| Welcome |
Issue
1, Volume 1, June 2001 |
| This
is Count Me In's first quarterly newsletter. We want to use
the newsletter as a way to bring the Count Me In community together
by sharing news with loan recipients, supporters, sponsors,
and friends. It is a way for all of us to learn from and about
the many activities the Count Me In community is involved in.
Please let us know your business -- we can't make our newsletter
the best it can be without your help. Got great results from
a new marketing strategy? Found a foolproof way to keep track
of inventory? Heard about a great website, a helpful book? Any
tips for fellow loan recipients? Let us know. Send us your successes,
updates and feedback. This is your newsletter and we want to
make it work for you. |
Help!
We've got great content but no name. Show us your marketing
savvy, get creative and help us name the newsletter. Submit
your suggestions to info@count-me-in.org
by August 15. If we use the name you suggest, you will win a
printer from Count Me In friend and sponsor Office Depot! |
| Count
Me In News Alert |
|
Giving
and Getting with Ebay
More than twenty Count Me In friends and supporters donated
items to the first annual Count Me In charity auction, held
May 11 - 21 on eBay. Count Me In teamed up with the Verizon
Foundation to raise more than $12,000. Thanks to Count Me In
loan recipients: Teresa Carraway of PrayerPal; Erin Cox, Kate
Dyer-Seeley and Karen O'Holleran of Urbana Box; Chris Ann Dale
of Cyberspace Baby; Denise Johnson of Ginnyrae Bears; Melissa
Kesner and Christina Krause of Mrs. K's Cookies and Heather
McCartney of Ethnic Edibles for donating items to the auction.
Count Me In also received donations from corporations and friends
including: ABC's "The View"; Crowne Hotels; Eileen Fisher; iVillage;
Leon Hall of E! Fashion Emergency; MAC cosmetics; Motley Fool;
MTV's Total Request Live; Office Depot; Reebok Sports Club;
and SELF magazine. |
BIZLine
expected to buzz
Count Me In is introducing a "Business Help Line" in June. Send
in your business related questions and get them answered by
Count Me In experts. With your permission, we'll post the answer
so others can learn from your questions. Thanks to Morgan Stanley
for a generous grant that has made the BIZLine possible. We're
working to bring even more online training and technical assistance
to loan recipients in the coming year. Email your questions
to: BIZLine@count-me-in.org |
Community
Card that Cares
A good friend to small business and to Count Me In, American
Express recently launched a new card that will go a long way
to supporting Count Me In. The card is designed to create new
sources of funding for entrepreneurs who have little or no access
to credit and other resources needed to start and grow their
small firms. The new Community Business Card program will contribute
one percent of the spending to established micro-enterprise
development organizations like Count Me In that provide loans
and technical assistance to micro-businesses. Using the Community
Business card is a way for successful and established small
business owners to help other small business owners that are
just starting out and face the challenge of building their business.
To learn more about Community Business, visit: americanexpress.com/communitybusiness
|
Count
Me In Holiday Marketplace 2001
This year you can increase your holiday sales by including
your website in the Count Me In Holiday Marketplace. Beginning
in November, the Count Me In website will feature an on-line
Holiday Market where loan recipients can list and display
their products. We will post your Web address, alongside a
brief description of your products or services. Any transactions
will be done directly between the buyer and seller. Interested?
Please forward your web address, a brief description of what
you are selling, and a logo or picture to info@count-me-in.org.
Make sure to get it to us by October 1.
 . |
| Suzanne
DuBose, President of the Verizon Foundation, Count Me
In co-founder Nell Merlino, Nancy Dreier of Professional
Mobile Grooming, Nancy's mother Katherine Cargill and
Edie Fraser, President of the Business Women's Network,
celebrating Count Me In's first year of operation at the
SONY Club. |
|
 |
Kerry
Hatch, Executive Vice President and General Manager, American
Express Small Business Services |
|
| Count
Me In Family News |
Keep us
informed and we'll keep you informed.
Send your news to: newsletter@count-me-in.org.
|
| Erin
Cox of UrbanaBox is putting together a media network of
Count Me In loan recipients in the Northwest to share press
contacts and work together to generate media interest in Count
Me In funded businesses. You can contact Erin on 1-866-804-4713
or via email on erin@urbanabox.com. Victoria Kahn came
to the launch of the Community Business Card at American
Express and scored a big order from another event attendee.
"It always pays to network" said Victoria. Also at the event
was Kerry Hatch, Executive Vice President and General
Manager, American Express Small Business Services who
said of working with Count Me In, "We are harnessing our mutual
passion and strengths."Madeline DeLia of Misty Hollow Wholesale
Nursery was recently named "Employer of the Year" in Kitsap
and Mason Counties in Washington State. Sandra Cox, a
police service officer with the Redondo Beach Police Department
in California is launching her business, Senior Support Services
this month and is working toward a full-time career change.One
of Count Me In's first loan recipients, Heather McCartney
of Ethnic Edibles in New York will be attending her first
trade show in July. |
| Business
Tips |
|
Tips
for Building your Business
Managing your cash is one of the most important aspects of running
a business. Sales revenue brings money in and expenses puts
money out. Making cashflow projections can help you understand
your expenses and sales, the cost of delivering a service or
product, and can help you meet your sales goals for the year.
You can complete cashflow projections as a form of a budget.
First, create a sheet with the months of the year across the
top columns and your sales and expenses line items on the side
rows. Now begin by figuring out your expenses month by month.
Then, go to the sales rows. If it is too difficult to estimate
sales on a monthly basis, try breaking down your estimate into
smaller units. For example, you could estimate what your sales
are each day, or each week, or even hourly if you do high volume.
Count Me In has created a great spreadsheet for making cashflow
projections. It is in Microsoft excel and can be found on our
website at: www.count-me-in.org/loanapps/cashflow.html |
Big
Tips for Small Business
Need help writing a business plan? Want to increase your sales?
Women Business Centers exist in most states in the country.
The Centers are funded by the Small Business Administration
and provide free or low cost business consulting and training.
To find the one nearest you, visit: www.sba.gov/womeninbusiness/wbcs.html
 |
Kathy
Keeley, Count Me In's Credit Officer and the brains behind
the credit scoring system with Brenda Worthy, Count Me
In's intrepid office manager |
|
| Credit
Corner |
|
| It
is a very good idea to get a copy of your credit report each
year to make sure that it is accurate. Your credit file is available
to any business that asks for it and is registered with the
credit bureau. It pays to know what your file says about your
debt and payments, that way you can swiftly correct any misleading
or inaccurate information. Learn how to get a copy of your credit
report by going to: www.count-me-in.org/loanapps/credit.html |
