These suggested resources can help you review and refine your entrepreneurial plans.
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Support (General)
Small Business Administration (SBA): www.sba.gov
Small Business Administration site of local organizations that might assist you in launching or managing a venture: https://www.sba.gov/tools/local-assistance
Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE): https://www.score.org/
Small Business Development Center (SBDC): https://www.sba.gov/offices/headquarters/osbdc/resources
International Franchise Association: https://www.franchise.org/
US government contracts: https://www.sba.gov/federal-contracting/contracting-guide/basic-requirements
US Department of Commerce: https://www.commerce.gov/
US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis: https://www.bea.gov/
US Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/
US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm
US Chamber of Commerce: https://www.uschamber.com/
Global Entrepreneurship Monitor: http://www.gemconsortium.org/
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Support (Specific Groups)
Women’s Business Center (WBC): https://www.sba.gov/local-assistance/find/?type=Women%27s%20Business%20Center&pageNumber=1
Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC): https://veteransoutreachcenter.org/
National Association of Women Business Owners: https://www.nawbo.org/resources/women-business-owner-statistics
Asian American Chamber of Commerce: http://www.asian-americanchamber.org/
Black Chamber of Commerce: https://www.nationalbcc.org/
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce: https://ushcc.com/
Ladies Who Launch: https://www.ladieswholaunch.org/
Minority Business Development Agency: https://www.mbda.gov/
National Association of Professional Women: http://womenforhire.com/company/national-association-of-professional-women-napw/
The Female Entrepreneur Association: https://femaleentrepreneurassociation.com/
Women’s Business Enterprise National Council: https://www.wbenc.org/
Vision Statement, Mission Statement, and Goal Setting
Website with ideas for developing your vision: https://www.executestrategy.net/blog/write-good-vision-statement
Video with walkthrough for crafting your mission statement: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/65230
Eleven Free Goal Setting Software and Tools You Can Use: http://www.goal-setting-college.com/goal-setting-software/11-goal-setting-software-tools-you-can-use-for-free/
YouTube: Achieve More by Setting Smart Goals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yA53yhiOe04
Business Models and Business Plans
SBA Business Plan resources: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-business/write-your-business-plan
Business Model Canvas: https://strategyzer.com/canvas/business-model-canvas
Business model canvas and resources: Strategyzer.com
Lean canvas and associated resources: Leanstack.com
Social business model canvas and related resources: Socialbusinessmodelcanvas.com
YouTube Video: Business Model Canvas Explained: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoAOzMTLP5s
The Four Lenses Strategy Framework website: www.4lenses.org
List of Social Enterprise Business Models or Frameworks: http://www.thesedge.org/socent-spotlights/22-awesome-social-enterprise-business-ideas
YouTube Video: We have a dream, B-corp overview and mission: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=V-VFZUFJwt4
Sample business plans-www.bizplans.com: www.bplans.com
Funding, Finances, and Accounting
Small Business Administration (SBA) lending program: https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans
Small Business Administration (SBA) calculation of startup costs: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-business/calculate-your-startup-costs#section-header-6
Small Business Administration, “How to Start a Non-Profit”: https://www.sba.gov/blogs/how-start-non-profit
US Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/statistics/wagesearnings
Tax information for charitable organizations from the Internal Revenue Service: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations
Grant information by state: https://www.grants.gov/
Information from the National Institutes of Health on grants and the application process: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/about_grants.htm
G-Startup Worldwide’s global startup competition: https://www.f6s.com/g-startupworldwide/
Extending Credit to Your Customers: https://fitsmallbusiness.com/invoicing-extending-credit-to-customers/
7 Ways to Bootstrap Your Business to Success: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/254217
Small Business Administration Introduction to Accounting Course: https://www.sba.gov/tools/learning-center-view-course/364071
Khan Academy Accounting and Financial Statements Course: https://www.khanacademy.org/economics-finance-domain/core-finance/accounting-and-financial-stateme
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: https://www.sec.gov/reportspubs/investor-publications/investorpubsbegfinstmtguidehtm.html
US Securities and Exchange Commission Regulatory Actions: https://www.sec.gov/rules.shtml
SEC Information on crowdfunding portals: https://www.sec.gov/divisions/marketreg/tmcompliance/fpregistrationguide.htm
Link to SEC (FINRA) crowdfunding portals: https://www.finra.org/about/funding-portals-we-regulate
Money and Interest Rates: https://www.federalreserve.gov/data.htm
Y Combinator: http://www.ycombinator.com/
Techstars: www.techstars.org
Kickstarter: www.kickstarter.com
Indiegogo, “The Essential Guide to Crowdfunding”: https://learn.indiegogo.com/the-essential-guide-to-crowdfunding/
Startupfest, “The $100K Investment Prize”: http://www.startupfestival.com/news/100k-investment-prize/
Circleup: http://circleup.com
Exilend: https://www.exilend.com
Fundable: http://fundable.com
LendingKarma: http://www.lendingkarma.com
LoanBack: http://loanback.com
Trade Show News Network: http://www.tsnn.com
ZimpleMoney: http://www.zimplemoney.com
Legal Issues in Entrepreneurship
