nedandshell resources, references and more
home tell a friend contact us

WEEK TWO

Know Your Industry
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov
Yahoo! business-to-business information: dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/
Yahoo! trade association information: dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/organizations/trade_associations
U.S. Bureau of Census: www.census.gov
U.S. Chamber of Commerce: www.uschamber.com
www.marketresearch.com

WEEK THREE

Research
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov
Yahoo! business-to-business information: dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Business_to_Business
Yahoo! trade association information: dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/organizations/trade_associations
U.S. Bureau of Census: www.census.gov
U.S. Chamber of Commerce: www.uschamber.com
MarketReseach.com: www.marketresearch.com

Naming Your Company
Entrepreneur: www.entrepreneur.com
U.S. Trademark and Patent offices: www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/tmfaq.htm
Secretaries of State: www.statelocalgov.net
U.S. Copyright Office: www.copyright.gov
Trademark search: www.uspto.gov

To Register Your Web Site
www.register.com
www.godaddy.com
www.networksolutions.com

WEEK FOUR

Research Information
U.S. Census Bureau: www.census.gov
www.yellowbook.com
www.switchboard.com

For the Sale-Forecasting Worksheet and Calculator
www.score.org

For Business Terms and Definitions
www.answers.com/main/business.jsp

WEEK FIVE

Marketing
Guerrilla Marketing, by Jay Conrad Levinson, 1984: www.gmarketing.com
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner
Entrepreneur: www.entrepreneur.com/marketing

WEEK SIX

To Learn More About Writing a Press Release
PR Newswire: www.prtoolkit.prnewswire.com
Café Press: www.cafepress.com/cp/learn/pr_101

PR Services for Sending Press Releases
PR Newswire: www.prnewswire.com (go to PRN Direct)
www.prweb.com
Send 2 Press: www.send2press.com

WEEK SEVEN

Register Your Site URL
www.register.com
www.networksolutions.com

Pay-per-Click Providers
www.overture.com
adwords.google.com

Search Engine Directory
www.freewebsubmission.com
www.google.com
www.msn.com
www.yahoo.com

Search Engine Optimization
www.highrankings.com

Blog Sites
www.blogger.com
www.typepad.com
www.wordpress.com

Article Distribution
www.isnare.com
www.ezinearticles.com

E-mail Marketing Providers
www.mailermailer.com
www.constantcontact.com

Affiliate Marketers
www.linkshare.com
www.performics.com
www.cj.com

Podcast Directories
www.podcastingnews.com
www.sbtv.com

Social Networks
www.myspace.com
www.facebook.com
www.windowslive.com/spaces/overview.html
www.linkedin.com

WEEK EIGHT

Business Associations For Women Entrepreneurs
Office of Women's Business Ownership: www.sba.gov/womeninbusiness/wnet.html
National Association of Women Business Owners: www.nawbo.org
American Women's Economic Development Corporation (AWED): www.awed.org

General Networking Sites
Ladies Who Launch: www.ladieswholaunch.com
Step Up Women's Network: www.suwn.org

Online Networking Sites
www.friendster.com
www.linkedin.com
www.ryze.com
www.facebook.com
www.myspace.com

Gift Giving and Personal Greeting Web Sites
www.bluemountain.com
www.nevermissanotherbirthday.com
www.birthdaycards.com
www.regards.com
www.bakemeawish.com

Networking for Moms
www.cafemom.com

Related Books
Benton, D. A., Lions Don't Need To Roar, New York: Warner Books, 1992, pp. 18-24, 28-39, 53-83.
Colligan, Victoria, and Beth Schoenfeldt, with Amy Swift, Ladies Who Launch--Embracing Entrepreneurship & Creativity as a Lifestyle, New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007, pp. 55-78.
Kerr, Cherie, Networking Skills That Will Get You the Job You Want, Cincinnati: Betterway Books, 1999, pp. 33-44.
Nierenberg, Andrea, Million Dollar Networking, Herndon: Capital Books, 2005, pp. 22-25, 42-43, 75-105.

WEEK NINE

Small Business Budgeting
www.businessownersideacafe.com/financing/budget_calculator.html
www.startupnation.com
www.score.org/pdf/Start-up Expenses1.pdf
www.jaxworks.com
www.work.com/accurate-expense-forecasting-491

Related Book
Godin, Seth, and Lim, Paul, If You're Clueless About Accounting and Finance and Want to Know More, Chicago: Dearborn Financial Publishing, 1998, pp. 87-106.

