Classes and Events
Jump Start Your Business
March 2 - April 8, 2010
6 week series starting March 2, 12:30-3:30 or March 4,
5:45-8:45
Cost: $45.00 per workshop or $195.00 for the entire series
(sliding scale application also available)
Location: WBDC, 8 S. Michigan Avenue, 4th Floor,
Chicago, IL 60603
Six workshops in six weeks offer skills and techniques essential for
a successful business start-up, or to strengthen an existing business.
Aspiring entrepreneurs enroll in the series to learn how to take an
idea and transform it into a business. Existing businesses profit,
too, by selecting individual workshops to fine-tune a business.
JumpStart Your Business offers practical information on starting and
growing a business, including the nuts and bolts of developing a
business idea, coursework to guide the creation of a business plan, and
group interaction and networking.
1. STARTING A BUSINESS IN ILLINOIS
Here you'll learn the pros and cons of business ownership, how to
identify business opportunities, and how to make the transition from
employee to business owner. Also, you'll learn how to prepare yourself
financially, including personal budgeting and goal setting.
2. MARKET RESEARCH
This session
teaches you how to use market research to assess the potential of your
business idea. It covers ways of conducting your own market research,
including understanding how to find and use the most relevant market
data: your target market, your optimal client profile, your
competitors, and location considerations. .
3. MARKETING AND SELLING STRATEGIES
This session addresses how t distinguish between selling and
marketing identify benefits for both building skills in both areas
identify key forms of media that will help them market their business
develop at least 3 strategies for marketing develop at least 3
strategies for selling identify elements of effective website design
identify what to look for in a website designer and a website host
describe the benefits and cautions of using social networking sites, a
blog, search engine optimization tools describe guerilla marketing and
how they might use describe webinars, podcasts, u tube, twitter pros
and cons outline their plan of action to build the marketing part of
their business plan.
4. FINANCIAL ANALYSIS I
You will learn how to use key financial terms and tools, how to
set up your business budget, what your tax obligations are, how to
project sales based on learning how to do a personal and business cash
flow.statement.
5.
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS II
This session shows you how to interpret and project business financial
statements. You'll learn how to determine start-up and expansion
costs, develop cash flow projections, and prepare income statements.
6. BUSINESS PLAN
In the final class, you'll learn the elements, applications, and
contents of a good business plan and then use these instructions to
develop one specifically designed for your company.