"In Ohio, small businesses drive $1,700,000,000 of economic impact. And in 2023, Ohio jobs create or Ohio businesses small businesses created 10,747 new jobs in 2023."

Brett Johnson and Carol Ventresca invite Kelly Fuller, a seasoned guest expert and the Senior Vice President of the Columbus Chamber Foundation, to discuss entrepreneurship. Emphasizing local resources, Kelly provides a wealth of recommendations for those starting or running a small business.

Networking and Local Resources

Fuller highlights the importance of connecting with local chambers of commerce and economic development offices. These entities offer a plethora of networking opportunities and resources that can be invaluable for new business owners. Fuller underscores that even non-paying members can join chambers to benefit from networking events. Carol suggests that vendors, who are often fellow small business owners, are valuable sources of information.

The discussion also brings attention to the importance of expanding one's networking horizon beyond their own industry. This approach can help entrepreneurs meet potential customers and peers in similar situations, thus broadening their support network.

Programs and Initiatives

The Columbus Chamber has multiple programs aimed at supporting small businesses. One notable initiative is the Accelerate Program, funded by the city of Columbus. This program includes sessions like "brand camp" tailored to help businesses with their branding and messaging. Other remarkable programs include:

Local Libraries and SBA Resources

Local libraries and SBA Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) are also highlighted as essential resources. Public libraries often have business centers or knowledgeable librarians who can provide guidance. SBA SBDCs are particularly useful as they offer services even in rural areas. The Ohio Small Business Development Centers are widely accessible and federally funded, suggesting that similar resources might be available in other states as well.

Fuller advises new entrepreneurs to be cautious and thoroughly research available resources to avoid unnecessary spending. Many resources can be accessed free of charge or at a reduced cost, making it essential to leverage these tools early in the business journey.

Financial Management and Legal Considerations

The conversation touches on the crucial aspects of managing cash flow and financial growth. Entrepreneurs must exercise financial restraint, avoiding significant expenditures on premium options initially. Rapid growth can lead to complications, particularly if a business can't meet increased demand.

They recommend utilizing local resources like the SBA and SBDC for guidance on navigating these complexities. Engaging professional services such as accountants or attorneys might be costly but approaching them well-prepared can make the interactions more cost-effective.

Branding and Cost-Effective Strategies

Branding emerges as a non-negotiable element of business success. "Brand Camp" by Conspire helps businesses establish their brand identity, which is crucial for differentiating in competitive markets. Fuller suggests that employing interns from colleges or high schools for managing social media and branding tasks can be a budget-friendly option. For example, Ohio State University's Bucks GoPro program offers opportunities to engage student-athletes for handling social media efforts.

Additionally, Carol points out that cultivating relationships with professionals like CPAs can significantly aid as the company grows. Starting initially with interns or affordable solutions makes it easier for businesses to scale their professional services as needed.

Challenges and Advice

Starting a business is challenging, and common pitfalls include lacking a solid business plan, inadequate cash flow management, poor personal credit, and incorrect pricing strategies. Fuller emphasizes the necessity of a well-prepared business plan, crucial for daily operations, securing funding, and making informed financial decisions. She also advises small business owners to guard their personal credit and explore diverse funding options like business loans, crowdfunding, and revolving loan funds for gap financing.

Personal anecdotes shared during the episode underscore the leap of faith involved in starting a business and its potential for success and satisfaction. The hosts encourage listeners to conduct thorough research and be aware of scams or unnecessary expenditures.

Key Moments

00:00 Columbus Chamber primarily supports small businesses.

06:06 13% increase in small businesses; 76% survive.

09:56 A solid business plan is critical.

10:47 Startups struggle managing cash flow effectively.

14:21 Entrepreneur flourishes after leaving corporate stability.

19:02 Organize business structure: LLC or sole proprietor.

21:17 Use interns for affordable social media marketing.

24:59 Attend diverse Chamber events; broaden your network.

26:53 Cultivate Us program supports immigrant business owners.

32:37 Utilize local resources and network for support.

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And of course, everything can be found on our website, Looking Forward Our Way.

Recorded in Studio C at 511 Studios. A production of Circle 270 Media® Podcast Consultants.

