6 Reasons to Start your Holiday Marketing Plan Now | Nominate a Biz for the 2015 Small Biz Week Awards | 7 Brand Identity Tips

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page. Nominate a Business for the 2015 National Small Business Week Awards Are you a small business owner with an amazing success story to tell?  If so, submit your nomination today for the 2015 National Small Business Week Awards. Nominations are currently being accepted online at http://awards.sba.gov. > Read more   Enabling Business, Expanding Impact Last week, SBA announced a series of important new measures to expand its landmark Impact Investment Fund. Inspired by the President's vision of a more inclusive and sustainable economy, the Impact Fund was launched in 2011 as one of several federal initiatives designed to support America's impact investment industry.  > Read more   SBIR Entrepreneurs at the Forefront of the "Games for Learning" Movement The SBIR program invests in projects that stimulate technological innovation, address national needs, and strengthen small businesses and the economy through commercialization. In recent years, many SBIR-funded American entrepreneurial firms have achieved this goal – by creating games for learning designed to support education.  > Read more   6 Reasons to Start your Holiday Marketing Plan Now The holidays creep up on us fast, and it seems like each year the big retailers start their holiday sales sooner and sooner. And your small business can benefit from jumping on the holiday marketing bandwagon sooner, too! Here's why – and how. > Read more   Helping Women-Owned Businesses Get to the Next Level As we recognize the contributions of women who have shaped our economy and our world during Women's Small Business Month, SBA continue to strive to eliminate the barriers to successful entrepreneurship for women. > Read more   New Online Course & Workbook: Understanding Small Business Size Standards and Affiliation Check out SBA's new course and workbook, Small Business Primer: Understanding Small Business Size Standards and Affiliation designed to help small business owners understand what size standards are, how they are established, why they are important and how to determine if a specific business concern is considered a small business.  *Size standards define whether a business entity is small and, thus, eligible for federal programs and preferences reserved for small businesses. >Take the course      Your Business, Your Brand – 7 Brand Identity Tips What's your small business brand identity? While your logo, website, business cards, etc. can help you project a carefully crafted image to your customers, true branding runs a lot deeper. Here are seven simple steps for nurturing and maintaining your brand. > Read more   ChallengeHer NORFOLK – Opportunities for Women in Federal Contracting Are you a woman-owned small business looking to contract with the federal government and seeking assistance on how to navigate in the federal procurement arena? Join us Thursday, October 14  for ChallengeHER Matchmaking—Norfolk, VA at Old Dominion University. > Read more and register SUCCESS STORY: Lucia Valdez, OMA – "The world is big…diversify and expand your markets through exports!" Yolanda Olivarez, Regional Administrator for SBA's South Central Region, recently visited some outstanding entrepreneurs. In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, she's highlighted Lucia Valdez as a shining example of a savvy Latina entrepreneur. Here's her story. > Read more   SBA & AARP Webinar: Legal and Tax Issues for Small Businesses Learn about the most common legal and tax issues when starting a small business. Join SBA and AARP during a free webinar Thursday, October 16 to get your questions answered about registering your business, business contracts, special tax implications and other legal and tax issues. > Read more and register   Affordable Care Act 101 Webinars SBA and Small Business Majority will continue to host free Affordable Care Act 101 webinars so small business owners can learn the basics of the Affordable Care Act and how they can enroll in health insurance marketplaces. Join us every Thursday at 2 PM. October 9 at 2 PM ET: Click to Register October 16 at 2 PM ET: Click to Register October 23 at 2 PM ET: Click to Register October 30 at 2 PM ET: Click to Register In addition, Spanish-speaking small employers throughout the country can join representatives from SBA, HHS and Small Business Majority for ACA 101 webinars in Spanish. Below are the registration links for the upcoming Spanish-language webinars, which will be held every other Tuesday throughout the fall.  October 7 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register October 21 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register November 4 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register November 18 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register December 2 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register December 16 at 4 PM ET: Click to Register   Are You Prepared For a Disaster? Start your disaster recovery plan today with free tools from SBA. LEARN MORE Counseling and Training Get free business training and counseling - online and across the country.  LEARN MORE Online Government Contracting Training Understanding government contracts and how to obtain them. LEARN MORE     SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: Manage Your Preferences  |  Unsubscribe  |  Help STAY CONNECTED: All SBA programs and services are provided on a nondiscriminatory basis | Reasonable accommodations will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance  This email was sent to ignoble.experiment@arconati.us by Small Business Administration (SBA) · 409 3rd St, SW · Washington DC 20416 · 1-800-827-5722