Check out a few of our favorite online small business resources.
Bookstores, Online
www.amazon.com
A vast selection of titles, author interviews, lists of books by author, field, and genre and lots more.
www.powells.com
Another on-line bookstore, with many unusual titles that are otherwise hard to find.
Directories
http://dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/
Business-to-business directory
www.bigbook.com
Verizon
www.ceoexpress.com
CEO Express
www.switchboard.com
Yellow Pages
www.whowhere.com
Lycos
www.researchandmarkets.com/product/8f6a3e/the_encyclopedia_of_emerging_industries
Funding, Grants, Angel Groups and Venture Capital
Ultimate Business Planner (UBP) has helped thousands of entrepreneurs nationwide secure funding and launch successful businesses.
http://www.blxonline.com/community_express.cfm This link to Business Loan Express' web page for SBA Community Express application and information
http://www.innovativebank.com/site/loan_soho.html This link to Innovative Bank's web page for SBA Community Express application and information
http://www.bizbuyfinancing.com/ Funding to buy a business
www.businessfinance.com
Where and how to find capital for your business.
www.fundingpost.com
Venture capital and angel investor site
www.vfinance.com
Venture capital and angel investor site
www.investorscircle.net
Investors Circle, Brookline, MA
www.hcangels.com
Angel Healthcare Investors LLC, Newton, MA
www.commonangels.com
CommonAngels, Lexington, MA
www.granitestateangels.com
Granite State Angels, New Hampshire
www.launchpadventuregroup.com
LaunchPad Venture Group, Wellesley, MA
www.northcountryangels.com
North Country Angels, Vermont
www.bdcm.com
Rhode Island Angels, Providence, RI
www.panteq.com/tie/tieforums_angel.html
TiE Angel Forum, Wellesley Hills, MA
www.walnutventuregroup.com
Walnut Venture Group, Wellesley Hills, MA
www.angelsummit.org
Angel Organization Summit, National Trade conference
www.unh.edu/cvr
Center for Venture Research, University of New Hampshire
Insurance, Business
www.eHealthInsurance.com
Research, compare, apply for and purchase health insurance plans
www.healthinsuranceinfo.net
Consumer guides for obtaining and keeping health insurance in each state
http://www.hiaa.org/
Health Insurance Association of America – guides on various types of insurance
Intellectual Property (Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights)
www.ftc.gov
U.S. Federal Trade Commission national office
www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/invent.htm
Invention Promotion Firms – information on avoiding being scammed
www.internic.net
Domain Name Registration. Lists accredited registrars. Shop for needed services and price.
www.loc.gov/copyright
U.S. Copyright Office. Copyright Basics
www.uspto.gov
National Patent and Trademark Office
www.willitsell.com
Invention Development and Market Research. Buy the book.
http://smbtn.com/businessplan30days/
Business Plan in 30 days! Excellent source for checklists. Buy the book.
Legal
www.bizfilings.com
How to incorporate your business
www.nolo.com
Specializes in legal do-it-yourself advice.
Management Resources
www.apics.org
Educational Society for Resource Management — formerly American Production and Inventory Control Society – educational programs for organizational success
www.brint.com
Business Research in Information and Technology
www.businessforum.com
Business Forum Online – resource center for owners of new businesses
www.buzgate.org
Resources to help start, grow and succeed in business
www.gohome.com
Business at Home – home business information
www.industryweek.com
Industry Week – manufacturing information
www.ioma.com
The Institute of Management and Administration
www.uschamber.com
U.S. Chamber of Commerce – business help and links to related sites
www.tgasbc.org The Great American Business Challenge
The Great American Small Business Challenge is a new, non-profit, national business competition that provides small companies with access to free software, online training and support. The Challenge is like the Malcolm Baldrige Award, but right-sized for smaller businesses. The target audience are high-impact and high-potential companies who lack the organizational infrastructure they need to break-through. The Challenge is the right medicine for these difficult economic times where small companies need to learn how to get lean to stay competitive and survive. Best of all, participants receive free access to business-development software, training materials and more.
Market Research
www.ama.org
American Marketing Association site. Marketing resources and tips.
www.bluebook.org
Marketing research directory
www.d-source.com
Marketing research directory and search engine
www.MarketingPower.com/dictionary
Dictionary of day-to-day marketing terminology
www.quirles.com
Marketing research directory
www.zarden.com
Directory of market research companies
www.sbtv.com/
Provides information relevant to the operation of Small Businesses
www.researchandmarkets.com/product/8f6a3e/the_encyclopedia_of_emerging_industries
www.export-u.com.url
This web site is a great referral site for folks who are interested in exporting.
Mississippi Sites
http://www.mississippi.org
Mississippi Development Authority site contains many helpful items for doing business in Mississippi as well as links to other Mississippi State Agencies.
www.mscpc.com
Mississippi Contract Procurement Center
www.mississippi.gov/index.jsp
The State of Mississippi
Other Useful Sites
www.all-biz.com/entrepr.html
Has excellent small business links
www.apple.com/smallbusiness
Some how-to information, especially helpful for Mac users.