Copyright 2025 Carol Ventresca and Brett Johnson

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/

Mentioned in this episode:

Listener Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed by the experts interviewed on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcast hosts or any affiliated organizations. The information provided in these interviews is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered as professional advice. Listeners are encouraged to consult with qualified professionals for specific advice or information related to their individual circumstances. The podcast host and producers do not endorse or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information provided by the experts interviewed. Listener discretion is advised.

We are looking forward our way. Hi. This is Brett. Entrepreneurship is a foundation of the American economy. Individuals as small business owners thrive as a one person shopper hiring others in their community, but starting a business is not easy nor a guarantee of success. We recently posted a podcast of tips for entrepreneurs featuring several of our experts. Today, we're going to dive into the intricacies of starting a business with our expert guest, Kelly Fuller. You've been here at least 17 times right?

At least 17 times. She I'm getting, my card punched for free Exactly.

She is the

senior We owe her free parking. There you go.

She, we get we make those vests you know, that they yeah. She's a senior vice president of the Columbus Chamber Foundation. Kelly, thanks for so much for joining us again.

Oh, of course. It's, always lovely to see you, Brett and Carol, and hang out and just have a great conversation like we're gonna do today.

We do. And and we have a long conversation even before we start the podcast and then another one after the podcast. So it it works out, Kelly. Thank you again for for all of your assistance and support. We're starting out our new year talking about how, people can look at becoming small business owners by starting their own company, and we thought this is a perfect way to have you give us a an overview, plus also some of those details we haven't quite gotten to yet. So we're gonna tap into your knowledge on small business development and resources available to entrepreneurs in our our community. But first, let's talk about you, talk about your background and the chamber, and, to get us going.

Sure. Well, thank you. And, always, as I said, lovely to be here with both of you. So as mentioned, I've been at the Columbus Chamber of Commerce for 6 years and initially started back in 2018 as a workforce person to come in and help the chamber membership understand how to tap into talent pipelines, the resources that were available when it comes to upskilling and retaining people. And that was really my focus for about the first five and a half years. About 6 months ago, in addition to workforce, I now also do foundation work for the chamber, which means I oversee programs. We're gonna talk about at least one of them here later today when it comes to small business. But prior to the chamber, I was with Eastland Fairfield Career and Technical School for about 15 years.

One of the really interesting things though about my current role and about being at the chamber, when we think about this conversation, is our Columbus Chamber has 24 100 members. There's a percentage of those that join the chamber specifically for group rated health insurance. So if I'm a small business owner, I'm probably seeking some type of way to continue to offer insurance to myself and maybe my employees. But of that 24100, about 87% of those are businesses that are 50 or fewer employees, 5 o or fewer. So we certainly have all the marquee names you see as you drive around the city of the largest employers in the region, but we really are a chamber of small businesses. And so many of those, came to us already fully baked, and others came to us as they're beginning their journey as small business owners.

And because I I I'm guessing that many, small business developers, number 1, chambers are probably not on their radar screen. They've got so many things going on and so many issues coming up and but also that it's it is that false notion that chambers are only large companies, and it's not.

Right. It's not. And we, as a Columbus Chamber, like so many other chambers in the region, have, you know, really put a lot of emphasis and focus on how do we not only attract those small businesses, but help them navigate. Because so often, as as we all know, we may have a great idea, or we may might make the best, you know, pies, you know, that anyone has ever tasted. But we may not have the the skill set built or the plans built in order to launch that skill set into a business, into a viable business.

And and so often in today's world, health insurance is top issue for most folks to keep them from taking that leap of faith Right. To go and do something on their own.

Right. And I will say shameless plug for the Columbus Chamber. And we're not the only ones in this space. But, we do offer, group rated health insurance for solopreneurs. So so many other organizations say you have to have x number of employees, small business owner, in order to participate in that type of program. The Columbus Chamber, makes that available to someone who's a solopreneur as well.

That's wonderful. You know, we need to make sure we've got that information in the show notes for this program, to because that will be a huge issue for so many folks. Waiting to 65 for Medicare is a long wait. That's

a long wait. Yeah.

