The Tennessee Small Business Development Center provides consulting and training resources to assist businesses in starting, growing, and sustaining their operations.

Tennessee Small Business Development Center

Business Consulting and Services

Tennessee SBDC at MTSU

Tennessee Small Business Development Centers (TSBDC) | 4,232 followers on LinkedIn. Our mission is to provide high-quality consulting and training solutions to start, grow, and sustain your business. | The strength of Tennessee&#39;s economic growth is based in part on the small business community and its ability to get products to market.  If you are a small business owner or entrepreneur or you are thinking about starting a new business, the Tennessee Small Business Development Center (TSBDC) is here to help you every step of the way! Our consulting service is at no cost and all services are confidential.

Startup CEO | Economic Development Leader | Expert in Strategic Growth, Fundraising & Business Transformation

NaShawn Branch, DBA

Small Business Coach I Sales I Marketing I Financial Planning

Josh Brown

Training Specialist | Strategic Team Builder | Business Specialist

Chadwick Mathis

Director at Tennessee Small Business Development Centers (TSBDC)

Mark Bays, MBA

Tennessee Small Business Development Centers (TSBDC)

For this week’s Staff Spotlight, we’d like to highlight Aundrea Salyer, Senior Business Counselor with the Kingsport TSBDC, who has been part of the network since 2011! Her specialties include business plans, access to capital, and business expansion. Our Kingsport Center is also known as KOSBE - Kingsport Office of Small Business Development & Entrepreneurship. In 2004, the Kingsport Chamber and the City of Kingsport jointly formed the KOSBE to support startups and existing small businesses in Kingsport. Seven years later, TSBDC joined the partnership, and now KOSBE is part of the TSBDC network as the ETSU Kingsport Affiliate office. In addition to her role as Senior Business Counselor, Aundrea is also the Chief Business Development Officer with the Kingsport Chamber. She is a certified Economic Developer and earned her Masters in Business Administration. Is there anything she can’t do?! 🤩 Aundrea, we’re so glad you’re part of the TSBDC team!

Getting ready for Small Business Saturday? Here are a few things you can do to make the most of it: ⭐ Promote your offers and discounts now so customers plan to shop from you instead of the big box stores! ⭐ Create a festive shopping experience with holiday music and decorations. ⭐ Collaborate with other local businesses for cross-promotions. ⭐ Share your own story of why shopping "small" is important to you and your business!

The US Chamber of Commerce has created a Small Business Hurricane Recovery Grant Program. If your business was affected by the recent hurricane, you may be able to receive $5,000 to assist with rent, utilities, payroll, etc. The deadline to apply is November 17th so we encourage you to check eligibility, read FAQs, and apply ASAP. https://lnkd.in/g3spuGCh

For November, we've compiled a few tips to help you close out the year! 1. Gear up for Small Business Saturday by double-checking the promotions you plan to run for the holidays. 2. Consider tax-deductible expenses. Have you been waiting for the right time to buy new equipment, office supplies, or software? Ask your CPA if it makes sense to buy them right now. 3. Review your pricing. Consider your profit margins, competitors’ pricing, and customer behavior. If you plan on going up on your prices in 2025, now might be the time to give your clients a heads-up so they can prepare.

Please join us in welcoming the newest TSBDC team member, David Wells! David Wells has joined the Memphis Center as a Small Business Specialist! He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the team, having worked as a small business CTO, digital marketing agency owner, and entrepreneur. His expertise will be invaluable as he helps our clients grow and enhance their productivity through his business counseling. David holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and a Master’s in Business Information Systems. He is also deeply rooted in the Memphis community, having moved here after completing his studies at Mississippi State University. He is excited to learn about the unique visions of the entrepreneurs we work with and is eager to be part of their journey. His guiding principle is that honesty is non-negotiable when building trusting relationships—a value that aligns closely with our mission here at the TSBDC. David, we're excited that you've joined the Memphis Center! 🙌

Love your local SBDC?! You can nominate them for a national award! The Excellence and Innovation Award honors an SBDC office for providing value to small businesses from diverse backgrounds and advancing program delivery and management through innovation. The deadline to submit award nominations is December 5th. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/etyym-gj

If you’ve hired a subcontractor this year, but don’t have their W9 on file, now is a good time to request it so that you can issue 1099s on time in January! This is something that is essential for accurate tax reporting and avoiding penalties down the road. 😬 Bonus tip: Make it a standard part of your onboarding process so you can stay organized and compliant.

Please join us in welcoming the newest TSBDC team member, Rich McCarty! Rich has joined the Murfreesboro Center as a Senior Business Specialist. He has 32 years of experience in the business world, having served as CEO, CFO, Owner, and Vice President of New Business Development and Mergers & Acquisitions in industries such as aluminum production, agricultural seed production, banking/stock brokerage, and computer production. Rich was also a faculty member at the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business for 20 years, where he taught entrepreneurial courses at the undergraduate and MBA levels both in-class and online, domestically, and internationally. He is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, holds a BA in Accounting from the University of Northern Iowa, and is licensed as a Series 7 stockbroker. 🤯 Rich, we're excited that you've joined the Murfreesboro Center!

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month! In honor, we've compiled a few tips that we think every small business owner should implement: 1. Always use strong passwords and multi-factor authentication. Yes, it's annoying to enter a verification code every time you log in 🙄 but you may regret it if you don't! 2. Update software regularly. Again, yes we know it's so much easier to click "skip update" 👀 but some updates include extra security measures. 3. Train employees to recognize suspicious emails. I think we've all heard the horror story of the new employee getting an email from "the CEO" about buying gift cards, but anyone can get scammed! 4. Limit access to sensitive data. The fewer people who have access to data, the more secure it is!

In light of recent events with Hurricane Helene, it’s time to evaluate your disaster recovery plans. Of course, no one can predict a natural disaster or a global pandemic… but you can create a general plan for more common issues like technology or employee issues. What happens if your point-of-sale system or computer stops working, or your top employee leaves? What’s your next step? Of course no one WANTS to think of the worst case scenario… But thinking through the what-ifs will make your business more resilient! 💪 First, think about the most likely issues that YOUR business might face. If you’re struggling to come up with a few, we recommend the Resiliency Checklist that The Enterprise Center put together: https://lnkd.in/gcC-Tc_d From there, you can create an actionable plan that makes sense for you and your business. If you need additional help, our TSBDC consultants can help you too!

TSBD

ORG:TSBDC

Tennessee Small Business Development Center