WEEK TEN

Health Insurance
U.S. Chamber of Commerce/purchasing alliances: www.uschamber.com/sb/business/P05/P05_4505.asp
www.ehealthinsurance.com
www.cobrahealth.com

WEEK ELEVEN

General
www.startupnation.com
U.S. Chamber of Commerce: www.uschamber.com
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov
www.score.org
Department of Revenue directory by state: www.aicpa.org/yellow/yptsgus.htm
Department of Labor directory by state: www.dol.gov/dol/location.htm
U.S. government business tax Web site: www.business.gov/topic/

Taxes
SS4 Employer Identification Number Form: www.irs.gov/formspubs
Or apply online at: www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00.html

Business Structures
www.startupjunkies.org/incorp.html

Licenses and Permits
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/start/getlicensesandpermits/

Business Insurance
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/manage/getinsurance/SERV_INSURANCE.html
www.toolkit.cch.com/text/P12_9300.asp

WEEK TWELVE

Sample Plans with Executive Summary and Mission Statements
www.bplans.com/sample_business_plans

IRS Small Business Information
www.irs.gov/businesses/small

WEEK THIRTEEN

Sample Financial Statements and Templates
www.esmalloffice.com
www.score.org/template_gallery.html
Small Business Administration bplans: www.bplans.com/samples

WEEK FOURTEEN

General Business Planning
www.toolkit.com
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov
www.score.org
www.prairiepublic.org/features/end/money1.htm
www.bplans.com
U.S. Bureau of Census: www.census.gov

Borrowing from Friends and Family
www.circlelending.com
www.virginmoneyus.com
www.loanback.com

Promissory Notes
www.findlegalforms.com/forms
www.lawdepot.com
www.smartformz.com

Amortization Calculators
www.amortization-calc.com
www.bankrate.com/brm/popcalc2.asp

Angel Investors
www.ventureworthy.com
www.winwomen.org
www.investorscircle.net
www.goldenseeds.com
www.keiretsuforum.com
www.angeldeals.com
www.activecapital.org

Venture Capital
www.soleracapital.com
www.mixcreative.com
www.funkventures.com
www.springboardenterprises.org
www.boldcapventures.com
Women's Technology Cluster: www.wtc-sf.org

Banks
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov (for a list of banks offering SBA-guaranteed loans)
www.chase.com
www.commercebank.com
www.bankofamerica.com

Microloans
www.microenterpriseworks.org
www.accionusa.org
www.prosper.com

Financial Statements and Forms
U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/tools/Forms/smallbusinessforms/fsforms/
www.score.org/template_gallery.html
www.score.org/pdf/12 Month Profit and Loss Projection1.pdf

WEEK FIFTEEN

Books
Blanchard, Ken, Drea Zigarmi, and Patricia Zigarmi, Leadership and the One Minute Manager, New York: Morrow, 1985.
Blanchard, Ken, John Carlos, and Alan Randolph, Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute, San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1996.
Bourgeois, Trudy, The Hybrid Leader, Winchester: Oakhill Press, 2006.
Drucker, Peter F., The Practice of Management, New York: HarperCollins, 2006.
Edic, Martin, Self-Motivation for the Self-Employed, Rocklin: Prima Publishing, 1997.
Edwards, Sarah and Paul, Making It on Your Own, Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, 1991.
Gleeson, Kerry, The Personal Efficiency Program, Hoboken, Wiley, 2004.
Lonier, Terri, Working Solo, New Paltz: Portico Press, 1994.

WEEK SIXTEEN

Listing of Charities
www.charitynavigator.org
www.justgive.org
www.oneclickatatime.org
www.womenscharities.com
www.charity-charities.org

AND MORE...

Downloadable forms:

Start Up and Operating Budget (Excel)

Business Insurance Worksheet (Word)

Coming soon: Accounting 101 Terms

Recommended readings:

Here are our top picks for all your pre-business launch literature. You have most likely heard of a few of these, and there is a reason, they've got great insight and offer more than boring business lingo and financial jargon. Learn from those who have helped to pave the road, or at least traveled along its often bumpy path.

The Girl's Guide to Starting Your Own Business: Candid Advice, Frank Talk, and True Stories for the Successful Entrepreneur by Caitlin Friedman, Kimberly Yorio

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell

Ladies Who Launch: Embracing Entrepreneurship & Creativity as a Lifestyle by Victoria Colligan and Beth Schoenfeldt, with Amy Swift

Keeping the Books: Basic Record Keeping and Accounting for the Successful Small Business by Linda Pinson

The One Minute Manager (Paperback) by Ph.D. Kenneth Blanchard, M.D. Spencer Johnson