Yeah. Exactly. Well, as most of us know, the pen the pandemic brought some record shattering numbers in business development just because of the situation we were in. People need a job, so they created their own. But that trend does continue. In 2023, Over 150,000 businesses were started in Ohio. That rate of creation continues, but what about the rate of success? I mean, what are the trends in small businesses surviving today from what you're seeing?

Yeah. No. That's a great question, Brett. And you're right. Out of necessity, out of, sheer determination, so many businesses were born, at the beginning of the pandemic as people saw themselves suddenly out of a job or, you know, trying to figure out how to continue to be sustainable. Ohio is a very good state for entrepreneurs. In fact, in that same year of 20, when you were talking about 2023, Ohio ranked in the top 10 as the 6th best state in the country to start a business. And they looked at several factors that made that up.

We've seen over the the past year a 13% increase in the number of small businesses and a survival rate of 76 percent. So that survival rate, though, can be affected by many different factors. Anything from, the business cycle, the industry that you're in, your location, all of those things. But in in the recent years, the 1 year survival rate, for businesses 1 year after the year in which they were born, was generally, when we look back, the lowest in 2,000 1 and 2,008. But when we think about what was going on in 2,000 1 and 2,008, you know, the both of those years, we were in recession. So when we think about the timing of when a business starts, I I know I remember at the beginning of 2020 at the chamber when we'd have some business owners reaching out, gosh, it was so heartbreaking to hear people say, I just opened my doors in February of 2020. Yeah. Or I was just getting, you know, the legs under this business, and then suddenly, you know, we were dramatically impacted.

And, you know, one thing that sort of to the advantage of small businesses being created during the pandemic was that we were farther along technologically Mhmm. And and folks were starting businesses that could be based on a technology platform. Back in 01 and 08, that was not the possibility. We were still talking bricks and mortar and who could afford rent, unless you were doing this out of your basement or garage. You couldn't afford to be doing a business. Right. You know, on the street.

So And and that that technology that was in place and then just the explosion of how much technology kind of boomed as a result of that. You know, we saw so many things whether it was from, you know, starting a business, growing a business, keeping the doors open, literally and figurative doors, but also how we educate children and how we educated our college students as well. So technology really of all the types of small businesses, those were and those that were involved in that space, it really saw kind of a a great jump in in their ability to start and and stay viable.

As as Brett mentioned when we started this, entrepreneurship is the basis of the US economy, much more so than than people realize. And folks start businesses for a variety of reasons. They all have that significant impact on our community. People are hired, payrolls created, income taxes are paid. Do we know what the actual impact is on our region?

So looking at numbers I pulled, this morning that were, actually coming out May 30th this year for Ohio startups. In Ohio, small businesses drive 1 point $7,000,000,000 of economic impact. And in 2023, Ohio jobs create or Ohio businesses small businesses created 10,747 new jobs in 2023. That's a pretty significant amount. I mean, when we think about you hear the term so often, you know, our economy, you know, that small businesses are the backbone of our economy. And, you know, when you see numbers hear numbers like that, it it kind of does play out. And sometimes, you know, I we we get so inundated with news that's telling us to think one way or believe one way as far as what jobs and numbers are going and what's being created or sustained. I would suggest that people really look at a trusted sources like the Bureau of Labor and Statistics and others that really track those numbers in a in a nonpartisan fashion.

Right. Right.

Yeah. So as I mentioned earlier, starting a business is and, you know, it's no guarantee of success. But what are some of the common mistakes entrepreneurs make that put their businesses at risk for failing? I mean, are some industries more successful than others too?

No. And, boy, what a you know, I I'm always at the chamber. And even when I was at the career center working with the adult students, just what a leap of faith that people take when they decide I'm going to go out on my own and start my own business. And, you know, so many of us wanna cheer that along and make sure that we're supporting it. What we have found, at the chamber and in some of the programs and work that we're doing is lack of planning. A business plan is critical. A business plan is critical, not just to help you with the day to day nuts and bolts running of the job. But should you decide to apply for funding, that's gonna be the first thing that a funder asks for is what is your business plan? And that lack of planning, a good solid business plan can really be, you know, one of the first things that makes a business, like, not successful.

