Ask The Money Coach

By Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, The Money Coach

If you’re a woman or an ethnic minority looking for more resources for your small business, additional help is available for minority-owned or women-owned businesses from any of the SBA’s small business counseling and training partners, including:

SCORE
SCORE stands for the Service Corps of Retired Executives. There are more than 10,500 SCORE volunteers in 800+ locations around the country. SCORE also provides Internet-based counseling and help at http://www.score.org.

Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs)
Through a network of branches all across America, SBDCs offer management assistance to current and would-be small business owners. This program is a joint effort of the private sector, academia, as well as federal, state and local governments. Learn more online at this SBDC section of the SBA website.

Women’s Business Centers
According to the SBA website: “The Office of Women’s Business Ownership (OWBO) exists to establish and oversee a network of Women’s Business Centers (WBCs) throughout the United States and its territories. Through the management and technical assistance provided by the WBCs, entrepreneurs, especially women who are economically or socially disadvantaged, are offered comprehensive training and counseling on a vast array of topics in many languages to help them start and grow their own businesses.”
Get more information online at: http://www.sba.gov/services/counseling/wbc/index.html. There you can also find your local Women’s Business Center. Here’s a link to a PDF of those Women’s Business Centers located throughout the U.S.

SBA District Offices
You can get free and low-cost services right in your area from a team of experts who work out of full-service SBA district offices. Find one near you by visiting the local resources section.

Good luck with your business!