Survive, Revive, & Thrive series for small businesses

The Small Business Center (SBC) at Beaufort County Community College will continue to help local businesses adapt to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Beginning July 27, Renae-Symone of Step-by-Step Businessolutions will offer three, free online webinars to small business owners affected by the pandemic, including managing reopening. The Reboot 2021: Survive, Revive, and Thrive series includes Ways to Finance My Business Even During a Pandemic, Creating Cashflow Projections for your Small Business, and Understanding Post Pandemic Behavior. The series is funded through the US Small Business Administration and managed through the NC SBTDC. Businesses in Beaufort, Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington Counties are encouraged to participate. Participants can register by emailing continuingeducation@beaufortccc.edu or calling 252-940-6375.

The series is a continuation of the Reboot series in 2020 that helped businesses adjust to online shopping and deal with the economic impacts of the pandemic. With vaccinations making it safe to reopen businesses, consumers are once again dining out, shopping and receiving services in person, and traveling. With many businesses shutting down permanently, reducing staff, or experiencing revenue shortfalls, some businesses may not be ready to greet returning customers and handle pre-pandemic volumes.

On July 27, Ways to Finance My Business Even During a Pandemic will discuss new and proven ways to secure financing for a business, identifying opportunities, preparing to apply for funding, pitching ideas, and managing funding. The landscape for raising capital has drastically changed during the pandemic so this webinar will help businesses looking to reopen, start fresh, or expand.

Creating Cash Flow Projections for Your Small Business on July 28 will help participants learn how to manage money. In this interactive, hands-on webinar, they will learn about how cash flow works by setting up a mock cash flow sheet for a mock business. This includes identifying startup costs versus operational costs and using math and deduction skills to complete the annual cash flow sheet.

In the final webinar, Understand Post-Pandemic Consumer Behavior, will learn about temporary and permanent changes in their market. The pandemic has changed how businesses promote, sell, and provide services to customers. Some changes will not end with the pandemic as consumers have embraced the improvements in technology, accessibility, and purchasing convenience. Participants will learn how to anticipate these changes and meet new customer expectations.

Over the last six years, Renae-Symone has worked with numerous community colleges, Small Business Centers, universities, veterans’ business outreach centers, chambers of commerce, and community, governmental, and nonprofit organizations to provide training in small business development and marketing to thousands of aspiring and existing entrepreneurs.

Beaufort County Community College’s SBC is part of the Small Business Center Network, comprised of 58 Small Business Centers throughout North Carolina that support the development of new businesses and the growth of existing businesses by being a community-based provider of training, counseling, and resource information. Visit https://www.beaufortccc.edu/continuing-education/sbc/home for a full list of small business seminars.