Also, when we think about cash flow, a lot of, businesses early on when they're starting up, again, back to that business plan, haven't really thought through the the cash flow. So not having enough, you know, money on hand to pay the bills, to pay the vendors, to pay the staff, should they have to pay themselves. So that can be another problem as well. So we we talk to businesses about really keeping an eye on your cash flow and understanding pricing your products or services correctly as well. We sometimes will see businesses that have really got that gotten that out of whack. It's like you really need to charge more here. Or converse to that, the market that you're in maybe won't bear what you're expecting to charge for that service.

That's a good point. And you don't often hear that. You hear cash flow, you hear need for a good account, need for a good legal counsel, but that notion of to know the market well enough to know what your services and products are worth.

Absolutely. And I don't know that as many people utilize this as they should. But here in Columbus, at least, and I would assume in a lot of large metro markets, we have an amazing public library system. So the Columbus Metropolitan Library, if you go and visit the downtown branch, on the 3rd floor, you'll find the business and philanthropy section with a business librarian. And with your library card for free, you can access and do research on your competition, on your pro your proposed or existing product or service, and really kind of get some of that leg work done on your own with the support of a librarian and with the price of having your library card.

Exact and you don't even have to live in Columbus to have a library card. And kudos and a shout out to our Columbus library system is phenomenal. It also links you to LinkedIn Learning. So you have tens of thousands of free courses that you can take that normally would cost you if you just did it through LinkedIn. But through the library and your library card, you can do them for free.

You can do them for free. And I think, you know, those issues of pricing and and cash flow and also, Brett, back to your question as well, like, where do businesses fail? Not really protecting their own personal credit, you know, understanding that having a good credit score personally, you know, you may have to take a loan, you know, at some point in time, in order to to keep things going. So the good news is there are a lot of agencies and organizations locally here and probably in other communities that can help you navigate that and help support you as you're building your business. Yeah.

So yeah. I think going into certain areas, like, for example, me with it's a coaching or consulting, whatever. You don't you're not really making a product. So you don't have that a b comparison. And I've I've seen it in that world that you just it's a service. So you try to compare contrast other services, but but there's also the psychological piece to it that you're on one end, you're afraid to ask too much, or on the other end, you think your stuff is just the best and you're way overpriced. Right. It's like there's a reality that you somebody's got to kind of smack you in the face kind of going, you're too high.

You're like, come on. You're worth more than that. Right. Right. That's the power. To it. But yeah. But especially when it's a service based.

And I think a lot of entrepreneurs go into it as a service based as well because they've had that background and they don't know what the price it has

Yeah.

As a service. Yeah.

That's so much.

It is hard.

It it I was just thinking of a particular instance of someone I know, and I can't give his name because he'll yell at me when I'm saying this. But for 20 years, I told him to go into business for himself, Computer consulting, but he was always with huge companies, and I kept saying, you can do this on your you do not need those companies. He finally did, and now because he's so busy, so successful, making so much more money, He keeps trying to figure out how he can retire, but he's just doesn't want to walk away from it. I mean, it's amazing, how your perceptions are different when you're working in a company, quote unquote, that has that stability of payroll, that stability of insurance, you know, and when you're ready to take that leap of faith in yourself.

Yeah.

Yeah. It's amazing. Yeah. So as I mentioned, looking forward our way is doing some stuff on entrepreneurship this year. And we recently put together tips from many of our expert guests. We identified various areas that should be addressed and had our expert guests come in and give us a few minutes. But what we would like from Kelly today is more detail. So the first thing that we talk about, and I kind of think it's sort of the top of the list, is financing.

And Kelly, you've already mentioned a couple of things. Let's dive into that a little bit farther.

Sure. So as as said, you know, personal financing is really important because you may have to be establishing credit lines. We see a lot, especially in, a time of social media, reaching out to family and friends even to help finance or source or crowd source. Again, applying for a business loan. Some organizations, some areas have, revolving loan funds within their community. So a revolving loan fund is an opportunity to approach that entity, again, with your business plan to say it's mostly around gap financing. So I've already gotten $25,000 to start up my business, but I need this extra 10 in order to buy the equipment necessary or whatever. A revolving loan fund can be a good friend in that space too.

