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RESOURCES
We have compiled this list of links that provide information,
contacts and resources for small businesses and entrepreneurs.
We have limited the number of links in each category. However,
we are always interested in additional links that are especially
helpful to the business owner. If you have any suggestions
or comments, please contact us at centerinfo@miracosta.edu.
Click on the resource area of interest:
Local organizations
Government
Business start up and development
General business
Business research
E-commerce
Environmental resources
Financial
Local Organizations
MiraCosta Community College offers
programs that may help you meet your goals. If your goal
is to earn a bachelor's degree, you can take freshman-and
sophomore-level courses that then transfer to a four-year
university. If your goal is to gain job training to qualify
you for an entry-level position, consider enrolling in one
of MiraCosta's certificate programs. The programs range
from one semester to two years and include preparation for
careers in marketing, multimedia technology, licensed vocational
nursing, biotechnology, childcare, horticulture, and dozens
more. If your goal is to work toward an associate in arts
degree, you can do so in a variety of academic fields. www.miracosta.edu
At MiraCosta College, Community Education
encompasses both noncredit, tuition-free, Continuing
Education programs and fee-based Community Services and
Business Development programs and activities. www.miracosta.edu/continuinged.htm
Partners:
The Small Business Development & International Trade
Center provides a variety of services to clients in San
Diego and Imperial counties. Their services are designed
to assist small business owners expand their operation's
profitability. Additionally, they help businesses interested
in international expansion to navigate the complexities
of importing and/or exporting. www.sbditc.org
The SCORE Association (Service Corps of Retired Executives)
is a resource partner with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Score is dedicated to aiding in the formation, growth and
success of small business nationwide. www.score.org
America's SBDC Network is the Federal Government's
largest and most productive small business management and
technical assistance program.
www.asbdc-us.org
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Chambers:
The Borrego Springs Chamber of Commerce. Located
just two hours from both San Diego and Los Angeles, Borrego
Springs is a growing business center. This site describes
the leisure and business activities found in Borrego Springs.
www.borregosprings.org
The Carlsbad Chambers of Commerce The
vision of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce is that it be
highly respected by the community as the unified voice of
business, that businesses in Carlsbad perceive membership
in the Chamber as an investment in their continued success,
and that it enhances the community it represents. www.carlsbad.org
The Encinitas Chamber of Commerce. The mission of
the Encinitas Chamber of Commerce is to advocate and promote
a healthy and prosperous business community that improves
and preserves the quality of life in the Encinitas community.
www.encinitaschamber.com
The Escondido Chamber of Commerce's success as an
organization is dependent on a long-term focus to influence
the political, social and economic direction of Escondido.
The Chamber is a driving force among the key players in
developing and implementing positive actions that lead to
prosperity for the community, its businesses and its citizens.
www.escondidochamber.org
The Oceanside Chamber of Commerce's vision is to
promote a strong business climate throughout the City of
Oceanside, serve as leader and advocate for the business
community, enhance the economic stability of the city and
act as a collective voice for business concerns. www.oceansidechamber.com
The Poway Chamber of Commerce promotes ways to get
involved in the Poway business community, build relationships
with fellow members and expand business opportunities. www.powaychamber.org
The Ramona Chamber represents and promotes the areas
economy and encourages business and industrial investment,
broadening the tax base and providing employment. To business
prospects and newcomers, the chamber represents the community's
self image. www.ramonachamber.com
The San Marcos Chamber of Commerce is an advocate
of business dedicated to the promotion and development of
a positive business environment. www.san-marcos.org
The Vista Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit organization
composed of business, professional and civic members. The
Chamber's members are small businesses, major companies,
and professional men and women joining hands to ensure economic
growth; build a better community; cultivate the civic and
cultural environment. www.vista.org
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Economic
Development:
The San Diego County Office of Trade and Business Development
was established to assist with the retention, expansion
or attraction of businesses in the unincorporated portion
of San Diego County by working in a coordinated effort with
County, State and Federal agencies. This office is staffed
with a County Ombudsperson who serves as the main contact,
facilitator, liaison and representative to and for businesses
inquiring about business permitting in San Diego County.
