Starting a small business has enough challenges.
It can be very helpful to know others who understand the ins and outs of the business world that can help you by answering your questions and offering solutions for some of your business problems.
Here are a few organizations that can be very helpful to small businesses.
6 Helpful Organizations For Small Businesses
1# Small Business Administration Community (SBA)
The SBA not only offers loans to a small business but is also a hub where you can get plenty of help on all things small business.
Some of the additional help that you can get at SBA is information on classes that help a small business grow in their knowledge about how to run a business.
The SBA also offers business opportunities for networking between businesses and entrepreneurs. SBA is not just for businesses, but for entrepreneurs who are starting and need to connect with other like-minded individuals in their area.
The SBA may be one of the most resourceful small business organizations that is government-affiliated in the country. Joining SBA will allow you to keep up with small business regulations that may affect the decisions you make for your small business.
2# REIA
If you are involved in real estate in any way, Real Estate Investment Association is a great way to be associated with anyone in the real estate business, especially on the national scale. The REIA acts as a liaison between real estate entities of different capacities.
Some of their core values may be one or more of these values. REIAs believe that financial security is safe and secure through a real estate business.
They believe in obtaining news information about real estate and disseminating to empower their members. They uphold a higher standard for ethical business practices across all real estate related businesses within their association.
Lastly, REIA believes that real estate is a way of positively influencing local communities. There are great benefits in joining a local REIA since it allows a real estate developer, owner, rental agency, or agency to always have a hand on the pulse of the real estate industry both locally and nationally.
Being part of REIA can make the difference between able to compete in a thriving and competitive real estate business or losing professional credibility in the local community.
3# SCORE
SCORE is an organization made up of all professional business persons who have years of experience in some more than others, but each in their way has run businesses professionally. They now spend a degree of their time helping and coaching others in their businesses.
The results of SCORE have recorded positive feedback and rich results from business owners who have spent one to several hours in coaching or mentorship sessions.
It is an organization worth checking out and being associated with. Lastly, in truth, SCORE is associated with SBA, but it works independently of SBA.
4# Any Chamber of Commerce
Your local chamber of commerce has a rich set of associations that make it possible for local business leaders to meet, have seminars, share SCORE information, and contact one another through a local governing body that acts as coordinator of all things business in the local community.
Even if you are working as a freelancer and looking for work, the Chamber of Commerce is a great place to network your business talents to other businesses in the area.
There are events throughout the year designed to make it possible to mix it up with other business leaders. Others are invited to take part which allows businesses to get to know the local community better and perhaps find new customers for their services.
There is a small fee to join any local chamber of commerce, but the price is worth the rewards that flow from it. Local trade show events allow local businesses to pitch a booth and promote their business and services or products.
5# NFIB
The National Federation of Independent Business acts as a voice for small businesses across the country and is a network of more than 350,000 small business owners.
Their work is primarily to benefit small businesses as a lobbyist on the state and federal levels. By joining NFIB, a business could reap big benefits with lobbyist influence on federal bills in favor of small businesses.
6# BNI
Business Networking is a serious business organization that takes networking across to the next level and represents 7,500 chapters across the country.
BNI hosts local networking events, meetups, and industry events. The signup process is lengthy and only one representative per industry is allowed per group.
The persons in each group are representative of their industry and competitors are not placed in the same group so the networking becomes significantly stronger within the group.
Author: Jane Brown