So look at your local, county commissioners. Look at your local, economic development office. There's a good way to find out whether or not that exists there. We also talked, about at the Chamber a lot about, incubator spaces, whether that's a brick and mortar incubator with others that are in that start up space or, you, you know, join a virtual one. But I will say that with a brick and mortar one, to help offset the cost and the finance, you're sharing, you know, the resources. You're sharing whether it's, you know, paper, pens, telephone, electricity, you know, recording space, you know, whatever that might be. It's a way for you to help offset some of that financial burden.

It really goes back to your original point about cash flow. Oftentimes, everybody wants the the best location for their bakery, the prettiest business cards, the best flyer, the best website, and it would seem that, restraint is probably a better word than getting the best your first date on on literally on the job.

Yeah. Yeah. It's, it's very tempting, because we do wanna have, you know, the as much traffic as possible. We don't wanna have the business awareness. We want the visibility. I would say there's a little bit of caution on that as well because we do see also some businesses who try to grow too fast. So they also get hit with the it's good news, bad news. The good news is everybody loves me.

Everybody wants my product or service, but I don't know that I have the capacity to fulfill it. So going back to the earlier comment and question about where do small businesses kinda fall down at the beginning of their journey can be growing too quickly without

But everybody does love me.

But everybody does love you. Exactly. That's pretty heady thinking. I can't

make I can't make enough cookies to fill it. That's right.

And and it and and you know they love you today, but will they love your product tomorrow? You could gear up and then Yeah. Be stuck. Yeah.

Yeah.

Good point. Yeah.

You know, this is kind of a takeoff on the financial, but another issue is legal status, which is like an LLC, which again has its components of LLC, but it also has a financial piece to it as well too, or other legal filings. I went through this year some trademark, for for a couple of things that I've got with the podcasting thing. So we don't just pay taxes. We have to let the government know we exist. Mhmm. How should, an owner proceed, at least, you know, starting on that LLC level and then, you know, why?

Yeah. That's so important. How we organize, how we identify, how we're gonna be paying and filing taxes, what's the best route for my business to go, LLC, sole proprietor, you know, what am I gonna do? And when you're also trying to figure out everything else about your business, you know, you don't wanna miss that critical piece. So again, some really good news, here locally and I think in a lot of other markets. Look to your local chamber. I'll talk some more here in a bit about some programming that we have that addresses just that. But also reach out to your local small business association, Small Business Development Center, SBA, SBDC. They have classes on that as well.

They have ways to help walk you through. You'll see a lot of, like, sample business plans where it's plug and play. Like, you know, figure this stuff out here. Well, how do I figure it out? They're gonna help put you in touch with, professionals in that space that can guide. We oftentimes make the mistake as someone trying to start a small business to think I have to go pay an accountant right away. I have to go pay an attorney. It can be pretty costly. We love our accountants and attorneys.

We want them to be successful as well, but there are some resources that you can tap into an SBA SBDC for as well.

And and it would seem to me that it's going to be much more cost effective if you go into your initial accountant or legal, lawyer appointments with as much information as opposed to going in with no information and letting them bill you through those explanations. Yeah.

I should also know that you may not be with that certain CPA for a long time. Maybe that's your first step

That's right.

In the beginning of your business. And you grow and and you may all grow that CPA. And that's okay.

Mhmm.

That's okay. Because they've chosen their path on what they wanna be with as a CPA.

Right. Right. For sure. So next week, we have to come up with, consumers. Now all the podcasters love Brett, but we you know, every business has to come up with people who are going to actually buy their services, their widgets, whatever, targeting the correct potential clients and getting a brand and your message out is critical. Those steps are time consuming and can be expensive just to just like finding a lawyer and accountant. You know, what are your tips on branding in social media?

Yeah. So, putting on a Statue of Liberty outfit and standing on the corner is probably not the best way to direct people into my place of business. We also, at the Chamber, not only are we a small organization ourselves, but as I mentioned, we're made up of small companies. They don't often have a big budget for this. Right? And as we know, getting that message out to our target market is really critical. What we use at the Chamber and we encourage our businesses to do is look to interns interns in college or even high school, if you're able to work out that that relationship with your local school to help you with your social media. O OSU here in the Columbus Market, Ohio State University, Jean Smith Foundation has a program called Bucks GoPro. And what Bucks GoPro is is a way for student athletes at Ohio State in a variety of different sports and majors allows them to come to a business, be paid by the the foundation by the Jean Smith Foundation for the time that they're at your business.

