Blog

How to Reach Your Customers

Part 4 of the “Things we wish we knew” Blog series

By: Tina Oddleifson, Business Advisor  

“If you market to everyone, you’ll market to no one”  – Famous Marketing Guru

Decorative imagery - hand with magnifying glass over wooden cutouts of people - identifying target marketAs business advisors, we review a lot of business plans. One thing we see regularly are marketing plans with vague references to social media and a website but with very few details. Not having a detailed marketing plan is a costly mistake — because marketing is the engine that drives your sales. That’s why it’s in the top five of our “Things We Wished We Knew” blog series.Read More

Palette Crêperie – Monhegan

Palette Creperie logoOriginally hailing from Morocco and residing New York City, Redwane Gatarny, a trained chef, embarked on a journey back to his culinary roots. After seven years in public health, he decided to return to his passion for good food with a dream of sharing the authentic flavors he remembers from his childhood. He wanted to open a seasonal food trailer on Monhegan Island.Read More

Maine SBDC Releases 2023 Results: Supporting and empowering entrepreneurs throughout Maine

February 26, 2024

The Maine Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) is proud to announce the release of its 2023 Annual Report. The report, available here, highlights the Maine SBDC’s impact in supporting Maine’s entrepreneurs and small businesses. The report showcases the tangible outcomes in 2023 and spotlights individual success stories that underscore the powerful effect of the program’s business advising and training services.Read More

Ease Massage & Manual Therapy – Saco

Ease Massage & Manual Therapy LogoStefani Sellers has always been passionate about healing and helping others. This is why she launched her business, Ease Massage & Manual Therapy, in 2022. Ease is Maine’s only nationally board-certified medical massage therapy practice certified in manual lymphatic drainage. She provides her clients with effective healing solutions tailored to their individual needs including massage therapy, manual therapy, manual lymph drainage, and Reiki.Read More

Create realistic financial projections

Part 3 of the “Things we wish we knew” Blog series

By: Tina Oddleifson, Business Advisor  

Part of a financial spreadsheet with pen and calculatorWe get it, you’re an artist, a baker, or love working on cars.  You’ve decided to start a business doing what you love, and you plan to let someone else worry about the financial details later.  

But when we asked Maine SBDC Business Advisors about the biggest mistakes they’ve seen business owners make,“finance” came up — a lot.  

There’s much to talk about when it comes to small business finance and the common mistakes we see business owners make. So, in this post we’ll start at the beginning with financial projections.Read More

New Federal Reporting Requirements for LLCs and Corporations

Decorative image that features a megaphone and the text "Corporate Transparency Act" and "What Business Owners Need to Know"If you have an LLC, corporation, or other entity registered through the Maine Secretary of State, you’ll want to know about your obligations under the federal Corporate Transparency Act.

On January 1, 2024 the Corporate Transparency Act went into effect requiring millions of small businesses to register with the US Treasury’s Financial Crimes and Enforcement Network (FinCen).Read More

Essential Steps Before You Start a Business

Part 1 of the “Things we wish we knew” Blog series

By: Tina Oddleifson, Business Advisor

Lightbulb and crumbled paper to represent starting a businessWhen we asked Maine SBDC Business Advisors about the biggest mistakes they see new business owners make (including themselves) many of the responses boiled down to the same essential thing: Moving forward before you are ready.

We’ve all been there. You’re ready to leave your job and you have the perfect business idea. Enthusiasm and excitement are important ingredients for business success and over-analyzing or overthinking can present its own problems. But to set yourself up for success you need to lay a solid foundation. Here are essential questions to consider before taking the plunge:Read More

Things we wish we knew – Blog series

Title imageSometimes clients reach out to the SBDC after they realize they made a mistake while starting or running their business.  As advisors and former business owners ourselves, we know the feeling.  Owning a business means having to learn a lot on the fly, and sometimes you don’t get it right. But you’re not alone because many of us have been down that road before you.Read More

Main Street Provisions – Waterville

Zach Brann, owner of Main Street Provisions, outside of his business with a "Coming Soon" signZachary Brann’s entrepreneurial journey is a testament to his passion for locally sourced food and beverages, coupled with a love for the Waterville area where he grew up and plans to raise his family. Now, he proudly contributes to Waterville’s revitalization through his new business, Main Street Provisions.Read More