February Workshops at Maui County Business Resource Center

Maui County business workshop. Image courtesy County of Maui.

The County of Maui Mayor’s Office of Economic Development hosts a series of free workshops for the month of February. Workshops are presented at the Maui County Business Resource Center, a County of Maui facility, located in the Maui Mall across Pizza Hut, in Suite B-9. Seating for all workshops is limited, and all workshops are subject to change or cancellation. Workshops are free unless noted otherwise. To reserve a seat, call the Maui County Business Resource Center at (808) 270-5770. The following workshops are available:

Farm Development 101
Instructor:  Richard “Buddy” Nichols
Monday, Feb. 13, 2017 12 to 1:30 p.m.

Are you possibly thinking of working off the land and being a farmer?  In this workshop, Buddy Nichols will help you to achieve what you want out of life, as a farmer.  He will focus on assisting you to compile a list all of the resources that are currently available to you and providing information on how to best utilize these resources in order to become a successful farmer.  The end result would be a fulfilling life for the farm, as well as for the farmer. Buddy Nichols is a USDA Farm Loan Program Manager on Maui.  He has a BA in Animal Science and an MBA.  He owned/managed a dairy, raised cattle and fruits/vegetables.  He understands the aspects of farming from production to financial record keeping.

BiTT in Central Maui – FREE – RSVP required
Tuesday, Feb.14, 2017 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Maui County Business Resource Center
Link for more info and RSVP: http://www.meetup.com/MauiBusinessBrainstormers/

Join the Maui Business Brainstormers in Central Maui and/or Upcountry Maui this month.
The audience brainstorms on ideas to address business challenges with the “build it, measure it, learn from it, improve it!” spirit. Sometimes the best things in life are the unexpected. It may just be the spark that you needed to challenge yourself, try something new, or reaffirm that you are on your path to success. In the MBB’s BiTT meetings, that spark shows up often. Besides, it’s dynamic, fun and productive!

BECOMING A BEST-SELLING AUTHOR: Leveraging the World’s Greatest Marketing Secret by Writing, Publishing and Promoting Your Book to Better Market Your Business
Instructor: Patrick Snow
Friday, Feb. 17, 2017 – 12 to 2 p.m.

Are you looking for a better way to market your business? Do you have a burning desire to become a best-selling author? Attend this seminar and learn how to make your publishing and business goals come true. If you want to stand out from your competition, strengthen your credentials, and get free publicity, then writing and publishing a book is your best marketing strategy. Let international best-selling author, Patrick Snow, guide you through the process. In this two-hour workshop you will learn your three publishing options, top five requirements for becoming a best-selling author, and 18 mistakes to avoid. Most importantly, you will learn how to monetize your passion and even better market your business, or start a new business using your book as a platform from which you can launch! Come early, and stay late for his Q/A session that will answer all questions on your book project. As a professional speaker he has given more than 2,500 speeches on three continents. As a publishing, book marketing, and speaker coach, he has mentored more than 750 clients worldwide to achieve their publishing goals.

What to Say, and How to Say It – Create Winning Emails and Other Marketing Content
Instructor Mckenna Hallett
Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017 12 – 1:30 p.m.

The goal of this workshop is to help you learn to use both words and images to craft your marketing messages. Learn to grow your influence with your clients and nurture deeper relationships. We all know the advice in real estate “location, location, location”. For online marketing, it’s “Content, Content, Content!” What you say, and the way you say it (tone, date & time, frequency) is how you will attract, engage and be share worthy to your audiences. You’ll learn how to:

–          Create compelling content based on what your clients are already asking for.
–          Learn the tricks that the pros use to curate (gather up) articles and news your audience craves.
–          Extend the life of your content by re-purposing on a myriad of marketing channels.
–          With a little help from this presentation, you will learn how good content creation will help you achieve your goals.  Mckenna will cover tidbits like how to keep up your customer’s engagement by turning questions into high “open rates” as compelling subject lines. And discover some easy to use tips on using graphics. And, don’t forget the power of pictures and videos. All this and more with extra time for Q and A after the one hour presentation.

Mckenna Hallett is a professional marketing consultant, wordsmith, and owner of www.MyGoldenWords.com. She blogs business savvy hints and tips to a worldwide audience, and teaches seminars throughout the state and on the mainland.

You Want to Start a Business, Now What?
Instructor:  Wayne Wong
Friday, Feb. 24, 2017 12 to 1:30 p.m.
(Please feel free to bring your “brown bag” lunch)

New Business Ideas cross people’s minds all the time. Learn what elements to evaluate and what it takes to start a business in Maui County. Here are some key questions to ask when starting a business:

• Are you an entrepreneur?
• LLC? Incorporate? Sole Proprietor?
• Can you describe your business; what problem are you solving?
• What are your Startup costs and how will you finance that?
• How do you learn about your target market?
• How will you market your business?
• Who are your customers and what’s in it for them?
• How will you reach your customers?
• Who are your competitors?
• How will you distribute your product?
• How will you price your product or service?
• How will you make a profit?
• What is your sales potential?

Finally, how do you take the answers above and turn it into an action plan? Wayne Wong is the Maui Center Director of the Hawaii Small Business Development Center Network. The Center provides both existing and aspiring business owners with confidential, one-on-one, no cost business advising services, training workshops, and market research services.

Special Evening Workshop – $45 per session: QuickBooks for Small Business
Hands-on computer training for beginners.
Instructor: Richard Kehoe, CPA
Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017 5 – 8 p.m.

Learn to set up your company’s QuickBooks in a small class setting with personalized tutoring. This class is for new users and will teach you how to record sales, receive payments, prepare invoices and balance your checkbook. Get customized answers and schedule a follow-up appointment at no cost to discuss your solutions. Sponsored by Service Corps of Retired Executives and presented by Richard Kehoe, CPA and lead SCORE counselor. Free counseling sessions with experience SCORE and Small Business Development Corp. counselors: Tuesday afternoons, 1-3 p.m., and Thursday and Friday mornings, 9-11:30 a.m.