Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012

Business Notes

Free seminars

The Small Business Center at Johnston Community College has scheduled the following free seminars:

Are You Ready to Start Your Own Business? - 6 to 9 p.m. Jan. 30 in Room 1032 at the Workforce Development Center, 135 Bestwood Drive, Clayton. By the end of the seminar, participants will have assessed their capabilities to successfully create a business.

Ten Steps to Starting Your Own Business - 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 6 in Room 1032 at the Workforce Development Center. Topics include researching your market; defining your business structure; determining the needed local and state taxes, fees and licenses; developing a marketing strategy; setting up your record-keeping system; and writing your business plan.

Human Resources, the Law and Your Business - 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 7 in Room 1032 at the Workforce Development Center. This course will help you understand employment law, from avoiding interviewing mistakes to consistent treatment of employees to proper methods of ending an employment relationship.

Fifteen Common Mistakes That Will Undermine Any Business - 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 13 in Room J1510 in the Public Safety Services Building on JCC's Smithfield campus, 245 College Road.

Internet Marketing for Business - Make it Work for You! - 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 8 in the conference rom at the Smithfield-Selma Chamber of Commerce, 1115 Industrial Park Drive, Smithfield. This seminar is designed to cut through all the techno-speak and clearly explain the concepts behind Internet marketing.

How to Rent Your Own Property Without Going Broke or Going to Jail! - 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 15 in Room 1032 at the Workforce Development Center. Learn techniques for establishing rental agreements, collecting rent, avoiding evictions, protecting your property from vandalism and ultimately helping you make money. Bring lunch.

How to Write a Business Plan - 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 20, in Room 1032 at the Workforce Development Center. This workshop covers the basics needed to put together a business plan.

Introduction to Quickbooks - 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 21-23 at the Workforce Development Center. Learn how to setup a company file, establish a chart of accounts, add and edit accounts, set up vendors and customers, link Quickbooks to your bank account and how to use the register.

Common Website Problems - What You Don't Know CAN Hurt You! - 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 22, at The Cleveland Center, 9046 Cleveland Road. This seminar looks in detail at common problems that occur on a daily basis to websites and provides step-by-step information on how to prevent or recover from them. Bring lunch.

Financing Your Small Business - 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 27 at the Workforce Development Center. Learn from a lender what it takes to get funding for your business. Topics include the importance of a strong business plan, lender financing options, SBA loan processes and tips for grant research and writing.

Organizing for Success: What to Toss and How to Find the Rest! - 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 29 at the Workforce Development Center. Unlock the secret to deciding what to keep and what can safely be tossed, avoid the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to eliminating clutter, boost productivity with a proven system for establishing priorities in 60 seconds or less, learn effective strategies for managing paperwork and email, and learn to protect valuable information by eliminating the fatal flaw in most filing systems.

Hospitality Heroes - Hospitality Heroes is an online training program for employees and potential employees of the tourism industry. The Johnston County Visitors Bureau designed the course with help from JCC's Small Business Center. Hospitality Heroes teaches front-line employees about tourism, Johnston County destinations and customer service. The online course takes participants through three modules:

What is Tourism - which explains tourism on the national, state and local levels.

My Local Destination - which explores Johnston County as a destination.

License to Serve - which teaches how to deal with customers and tips for quality customer service.

This class is available online for one month, and a new course begins each month. Submit the registration form by the 25th of the month for enrollment in the following month's class. Complete, sign and mail the form to Danielle Hussey, Johnston County Workforce Development Center, 135 Bestwood Drive, Clayton, NC 27520 or fax it to 919-359-1176. The registration form is online at johnstoncc.edu/hospitalityheroes.aspx.

Chamber meeting

The Greater Smithfield-Selma Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual meeting at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30, at the Johnston County Agricultural Center, 2736 N.C. 210, Smithfield. The cost is $42 per person. To register, visit smithfieldselma.com. For more information, call Kelly Wallace at 934-9166 or email kwallace@smithfieldselma.com.