April 24th, 2023

SBA Minority-owned Business Certification

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Join Black Owned Maine and the U.S. Small Business Administration for a workshop on available SBA resources and programs that can help you start or grow your small business. Perfect for entrepreneurs who want to provide their business with more exposure and learn the details needed to win federal government contracts. $$$ This session will feature Jim Pineau, Senior Area Manager for the Maine SBA District Office, who will discuss the various preference programs the SBA offers to minority-owned businesses. This includes the SBA business certification process and government contracting.
May 31st, 2022

BOM Bootcamp: Google Analytics 101

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THIS IS THE FOURTH SESSION IN A SERIES OF FOUR MARKETING WORKSHOPS THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF MAY.

Your website can do much more than be a front page for your business. In this session, you’ll learn how to use Google Analytics to learn about your website visitors and customers. Activities: Review an attendee’s e-commerce site, review the PPH + Google partnership, create better SEO tags, improve customer flow. If time allows, we can look at other freely available analytics for social media.

Hosted by Chad Gilley, Director of Digital Audience Engagement and Revenue for Masthead Maine.

This series is free, co-presented by Black Owned Maine and the Portland Press Herald exclusively for BOM members.

May 24th, 2022

BOM Bootcamp: PR 101

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THIS IS THE THIRD SESSION IN A SERIES OF FOUR MARKETING WORKSHOPS THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF MAY.

Do you ever see a business just like yours on the nightly news or in a glossy magazine and wonder, how can that be me? This session will cover how to promote your business through public relations, using paid and earned news media appearances to build your reputation and customer base. You will learn the basics of how to create a media list, what makes a good press release, and how to maintain relationships with writers, journalists, photographers and editors.

Hosted by Carol Coultas, Business Projects Editor for the Portland Press Herald.

This series is free, co-presented by Black Owned Maine and the Portland Press Herald exclusively for BOM members.

May 17th, 2022

BOM Bootcamp: Advertising 101

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THIS IS THE SECOND SESSION IN A SERIES OF FOUR MARKETING WORKSHOPS THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF MAY.

Advertising is an investment that not a lot of small businesses are ready to make. But in a small media market, you can hyper-target your message and possibly be able to afford more advertising than you think. In this session you will learn about the local eco-system of advertising opportunities—print, online, television, radio, guerrilla/experiential—and look at a case study of a BOM biz’s advertising results.

Hosted by Courtney Spencer, VP of Advertising for the Portland Press Herald.

This series is free, co-presented by Black Owned Maine and the Portland Press Herald exclusively for BOM members.

May 10th, 2022

BOM Bootcamp: Marketing & Branding 101

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THIS IS THE FIRST SESSION IN THE SERIES OF FOUR MARKETING WORKSHOPS THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF MAY.

This session will help you assess your marketing needs and find the most efficient strategies to grow your customer base. Activities: Review an attendee’s existing and/or successful marketing plan, social media channels and their web site and existing branding elements. Determine what you can DIY and where you need to hire a pro.

Hosted by Rose Barboza, Founder of Black Owned Maine.

This series is free, co-presented by Black Owned Maine and the Portland Press Herald exclusively for BOM members.

May 3rd, 2022

Session Two: SBA Business Certifications

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Link to slide deck

Join Black Owned Maine and the U.S. Small Business Administration for a two part series on available SBA resources and programs that can help you start or grow your small business.

This session will feature Jim Pineau, Senior Area Manager for the Maine SBA District Office, who will discuss the various preference programs the SBA offers to minority-owned businesses. This includes the SBA business certification process and government contracting.

This session is perfect for entrepreneurs who want to provide their business with more exposure and learn the details needed to win federal government contracts. $$$

April 26th, 2022

SBA Resources and Programs Info Session

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Link to slide deck

Join Black Owned Maine and the U.S. Small Business Administration for a two part series on available SBA resources and programs that can help you start or grow your small business.

Session one will feature Jim Pineau, Senior Area Manager for the Maine SBA District Office, who will discuss technical advice, access to funding, cover SBA’s official agency partners and the types of business assistance they provide. This information is crucial to new and emerging businesses alike. Discover ways to access the necessary tools to start and scale your business.