And we've been doing this for about the last 5 years at the Chamber. We've had fencers. We've had swimmers. We've had divers. We've had field hockey. This past summer, we had 2 OSU football players, that came in, and they were able to do some really cool things with us on social media. They know this stuff better than we do. They're living in it.

They're in it. And for a lot of our businesses, including the Chamber, they represent our target market. So I'd say if you're interested in the social media aspect of it, even your website appearance, you know, really maybe look at some interns as a possibility.

That you know, having come from higher ed and and placing interns for many, many years, that's a wonderful, wonderful message. And, I had I also not only had got students' jobs, but I also hired students to do that and they are. They are incredible in terms of what they can help you produce. I think that we often many many folks often think, oh, I'm on Twitter. I'm on Facebook, and therefore, they can do their own branding. And there's really a lot more to it than that.

Yeah. There is. And I I will say that within the Chamber membership, we have some really great partners that are members, but also partners in the sense that they help us market our own programs. Conspire is one of them. In fact, Conspire offers something called a brand camp. And what a brand camp is is helping a a business figure out what is my brand. You know, what is my brand anthem here? How am I going to differentiate myself in a market that may be full of people that are doing the same product or service? So turn to your local chamber, kind of find maybe some of their members like Conspire at the Columbus Chamber that will help you develop your brand. We are currently running a program at the Chamber called Accelerate, and I'll talk more about that here in a minute too.

But part of the Accelerate program, which is funded by the city of Columbus, is helping us with businesses that are starting up. And we are having, Conspire come in and do a brand camp for 10 of our businesses, which is basically a half day session on you're gonna walk out of here with a brand. You're gonna walk out of here with some messaging and a way to relay that to your potential customers.

So as you know, we love networking. Yeah. There are so many ways to network.

Yeah.

And it's actually kind of changed, since, you know, the the beginning and the end of COVID, basically. Do you have some examples of successful programs or events that a small business owner can take advantage of to grow their business. Yeah.

So definitely join your local chamber. And if not as a full fledged paying member, those events are often open and free, to people to come in and and connect. The thing that I would say that I've noticed in the 6 years with the chamber is go to something that's maybe not necessarily in your field. I mean, we tend to congregate in things that are our industry, which is great. That's how we build those networks and that's how we learn. But what I've witnessed in the last 6 years is people, small business owners, going to something outside of their industry. And, oh my gosh, finding someone that's either in the exact same spot they're in, you know, and, you know, kind of going through the struggle together, or finding someone who's a potential customer that you didn't even think about because you were so siloed into one specific industry sector. So I'd say those are those are really good ways.

Look for, you know, any opportunity that, again, I I'd say outside of the comfort zone. You know, we tend to stay within our comfort zones, but there are lots of networking opportunities for sure.

We used to tell clients who are looking for jobs to not just network with people they knew and not just network with other job seekers, to really look sort of be, adventurous in where you go to do the networking, b and b, b two b, whatever they're calling it. And it would seem that this is a great opportunity for them to not only network and find potential vendors, potential clients, but also to see how different ways to grow your business. There are different ways to start a business, different ways different paths that a business can take and comparing it to other owners other business owners would be helpful.

Absolutely. We had an example of that recently. The the Columbus Chamber runs a program called Cultivate Us. It is generously supported by both the city of Columbus and Franklin County, and it's geared towards businesses owned or operated, here in the city or county, by people who are foreign born. So our think about our refugee and immigrant community. We offered a session for, specifically target targeted towards our refugee and immigrant owned businesses where we invited planning and zoning to come in and talk about planning and zoning and the importance of, you know, getting correct permits and in the process that you need. In the conversation of the people that were of the 20 or 25 people that were there, there were 3 people that were there that had they weren't they were neither foreign born or, immigrant business owners, but they had a desire to learn more about permitting and planning. So even kinda peeling that back going, maybe I'm not exactly the target audience, but I've got a vested interest in this topic.

So let's go ahead and go for it.

Right. Yeah. Well, the Columbus Chamber is a prime example of a resource that can support an individual in in the development of their business. Let's talk about not only your chamber, but maybe some other organizations, which we kinda lightly talked about, and maybe other governmental programs that are available too.

