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Why are small businesses so important to the economy?
According to the Small Business Administration (on the national level a small business is defined as 500 employees or less) statistics:

• Small firms represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms
• Employ half of all private sector employees
• Pay more than 45 percent of total U.S. private payroll
• Have generated 60-80 percent of the net new jobs annually in the last decade
• Create more than 50 percent of non-farm private gross domestic product (GDP)

In Georgia

• The state had an estimated total of 813,100 small businesses based on the most recent data. Firms with employees numbered 206,800 in 2005, of which an estimated 97.8 percent, or 202,250, were small firms (fewer than 500 employees).

To celebrate the importance of small businesses in the Columbus region, there are six events planned for April 23-27, co-hosted by Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center. Most events are free, however all events require reservations. Please click here for a reservation form.

• A Media Conference will kick-off Small Business Week at the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, 1200 6th Avenue, April 23 at 10:30 a.m. Reservations are required.
• City Council Resolution presentation April 24 at 9 a.m. Council Chambers, Government Center, 100 10th Street. Reservations are required.
• Marketing Made Easy with Direct Mail and More luncheon seminar April 24 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. presented by Mark Lupo, SBDC, and Karen Bridger, USPS, Banquet Room A, CSU Cunningham Center, 3100 Gentian Boulevard. Limited seating - reservations are required.
• Chair's Small Business Networking Reception April 25 from 5-7 p.m. in the Grand Lobby of the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, 1200 6th Ave. The food is being donated by Carrabba's Italian Grill. Reservations are required.
• Small Business Giant of the Year Award will be presented at the Eye Opener Breakfast 7-8:30 a.m. at the Columbus Convention and Trade Center, 801 Front Ave. The cost is $12 with reservations.
• Valley Partnership Small Business Breakfast Seminar is set for April 27, 7:30-9 a.m. Presented by Neal Wade, Alabama Department of Economic Development and Becca Hardin, Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, held at the Central Activities Center, 1500 14th Street, Phenix City, AL. Limited seating - reservations are required.

"The Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce has been focused on the needs of small business for nearly two decades," said Mike Gaymon, president and CEO of the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce. "That is why we have the Business One Stop Shop and a whole department that is focused on the needs of small business. Join us April 23-27 in celebrating the vital role of small business to our economy."

For more information, please contact Marie Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com or 706-327-1566 ext. 28.

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The mission and purpose is still the same, but in order to provide better service to our Business One Stop (BOSS) clients and chamber members, a few things have changed.

How: start up, new and existing businesses are interviewed at the BOSS office and then referred to the appropriate service providers. This enables the business to be better prepared and to be thinking about the "next level" before the appointment. Whatever the entrepreneur is aspiring for, whether it's an idea for a business, or a new business seeking to go from home-based to store front or an existing business thinking about expansion, the initial visit is to prepare a business to have their questions answered so they can be prepared to make better decisions about their business plans.

Service providers: BOSS has relationships with the agencies and services listed below; many of them are referrals sources for the BOSS client. They provide information on business licenses, financing, procurement, training, business plan counseling, certification and more.

• Better Business Bureau
• CB&T Community Resource Center
• Columbus Consolidated Government/ Business License Office
• Columbus State University
• Columbus Technology Incubator
• Columbus Technology College
• Georgia Department of Labor/career center
• Georgia Minority Business Development Council
• Georgia Women's Business Council
• Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce
• Office of the Inspections & Code Enforcement Division /Office of Occupation Tax Section
• Two Thousand Opportunities, Inc. (small business incubator center)
• Small Business Administration
• Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE)
• Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
• United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley and agencies
• Urban League of Columbus

Small business services: Many workshops, seminars and programs and resources are offered throughout the year. Some of these include Community Express Loan Workshops, Entrepreneurial Boot Camp, various entrepreneurial certification courses, "How to Start your Own Business," Hyper Grow your Business and the iWow mentoring program which is offered annually to businesses that have been in operation for more than two years. This is an extensive protégé/mentor program that combines courses with one-on-one mentoring. Many programs, such as FastTrac courses, are offered with co-sponsors such as the Small Business Development Center, the Non-Profit Academy and chamber members.

