1. Let’s Test Drive Small Business Resource Center

2. Interest is at an all-time high! According to the Small Business Administration, small business is the backbone of the U.S. economy representing 99.7% of all employer firms, and generating 60 to 80% of new jobs annually over the past decade. With the recent economic downturn, more and more individuals and students are looking to entrepreneurship and small business opportunities as an alternative in a tough job market.

3. Filling a real-world business need Small Business Resource Center is the complete solution for real-world entrepreneurship, small business generation, and startup operation. With one simple search, Small Business Resource Center can turn what used to be a five-hour research exercise into a five-minute search success story – for both the active entrepreneur and those interested in becoming one. From conducting industry research to financial planning, to marketing a product and franchising a business, the Small Business Resource Center provides users with all the information they need to succeed.

4. SBRC - Content Over 500 real and complete Business Plans examples and templates – and growing Practical reference from the For Dummies series and Gale encyclopedias for quick how- tos and advice Hand-picked magazines and journals focused on small business, industries and market trends Additional information on Associations, Tradeshows, Marketing Campaigns, and Consultants & Consulting Organizations Links to 1400+ videos from SBTV! Pricing Marketing Accounting Small Business Resource Center Small Business Resource Center Managing HR Analyzing Planning Financing

5. Digging up a good example For example, let’s say you are working on a plan to start a landscaping business. Simply type in landscaping and click Search. You will find immediate access to: – Sample business plans for a landscaping operation – Real-world marketing examples from the landscaping industry – Insight into market trends and market share – Industry trade show information for landscapers – Contact information for industry associations – Access to consultants who know the industry

6. Sample business plan for a expanding a landscaping operation This business plan is for a current landscaper who is hoping to expand his business to be a year round operation by adding a handyman service. One part of the business plan, the market analysis, includes an overview of the local market and the addressable opportunity for the business under consideration. The business plan also explains the owner’s growth strategy and competition.

7. Let’s take a look at a few more SBRC contains the complete Gale Business Plans Handbook series. Because SBRC is a subscription, each new edition is automatically loaded. Each business plan is a real plan from a real business. The Table of Contents lets users quickly click over to the overview, competition analysis, market analysis, review of risk factors, and more. New technologies

8. Social and community based organizations can find help too!

9. Experience in an industry? Strike out on your own!

10. 10 Real-world marketing examples The marketing campaigns are drawn from the volumes of the Encyclopedia of Major Marketing Campaigns. Just as with business plans, these are real- world examples of marketing campaigns that actually took place. Therefore, the narratives explore not only the activities that took place during the campaigns but also evaluate their effectiveness.

11. Specific how-to reference focused on business life-cycles Additional reference content addresses business tasks, such as finding financing, human resources management, and much more!

12. More overviews – specific funding options SBA funding program for economically and socially disadvantaged businesses— minority, women- owned, etc.

13. Insight into markets and industry Small Business Resource Center includes a tightly- indexed compendium of more than 330 journals focused on entrepreneurship in general as well specific industries. In this instance, a recent article from Global Cosmetic Industry discusses social media strategy for cosmetic brands.

14. Insight into market trends and market share The journals collection also provides critically- important market share information. In the results list, SBRC labels each entry by type – for example, a topic overview, article, business plan, etc. In the articles tab, articles are generally labeled as statistical tables when they contain such quantifiable information.

15. Industry trade show information for the cosmetics industry Access to trade shows lets entrepreneurs know where to go to network, find suppliers, compare notes with colleagues, and maybe even find some customers.

16. Contact information for cosmetic industry associations Industry associations are important resources for locating additional market research information, tracking trends, and finding out more about specific industries.

17. Access to consultants who know the industry and can provide advice Users can use SBRC to track down consultants who might help them take their business to the next level. Content is drawn from Gale’s Consultants and Consulting Organizations Directory.

18. You’ll also find recommended websites and multimedia Advice and information from real-world experts

19. Where does all this content come from? SBRC is chock full of content drawn from classic resources from Gale (some of which are shown here), John Wiley & Sons, Thomson South- Western, Thomson-RIA, Socrates Media and wide array of journal publishers. Since SBRC is a subscription, new editions and new titles are being added all the time to keep the Resource Center as timely and up-to-date as possible.

20. Try Small Business Resource Center today!