www.co.san-diego.ca.us/cnty
The Workforce Partnership, Inc. The mission of the
San Diego Workforce Partnership, Inc. is to coordinate a
comprehensive workforce development system that ensures
a skilled, productive workforce and supports a healthy economy
throughout the San Diego region.
www.SanDiegoAtWork.com
Publications:
The North County Times publishes general
news articles with a focus on North County San Diego. While
there are syndicated national stories, the emphasis is local
news, sports and business events. www.northcountytimes.net
The San Diego Business Journal is a full-scale communications
company, combining publishing, broadcasting and special
events relating to business in San Diego. The Business Journal
publishes a weekly paper which profiles local businesses.
www.sdbj.com
The San Diego Daily Transcript is a vertical market
newspaper dedicated to reporting the business of San Diego,
every working day. A staff of editors and reporters focus
and write about the events that concern the decision makers,
politicians and business owners who make San Diego a great
place to do business. www.sddt.com
The San Diego Union-Tribune is the largest newspaper
in San Diego County and covers both international and national
stories. In addition, the paper covers local business stores
and events. The Union-Tribune also has a web site that features
many of their newspaper articles. www.uniontrib.com
The San Diego Metropolitan is a monthly business
magazine dedicated to local business happenings. They also
operate web sites featuring various business articles and
a local business events calendar. www.sandiegometro.com
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Government
Assistance Sites
The US Small Business Administration, established
in 1953, provides financial, technical and management assistance
to help Americans start, run, and grow their businesses.
With a portfolio of business loans, loan guarantees and
disaster loans worth more than $45 billion, in addition
to a venture capital portfolio of $13 billion, SBA is the
nation's largest single financial backer of small businesses.
www.sbaonline.sba.gov
The Social Security Administration provides information
to help employers and employees explain the value of Social
Security. You will find important information for business
owners regarding Social Security taxes and regulations at
this site. www.ssa.gov
The Internal Revenue Service has a site that offers
information, forms and training for small business owners.
This site provides extensive information regarding tax laws
that are a must for business owners. www.irs.gov
The California GovernmentThe "How Do I...?"
Knowledge Base is a new feature of the MyCalifornia Portal.
Use it to easily search for answers to
hundreds of Frequently Asked Questions about the State of
California and the services it offers through its various
government channels.http://www.ca.gov
The US Census Bureau has a wealth of information
regarding demographic treads and data in the US It is a
great source for business owners conducting marketing research
and identifying marketing opportunities. www.census.gov
The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO)'s role has
remained the same: to promote the progress of science and
the useful arts by securing for limited times to inventors
the exclusive right to their respective discoveries Entrepreneurs
can visit this site and learn how to research and file for
trade marks and copy rights for their business.
www.uspto.gov
FedWorld was established by The National Technical
Information Service (NTIS), an agency of the U S Department
of Commerce, to serve as the online locator service for
a comprehensive inventory of information disseminated by
the Federal Government. This service assisted agencies and
the public in electronically locating Federal Government
information, both information housed within the NTIS repository
and outside of NTIS. www.fedworld.gov
The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) mission
is to protect human health and to safeguard the natural
environment - air, water, and land - upon which life depends.