Expert advice, links, success stories.
www.betheboss.com
Franchise information and opportunities.
www.gohome.com
How-to’s, chats and links for those who work at home
www.thinksmart.com/index.html
Innovation is a buzzword these days, and with good reason: it's emerging as one of the most important duties of management. Contains stories, articles, links and useful resources.
Purchasing
www.bizweb.com
Guide to 46,000 companies
www.buyerszone.com
E-marketplace for small business purchasing
www.thomasregister.com
Thomas Register of US Manufacturers – find companies and products manufactured in North America
www.usabizmart.com USABizMart not only has thousands of business for sale listings in your immediate area, it lists resources for buyers, sellers, brokers, and agents.
Science and Technology
http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/
The Copyright Office
www.inventnet.com/list.html
Inventions Help — Inventnet forum
www.nas.edu
National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, Medicine and National Research Council
www.nist.gov
National Institute of Standards and Technology
www.ntis.gov/naics
National Technical Information Service – publication by industry of NAICS, National Association of Industrial Classification Systems - replaces SIC
www.uspto.gov
Patent and Trademark Office
SCORE
www.score.org
SCORE National Site (Business advice/tools)
www.scoregulfport.org
Homepage for the Gulf Coast Chapter 130 of SCORE
SCORE Partner Sites
www.easimedia.com
Has free downloadable software (iEdition) for small businesses. Links, tips, access to business information, resources.
www.microsoft.com/smallbiz
Microsoft Small Business - office templates – great business plan model
www.quicken.corn/small_business
Small business advice and tools
www.toolkit.cch.com
CCH Small Business Site - good advice in many area and business tools
Search Engines
www.about.com
www.altavista.com
www.askjeeves.com
www.content.overture.com (acquired by Yahoo)
www.dogpile.com
www.FindWhat.com
www.google.com
www.LookSmart.com
www.metacrawler.com
www.Teoma.com
www.yahoo.com
Selling your Business
http://www.mergernetwork.com
List your business for sale.
Small Business Resources and Publications
www.bcentral.com/resources/bizplan.asp
Create a business plan
www.entrepreneur.com
Entrepreneurial Magazine Online – business tips
www.entrewor1d.org
Kauffman Foundation – resources for the entrepreneur & links to business sites
www.inc.com
Inc Magazine Online – strategies for starting, growing and running a small business
www.nhsbdc.org
NH Small Business Development Center – Many links to government, business and economic development resources. Also hosts a module training program.
www.sbaer.vca.edu
Small Business Advancement National Center (SBANC) – small business resource center – purchasing and supply
www.wahm.com
Magazine for work at home moms
www.business2.com
Magazine for up-to-date business information
Taxes
www.irs.gov
Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury
www.smbiz.com
Small Business Tax Management – links to IRS – answers to tax questions
Tips and Tools
www.americanexpress.com/smallbusiness
Lots of good small business how-to information, monthly articles on specialized topics and a long list of references to other sites of interest.
www.bbb.org
Better Business Bureau. The ethical watchdog. Consumer business tips.
www.hoaa.com/index.html
The Home Office Association home page. Have very good links, ideas, tips and resources.
www.informationhouse.com
A great website for people interested in doing business on the web. Freely shared information.
www.lowe.org/smbiznet
SmallbizNet — a service of the Edward Lowe Foundation – insights for business owners.
www.quicken.com
Tips and tools to run a small business
www.smartbiz.com/sbs/dobiz.htm
A fine site for those interested in doing business on the Internet. Articles, links, tips and useful information.
www.startupjournal.com
Wall Street Journal site – tips on business
www.prweb.com
Excellent resource for broadcasting PR materials
www.tannedfeet.com
Excellent source of information and help
www.yourbusiness.msnbc.com
Excellent source of information and help
Trade Groups
www.isbc.com
The International Small Business Consortium – locates business assistance
www.nfibonline
National Federation of Independent Business – small lobbying organization
www.nfwbo.org
A trade association for women business owners. Research articles about women and minority businesses. Good links.
www.soho.org
Home Office Professional Association
www.the-dma.org/
The Direct Marketing Association; excellent source of marketing information, conferences
US Government
http://grc.ntis.gov
Search site for countless government-sponsored research reports, articles and publications
www.business.gov
Business Advisor – access to government information, services and transactions
www.census.gov
Bureau of the Census – business statistics
www.commerce.gov
Department of Commerce – economic analysis, grants, economic development
www.exim.gov
Export Import Bank of the US – products and policies
www.firstgov.gov
US Government web portal to all government web sites – search through the database
www.ftc.gov
Major resource, especially if you plan to grow a consumer oriented business. Plenty of free information.
www.loc.gov/
Library of Congress – search for information
www.osha.gov
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) home page.
www.sba.gov
Small Business Administration – starting place for small business entrepreneurs and for all SBA loan programs
www.uspto.gov
Patent and Trademark Office – file, status and search
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/business/credit/bus08.pdf All kinds of FTC info for Small Businesses
Web Design
http://www.otrell.com
Commercial Website Development, Managed Hosting, and Managed Domain Registration Services
http://www.bigstep.com
Website – Do it Yourself source
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