Fast Forward Maine Podcast
What Owners Need to Know About Funding Their Growth – Jennifer Cummings
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Have you ever run into a cash crunch in your business? Was there a time when you wish you had access to more capital to expand, hire more employees, or get a critical piece of equipment for your business? FAME, the Finance Authority of Maine, helps companies even without pristine credit access business and agricultural loans so they can grow. Jennifer Cummings, the Director of Business Programs, shares the ins and outs of this program.
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What Owners Need to Know About Storytelling to Attract A-List Talent – David Lee
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You hear a lot about storytelling these days, and how businesses can use stories to attract customers and employees alike. But how do you craft a compelling story? What are the components? And where do you share it?
David Lee of HumanNature@Work has been teaching storytelling to leaders and owners for over 20 years, and he shares with us how to craft the story that will attract that A-List employee to your team.
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What Owners Need to Know About Doing Business Overseas – Wade Merritt
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As anyone can imagine, expanding your business is a huge undertaking in itself, but trying to enter into the foreign markets brings its own set of challenges and hurdles.
Bangor native, Wade Merritt, has made it his mission to help Maine businesses break into foreign markets by overcoming these challenges through his job heading the Maine International Trade Center (MITC)
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What Owners Need to Know About Maine Technology Grants – Amy Leshure
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If you’re an innovator with an idea or product that can stimulate Maine’s economy and create jobs in the state, then you might want to reach out to the Maine Technology Institute. Since 1999, MTI has been offering grants, loans, equity investments and services to help support Maine’s innovation economy and entrepreneurship.
Amy Leshure of MTI spends some time with us today to explain just how that process works and the impact the program is having on the State of Maine.
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What Owners Need to Know About E-Commerce – Becky McKinnell
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Selling online is more than just slapping up a website with pictures and prices. Becky McKinnell, founder of iBec Creative, where they’re known for building successful ecommerce sites, encourages you to think like a customer when it comes to offering them a website with the best customer experience. But you also want to make sure you’re intertwining email and social media to help map out your customer’s journey and sell to them in a unique way.
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What Owners Need to Know About Government Contracts – Bryan Wallace
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Have you ever wanted to go after government contracts, but were unsure where to start? Federal, state, and municipal projects come up all the time, at all different sizes for all different types of companies and industries. Find out how you can stay on top of these projects and how to land them, with procurement expert Bryan Wallace of the Maine Procurement Technical Assistance Center.
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What Owners Need to Know About Customer Service – John Kenneally
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If there’s one thing John Kenneally would want all businesses to remember, it’s that without customers your business doesn’t exist. That being said, how do you make sure you’re giving the best customer service? Well, the emotional intelligence and social intelligence of the people you hire play a huge role in that.
Certainly hiring people with empathy and a clear understanding of empathy, self-awareness, and social skills is going to be a great place to start. But what if you have a great team that lacks effective social skills? Luckily – unlike your I.Q. – these are things that can be trained and taught.
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Hiring Veterans and Transitioning Military: What You Need to Know – Bill Benson
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Maine needs skilled, experienced workers, and transitioning military might be at least part of the answer. Boots2Roots is an organization that helps transitioning military find and land jobs in Maine, playing matchmaker with companies and organizations that are looking for a wide variety of skilled employees. Executive Director, Bill Benson, shares why Maine employers and veterans make such a perfect match.
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What Owners Need to Know About Intellectual Property – Andrew Kraus
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Trademarks. Copyrights. Intellectual property. What do you need to know about these items to protect your ideas, and how do you stay out of hot water when it comes to work for hire, contractors, and social media?
This week we speak with Andrew Kraus of Opticliff Law, an IP expert, on what growing businesses need to know about all forms of protection for ideas and how to avoid trampling on someone else’s rights.
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What You Need to Know About Business Plans – Gigi Guyton
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Are you running your business without a business plan? Is it because the marketing component has you scratching your head? How do you know where to get the information about potential customers and competitors so that you can put together a meaningful plan?
In this week’s episode, we’ll chat with Certified Business Advisor Gigi Guyton from New Ventures Maine on how to put together an effective business plan and a whole lot more.
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