Entrepreneurs can obtain environmental regulations and guidelines
pertaining to their business. This site offers links to
local resources to provide further details on environmental
issues affecting your organization. www.epa.gov
SBA Women's Online Center (OWBO) promotes the growth
of women-owned businesses through programs that address
business training and technical assistance, and provide
access to credit and capital, federal contracts, and international
trade opportunities. OWBO is helping unprecedented numbers
of women start and build successful businesses. www.onlinewbc.gov
The US Postal Service (USPS) can help small businesses
serve their customers better by delivery goods more faster
and more cost effectively. USPS has a special section for
business owners which explains how they can help businesses
succeed. www.usps.gov
The US Department of Labor provides a wide variety
of information for the business owner including regulations
on minimum wage, work safety, work hours, pensions and much
more. This site is a must for any entrepreneur who has employees
or will be hiring personnel. www.dol.gov
Business Start Up and
Development
Business Town.com. A good primer for new entrepreneurs,
this site provides a guide for starting and managing a new
business through informative articles and links to other
sites. www.BusinessTown.com
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General Business Assistance Sites
Entrepreneur Media Inc. is an organization of people
dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs worldwide to start
and grow successful companies. Through a full range of products
and services, we provide entrepreneurs with the relevant
information they need to make informed decisions. www.entrepreneur.com
Fast Company is a magazine, a Web site, a series
of live events, and a community dedicated to help people
in the new economy discover the tools, techniques, and tactics
they need to succeed at work and life. www.fastcompany.com
Inc.com delivers best-of-breed information, services,
and tools -- aggregated from Inc magazine and a variety
of other sources -- for virtually every business and management
task. The site's resources, from content to community, help
business owners find and select the most relevant solutions
to pressing business challenges. www.inc.com
The Virtual Library is the oldest catalog of the
web, started by Tim Berners-Lee, the creator of html and
the web itself. Unlike commercial catalogs, it is run by
a loose confederation of volunteers, who compile pages of
key links for particular areas in which they are expert;
even though it isn't the biggest index of the web, the VL
pages are widely recognized as being amongst the highest-quality
guides to particular sections of the web. www.vlib.org
Business Research and
Information
BizStats.com provides instant access to useful financial
ratios, business statistics and benchmarks. In addition,
it offers effective and understandable online analysis of
businesses and industries. www.BizStats.com
Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) is the world's leading
provider of business information, enabling business-to-business
commerce for 160 years. D&B's information and technology
solutions help businesses reduce credit risk, find profitable
customers and manage vendors efficiently. www.dnb.com
Opta Food is an online site that provides information
about the food industry. The site indicates that it is a
direct link to what is happening in the food industry. It
keeps the reader up to date on what's going on in Education,
provides links to upcoming Trade Shows and food industry
websites and reviews issues of interest to those in the
food industry.
www.opta-food.com
Switchboard provides a fast and easy way for people
and businesses to find each other on the web. It provides
small and medium-sized businesses help to establish a presence
on the web and connect with the consumers who are looking
to do business with them.
www.switchboard.com
Thomas Register is the most comprehensive online
resource for finding companies and products manufactured
in North America where you can submit RFQs, place orders
online and view thousands of online company catalogs and
web sites. www.thomasregister.com
Hoover's, Inc. delivers comprehensive company, industry,
and market intelligence that drives business growth. Hoover's
provides sales, marketing, business development, and recruiting
professionals with the global business intelligence they
need to prospect and prepare for client meetings, sales
presentations, vendor and partner negotiations. www.hoovers.com
Business Law.gov is a legal and regulatory information
site for America's Small Businesses.
www.businesslaw.gov
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E-commerce Sites
BigStep offers template based e-commerce sites for
business. For a monthly fee, organizations can build a full
e-commerce site without the hassles or costs of using a
web development firm or hiring programmers. www.bigstep.com
Entrabase provides a complete solution that includes:
site setup, design, secure payment processing, management
and reporting. We host the service in our 7/24 datacenter
and provide technical support. www.econgo.com
I Business Forum provides comprehensive consulting
and training services to help businesses successfully use
the Internet. They have helpful tips on planning, designing
and operating an e-business. www.iBusinessForum.com
Environmental Resources
Regional Environmental Business Resource Assistance
Centers is an initiative of the California Community College
system, providing assistance to businesses in complying
with Federal and California EPA, OSHA and other Environmental,
Health and Safety regulations. www.sandiegorebrac.org
Financial Information
Bankrate Inc. is an Internet consumer finance marketplace
that owns and operates a portfolio of Internet-based personal
finance channels including banking, investing, taxes and
small-business finance. www.bankrate.com
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