SBREFA Small Business Resource Center’s site on legal requirements and regulatory compliance: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/business-operations-center/osdbu/compliance-assistance
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: https://www.uspto.gov/
Nondisclosure (NDA) templates: https://www.rocketlawyer.com/
US Small Business Administration on licenses and permits: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/apply-licenses-permits
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) information on taxation in partnerships: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/partnerships
Information on variation between all 50 states in forming or incorporating a business from Cornell Law School: https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/corporations
US Copyright Office: https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html
Federal Communications Commission on cybersecurity for small businesses: https://www.fcc.gov/general/cybersecurity-small-business
North Carolina State University Poole College of Management’s risk management initiative: https://erm.ncsu.edu/library/article/coso-erm-framework
US Copyright Office: https://www.copyright.gov/
Marketing
Small Business Administration information on marketing and sales: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/marketing-sales
American Marketing Association (AMA): https://www.ama.org
American Marketing Association (AMA) digital marketing certification: https://www.ama.org/events-training/Certification/Pages/digital-marketing-certification.aspx
American Marketing Association (AMA) on-demand course: Digital Marketing: Delivering a Custom Experience: https://www.ama.org/events-training/virtual-events/Pages/digital-marketing-virtual-conference-051717.aspx
Google Ads: https://ads.google.com/home/
Pitching
Harvard Business Review’s how to craft a corporate narrative: https://hbr.org/2016/03/how-to-build-a-strategic-narrative
Pitch deck templates: https://articles.bplans.com/what-to-include-in-your-pitch-deck/ and https://www.forbes.com/sites/allbusiness/2017/03/04/how-to-create-a-great-investor-pitch-deck-for-startups-seeking-financing/#630406bc2003 and https://www.startupgrind.com/blog/the-quick-and-dirty-guide-to-creating-a-winning-pitch-deck/
Operational Resources
Society for Human Resource Management: https://www.shrm.org
Scheduling programs and templates: https://getsling.com/blog/category/scheduling/, https://wheniwork.com/features, and https://schedulebuilder.org/
Employer hiring costs of employee: https://gusto.com/tools/employer-tax-calculator
Payroll program: https://onpay.com/payroll-calculator-tax-rates
Smartsheet’s step-by-step instructions for making a Gantt chart in Microsoft Excel: https://www.smartsheet.com/blog/gantt-chart-excel
Project Manager’s ultimate guide to Gantt charts: https://www.projectmanager.com/gantt-chart
FindLaw Small Business Center (business forms): https://smallbusiness.findlaw.com/
Research Sources for Demographic and Marketing Data
Small Business Administration (SBA) guide on researching your market: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-business/market-research-competitive-analysis#section-header-5
American Fact Finder (market research): http://factfinder2.census.gov/main.html
FedStats (statistics from more than 100 federal agencies): www.fedstats.gov
National Federation of Independent Business: https://www.nfib.com/business-resources
The Small Business National Center: https://sites.google.com/a/uca.edu/sbanc/home
Bureau of Labor Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/bls/demographics.htm
North American Industry Classification System: https://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/
Statistical Abstract of the United States: https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2011/compendia/statab/131ed.html
US Census Bureau site on where to locate your business: https://cbb.census.gov/sbe/#
Consumer credit data: https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/G19/
Consumer product safety: https://www.cpsc.gov/
Consumer price index: https://www.bls.gov/cpi/
Bureau of Economic Analysis: https://www.bea.gov/
Employment Statistics: https://stats.bls.gov/bls/employment.htm
Income Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/cps/earnings.htm
American Customer Satisfaction Index: https://www.theacsi.org/
North American Industry Classification System: https://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/
US Census Bureau: https://www.census.gov/
Tools for Creativity and Problem Solving
Twenty-four essential mindmapping and brainstorming tools: http://mashable.com/2013/09/25/mind-mapping-tools/#jP47h7Q818qM
Open Innovation Community: http://openinnovation.net/
Ideation techniques: http://www.innovationmanagement.se/2013/05/30/the-7-all-time-greatest-ideation-techniques/ and https://www.ideou.com/pages/ideation-method-mash-up and http://www.designkit.org/methods/15
LUMA Institute’s LUMA System of Innovation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDyElJ0xe2o
Analyze your problem-solving abilities: https://www.mindtools.com
IDEO Design Kit: http://www.designkit.org/resources/1.
Design Thinking Mix Tapes from Stanford’s Design School: https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources/chart-a-new-course-put-design-thinking-to-work.
Lean Startup and Pivoting
Lean startup: http://theleanstartup.com/#principles
Toyota’s Way: https://vimeo.com/44328452
14 Management Principles of Toyota: http://www.panview.nl/en/lean-production/toyota-way-j-liker-summary
Tim Berry’s Lean Business Planning Guide: https://leanplan.com/
Lean canvas and associated resources: Leanstack.com
The International Business Model Competition that focuses on lean startup models, sponsored by BYU and Harvard: http://www.businessmodelcompetition.com/
Networking and Trade Organizations
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com
Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives: acce.org
BNI: Business Network International: https://www.bni.com
HUBZone: https://www.sba.gov/offices/headquarters/ohp
Tradeshows: http://www.tsnn.com/
Industry research publications: http://www.newslink.org