can share about how it went.

My appointment actually went well, but honestly, I had to politely go through several phone calls and email exchanges before I got to a mentor that I thought could help me. My interaction with the first mentor made me want to give up, but I kept trying.

I even wanted to cancel my appointment because I told myself it would be a waste of time, but it wasn't. I'm glad I went because this guy knew a lot that I didn't know. I went in thinking I wouldn't learn anything, but I came out enlightened. Plus, they gave me a discount coupon for a one-hour session with a business lawyer, which was a nice perk.

Here are some things I learned about the Score process:

Tip #1 - Try to be as specific as you can about the type of help that you need so they can match you with the right person. Don't just say "Hey, I need help starting my software company". Say what industry you are in and what specific area you need help in; like marketing, email list building, sales, financing strategies, web development, etc.

Tip #2 - You don't necessarily have to have an exact match. If you can't find someone in your exact same business / industry, go broader. If you keep an open mind then you can learn from just about anybody. For example, I couldn't find anyone with experience in the beauty industry (which didn't surprise me) so I went broader and asked for someone with retail, sales, or merchandising experience.

Tip #3 - Bring your notebook or legal pad and take notes on what they say. You might think you don't need to but you will walk out of there and forget some important things they told you. I went in armed with my business notebook, a one-page business plan (that they asked for), and pens.

Tip #4 - Remember that a lot of these 'mentors' are retirees, and so yes, they are 'older' and maybe not as up to date on current trends. But anyone who has 20-30 more years of business experience than you do, can usually teach you SOMETHING. I had to really change my attitude and humbly accept whatever nugget of wisdom I could glean from them. I reminded myself that these mentors are kindly and freely volunteering their time. You can't expect to walk into Score meeting where Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Richard Branson are all sitting there patiently waiting for you so they can dispense their best business advice to you for free. Be realistic. Be humble.

Tip #5 - Utilize their free Webinars. Even if you can't find a good mentor, they regularly have webinars on different business subjects which I have found very informative and helpful. Their webinars are often with well-known companies and entrepreneurs, CEO's, etc. Easy to sign up, and free.

---------
We have a wealth of information here on the forum, and many virtual mentors. I think people also find benefit in sitting down with someone face to face and talking things out, which is nice.


Hope some of this helps.

 

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[Dream&Achieve]

Hey guys, I just stumbled upon something the other day that I am so excited about.

Some of you may know about it, but I tried to search for it in our threads and couldn't find it so I am posting info for you here:

It's called SCORE and it's a FREE business mentoring program associated with the U.S. Small Business Administration. It's national so they have chapters in almost every major city. If they don't have one near you, you can get mentored online, via email, or on the phone.

An experienced and certified business mentor will work with you one on one in whatever area you need help. They also offer online webinars, workshops, and local meetings (and they have a confidentiality code of ethics they have to adhere to. i.e., no stealing your plan)

This should be a valuable resource to those who are wise enough to utilize it. They help you at any stage too, not just start-up. There's even mentoring for exit plans!

Just wanted to share it with all of you. Hopefully you can get some valuable help

P.S. I attended one of their webinars today with the former president of Pepperidge Farms and Godiva Chocolates. It was really good. He took questions from us too.

Check it out at www.score.org
Wow, thank you so much! I just registered and found a workshop right in my area!