Professional Consultants Directory. These are chamber members that give a one hour, "pro bono" consultation to BOSS clients and chamber members in their area of expertise such as attorneys, tax consultants, architects, real estate, marketing, web design, insurance and much more.

For more information about the BOSS program or ways in which the chamber can help your small business, please contact Marie Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com or Ron Hinze at rhinze@columbusgachamber.com at 706-327-1566.

The resolution was passed March 6 by Council for the distinction Columbus received by being one of "The 100 Best Communities for Young People." The competition included more than 750 communities in all 50 states. Columbus was the only city in Georgia to make the list.

Columbus, Georgia's application highlighted programs along with community agencies such as the Youth Advisory Council, Family Connection, Columbus Sports Council, the tutorial partnership between Brookstone School and Fox Elementary, and the Partners In Education program between the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce and Muscogee County School District.

America's Promise Alliance, a children's advocacy group named the 100 best communities.

Carolyn Storey, Inc. received the Hometown Hero award at the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce Power Lunch March 8, 2007. Carolyn Storey's bookkeeping service was founded in 1989 by Carolyn and her daughter as a home-based business. Having worked in the financial and accounting field for many years for other companies, Carolyn realized the need for someone to offer bookkeeping services to small businesses, churches and non-profit organizations. These organizations were accustomed to having their specific needs met at a very personal level and at an affordable price.

Storey presently has a staff of seven fulltime and part-time employees, which now includes Carolyn's granddaughter. Today as before, Carolyn Storey Inc. maintains a warm and friendly atmosphere and their prices are still affordable while offering bookkeeping, consulting and training services, along with many new services.

Storey is a member of the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers, Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, and Business International Networking.

Carolyn and her family are members of Cascade Hills Baptist Church where she plays percussion in the church orchestra. In addition, Carolyn is a cancer survivor and is a member of the John Amos Cancer Center Breast Cancer Committee. For more information about Carolyn Storey Inc. bookkeeping services, please call 706-569-7527.

To be eligible for the Hometown Hero award, recipients must be members of the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, have a current business license, be locally owned or operated and have been in business for at least one year. For more information, please contact Marie Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com or 706-327-1566.

Besides big screen televisions, computers and long distance rates, there aren't many things where you are getting more for your money as time goes on!
Internet service speed and more options are one of them and you will see a continued "more speed for less money" trend as technology advances. This article is intended to review some basic information.

First a Lesson in Bandwidth (Speed)
This may be more than you really care to know, but it is simple once you read the next few sentences. Internet bandwidth (speed) is how fast you transmit information to and from the Internet. Measuring bandwidth can be tricky, since the slowest bandwidth point between your computer and the site you're looking at determines the best possible speed. It is similar in concept to pinching a water hose; water will not travel any faster than that pinch allows.

Four factors outside of your computer control how quickly you can view web pages:

1. The speed of your Internet connection from your service provider.
2. The quality and distance of the physical connection wires (or through the air) to your service provider's equipment.
3. The congestion from other people traveling the same paths on the Internet as you are.
4. The response time of the website you're viewing. (In other words, how fast is their connection and how many people are visiting them at the same time?)

When you go to a website, you are actually pulling information down from the Internet to your computer to read. That is used much more heavily than sending information back up from your computer to the internet. So the speeds in this discussion are oriented toward the typical user who cares about download speed which is what the service providers promote as well.

Internet Service Providers
Please click on this link for a complete listing of area providers and services and contact information. Most companies run specials on installation costs where if you commit to a year or longer service, it reduces or waives your installation labor cost. Larger circuits are available when businesses are supporting 100+ employees.

Free Speed Test Websites
You can log on to these sites to test the speed of your internet connection. All of them give you speed results, both pulling down information from the Internet, as well as sending your data back up to the Internet.

5. speakeasy.com
6. speedtest.net
7. performance.toast.net
8. pcpitstop.com

Learning how to pick the right type of connection from the appropriate provider to speed up your time while keeping costs down may contribute to your business success!

The EC/IT (Electronic Commerce / Information Technology) Committee members submit technology-related articles as part of their mission to assist other chamber members with technology topics, particularly small businesses. If you are interested in being involved in this committee, please contact Michael Dunbar at mdunbar@columbusgachamber.com or 706-327-1566.