Subscribe to Blog ContentThe U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) provides a community for small business owners and workers to meet and share. Apparently, it's the first government-sponsored online community for small businesses in the US.
Business.gov extends its offering by including the community where business owners, bloggers and government employees can ask questions, find experts and share ideas. Access the community home page at http://community.business.gov/bsng.
Current topics include loans, starting a business, taxes and government contracting. The forum also covers business advice and laws for obtaining loans and grants. In fact, the Business Loans and Grants Advisor discussion already has comments regarding President Obama's plan to help small businesses.
You can browse the discussion boards as a guest to get an idea of what people talk about before registering. You just won't be able to post anything, track conversations or get email notifications until you register.
The loan discussions talk more than just SBA loans. One participant mentions that US Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers loans. So you might consider checking the other government agencies that cover your industry.
Government Contracting discussions provide insight into experiences and how to go about landing a government contract. If you don't know where to start in bidding for business from the government, the discussion points the way.
One member plans to do business with Puerto Rico, and needs to know how to get a business license especially since all the web sites are in Spanish. The moderator offers several great resources to help.
When you register to join the community, make sure you create a signature. This signature appears at the end of every post you write. It's a nice subtle way to promote your business. Don't blatantly promote your business -- instead, ask valuable questions and provide insightful answers without using your business as part of the solution.
While you're there, you might want to explore the business.gov site. The site's content covers licenses, permits, finance, taxes, expanding your business, staying compliant with laws and local laws based on where you live.
Consider doing an online search for "small business [your city]." Your city, county and even state might have great tools and resources for doing business locally. For example, Dallas Public Library has a guide for starting a small business in Dallas, what to do regarding registration and permits, where to find money and where to go for more help.
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