Sure. So I mentioned Accelerate Columbus. And Accelerate is, a program that the city has, it's several programs, actually, that the city has stood up to help those those emerging business owners. And the Columbus Chamber was one recipient, but I'll talk a little bit about some of the other programs, that operate under that accelerate banner. 1 is First Sip Studios, in that particular program, again, funded by the city. Their personalized learning expenses just personalized learning experiences just for small business owners. It's actually having a mentor, who's gonna help walk you through designing and every step of your business. They do this through, 2 monthly 1 on 1 hour long sessions that they offer.

That looks a bit different than the Columbus Chambers Accelerate program, which is a 6 it's a program that goes over 6 different sessions over 12 weeks, so every other week. Those are held at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. And, we bring in accountants, attorneys, designers, website people. Again, no charge to these business owners to learn more about how they can get off on the right foot. Our Lady of Guadalupe Center at the with Catholic Social Services also offers a program to help Hispanic entrepreneurs launch their businesses. The classes are held at the Our Lady office on the west side, and they're taught predominantly in Spanish. So again, thinking about all the issues an emerging business owner may have, but offering that in in Spanish. Another is video story, which again is an accelerate program through the city.

This goes back to the question on how do I market and share what I'm doing. They focus on message development, content creation, and pricing, in order to fuel your, your marketing strategy. This is, again, free to individuals who sign up because the city of Columbus has has seen it, be a good way to help promote small business.

You know, Kelly, there are a lot of different programs, like the state of Ohio also has the Small Business Development Center. And for listeners, we'll have a list of all of these resources available on our, in the show notes on our website. What should somebody do to even find these places? Yeah. You know, say they haven't and thought about the Columbus Chamber or their local chamber. There could be other smaller programs, you know, in your community. What do they do? Google Business Development? I mean, how do they get started?

Yeah. That's a great question. I would say check your local library regardless of the size and ask if there is a business a business center or a business librarian. You know, most of the larger library systems have those, but even some of the smaller ones can get provide you access or at least get you on the right foot. The SBA SBDC centers are amazing resources. They are not just in large communities. They're actually in rural and regional sites as well. So I would say to start there too.

And then if you are a member of a specific community like the Hispanic community in Columbus, you know, to look at organizations like Our Lady of Guadalupe, who's helping with food stability and security and ESL. They're also offering something that you may not know about in this entrepreneurship.

It it's, for those of our of our listeners who are outside of Central Ohio, the Ohio Small Business Development Centers are all over the state. I think they're last I heard about 9 offices, throughout the state, and those programs are funded through federal dollars, which likely also means those types of programs are available in your state if you're not in Ohio. So there there's a lot of resources out there. We've said this before in other, podcasts. I think the one thing that folks do be and they become afraid to take that leap of faith because they don't have information. You you really have to do your research.

You do have to do your research. And be very aware that, as I mentioned, there are people that will take your money for things when they know that you're trying to start off for a business. So really pay attention to, you know, is this something that I do need to pay for or can I find this for free or at a reduced rate?

Good point. So, Kelly, our time with you always flies by, and we so appreciate your time and expertise. We we would like to know if you have any other small tidbits of of information or words of wisdom for our listeners.

Yeah. I know I've said it a thousand times on the 17 times I've visited the show, but I would say definitely check with your local chamber or your economic development office on these. Reach out to the resources that will be provided in the show notes, because there are people that are very excited and desirous of you setting up a small business. And find your own your own network, even outside of those organizations I just mentioned. Sometimes, just having a buddy that's also in that space or maybe even a little further along than you are can provide a lot of support and guidance and solace when when things can get a little bit challenging, but also be there to be your biggest cheerleader as well.

And and think of the the vendors that you use. They are likely also small business owners, and they could provide you with a lot of good information.

Absolutely. Yeah. Great.

Well, many thanks to our expert guest, Kelly Fuller, senior vice president of the Columbus Chamber Foundation, for joining us today. Listeners, thank you for joining us as well. You're gonna find contact information and resources we discussed in the podcast in the show notes as well as on our website at looking forward our way.com. And we are looking forward to hearing your feedback on this or any of our other podcast episodes.