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The U.S. Small Business Administration recently introduced a new online
training resource for budding entrepreneurs to provide the fundamentals of
starting a small business. The Small Business Primer Strategies for
Success online training is a free course designed to assist individuals who
are thinking about starting a small business or who are in the early stages of
running a business.
The Small Business Primer is a self-paced assessment tool that
focuses on three key areas to help small business owners:
- determine their business readiness,
- provide an overview of basic small business principles, and;
- introduce them to key SBA resources for small business counseling and
training.
The assessment tool is highly recommended and useful for those who have
considered starting a business or thought about what it takes to be successful
as an entrepreneur.
The Small Business Primer is available through the SBA’s Small
Business Training Network, a virtual campus of business courses, trainings,
education resources, learning tools and information assistance at www.sba.gov/training. This training
features an interactive assessment tool to help evaluate readiness for starting
a business. It also walks participants through the key steps of business
start-up.
The business topics reviewed include business planning, legal aspects,
financing and marketing. In addition, the course provides links to more than 40
targeted resources and small business tools, such as a business plan template,
and an automated balance sheet guide. The course also offers direct access to
online counseling through SCORE, as well as to other SBA resources partners
including the Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers, and
SBA district offices.
Participants that complete the online training have an opportunity to receive
a Course Completion Certificate from the SBA. To evaluate your business
readiness, go to http://www.sba.gov/ and click
on “New Free Online Course.” | 
