Small Business + Entrepreneurs

Plan - Launch - Manage - Grow

Presentations, Reference Materials, Handouts, Videos
On this page, you will find a central place to find  articles, books, speakers, and courses that are free, online and on demand for your convenience to access.

TOPIC: Is Entrepreneurship for Me?

ARTICLES:

• 9 Tips on How to Cultivate an Entrepreneurial Mindset by Melinda Emerson, Succeed As Your Own Boss, October 18,2021
• 5 Daily Habits To Become A Successful Entrepreneur by Paul Esajian, Fortunebuilders.com, May 18, 2016
• Do You Have What It Takes To Be An Entrepreneur ? by Than Merrill, Fortunebuilders.com, August 12, 2016

VIDEO:

• Learning Center:Young Entrepreneurs: Characteristics of Entrepreneurship by Small Business Administration
  https://learn.sba.gov/learning-center-plan/learning-center-young-entrepreneurs/characteristics-of-entrepreneurship
  This is a free and on demand video clip

 
TOPIC: Develop Your Business Idea

SPEAKER
How To Validate Your Business Idea
Dr. Susan McCartney
Director, Small Business Development Center
SUNY at Buffalo
Zoom link: https://bit.ly/3An1NoG

ARTICLES

• Don’t Go Broke: 5 Ways to Validate Your Business Ideas by Marc Prosser - SCORE

• Startup Business Ideas: 4 Steps to Identify the Right One by Marco Carbajo - Small Business Administration (SBA

AUDIO BOOKS by OverDrive

• E-Myth Enterprise by Michael Gerber
• Where Good Ideas Come From by Stephen Johnson & Erik Singer
• How to License Your Million Dollar Idea by Harvey Reese

BOOKS - www.Buffalolib.org
For additional books on validating your business ideas, go to www.Buffalolib.org. Type in business and idea in the search catalog

• Testing business ideas : strategyzer.com/test by David Bland
• Cumulative advantage : how to build momentum for your ideas, business, and life against all odds  by Mark Schaefer
• The storyteller's secret : from TED speakers to business legends, why some ideas catch on and others don't by Carmine Gallo
• The business idea factory : a world-class system for creating successful business ideas by Andril Sedniev
• The go-giver : a little story about a powerful business idea by Bob Burg

E-BOOKS by OverDrive

• Where Good Ideas Come From by Stephen Johnson & Erik Singer
• How to License Your Million Dollar Idea by Harvey Reese & Barrett Whitener

POWER POINT PRESENTATION

• Finding the Right Idea For My Business by SCORE-Buffalo Niagara
• Finding The Right Idea, Small Business Administration, Greg Lindberg-Economic Development Specialist

COURSE

• The Startup Roadmap: Chapter 3 - Defining and Validating Your Idea
  The Startup Roadmap sponsored by FedEx & SCORE outlines each step in starting a business with information and resources. This is a free and on demand  course.
  Registration form: https://buffaloniagara.score.org/form/event-registration-form?event_id=63618

VIDEO:

• Learning Center:Young Entrepreneurs: Your Business Idea by Small Business Administration
  https://learn.sba.gov/learning-center-plan/learning-center-young-entrepreneurs/your-business-idea.
  This is a free and on demand video clip.

Guides contain websites, databases and books chosen by librarians

Small Business Guide

Learn from the pros.  Take advantage of free counseling and services offered by these local agencies.    

• Canisius College Women's Business Center  (WBC)
  Helps entrepreneurs gain practical knowledge, fortify critical skills, make important connections, and power up their ability to succeed.
• SCORE
  "Counselors to America's Small Business" since 1964, is America's premier source of free & confidential small business advice for entrepreneurs.
• Small Business Development Center of Buffalo  (SBDC)
  Free one-stop assistance to individuals and small businesses, providing information and guidance in easily accessible locations. The program is a cooperative effort of the private sector, educators, and federal, state and local governments.

  Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Guide 

• United States Copyright Office Protect your legal right to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or musical material, and to authorize others to do the same.
  The site offers a free searchable index of copyrights and electronic forms to register your work. Includes a full description of the laws and regulations that govern the copyright process.
• United States Patent and Trademark Office Protect a symbol, word, or words used to represent your company or product.
  Offers a free searchable patent and trademark index, step by step application guides, access to electronic submission forms, and inventors’ assistance information.  This official government site includes a full description of the laws and regulations that govern the patent and trademark process along with helpful tutorials, diagrams, and FAQ pages.

• Grants and Grant Writing for Not-For-Profits Guide

  Don’t be fooled by ads for “free money”, find legitimate sources of funding for your non-profit organization.

• Foundation Directory Online (For use ONLY at the Central Library)
  Find comprehensive, in-depth information on U.S. grant-makers and their grants drawn from reliable sources including IRS 990s, grant-maker web sites and annual reports, plus data provided directly by grant-makers.  Virtual Tour
• Consult with a librarian one-on-one for up to an hour. A librarian can point out the most relevant resources for your project and show you how to use them. Book a Librarian

• If you prefer to read books on the subject, click on the following topics to see what we have for you to borrow. Our online subject guides have even more links to books.

  Business Planning
  Entrepreneurship
  New Business Enterprises
  Small Business Accounting
  Small Business Management
  Small Business Taxes
  Success in Business
  Fund raising 
  Proposal writing for grants
  Copyright
  Inventions
  Patents 
  Trademarks