GAME

08/10/2022

There's still time to join in the newest GAME cohort! We're talking marketing with Kel Woods today, and we have a whole 12 months of great subject matter experts scheduled. Call or E-mail our Super Star to get in the GAME!

Title change alert! Our Valerie has always been a Super Star, so we made it quasi-official for our first GAME cohort of this year! We couldn't do this stuff without her!

08/01/2022

08/17/2021

From our colleagues at Pure Pitch Rally (see the extended deadline info!), an event that facilitates entrepreneurship by offering spot-cash funding to startups:

"Kansas City startup ecosystem and funding community,

Pure Pitch Rally brings more than 100 CEOs, VIPs and angel investors together to network, collaborate and celebrate the future of tech in KC as local startups compete in a pitch competition. Playing off of ABC’s hit show “Shark Tank” and Kansas City’s landlocked location, a pre-selected panel of executives called “land sharks” will judge the startups’ pitches. Each land shark will donate $1,000 to the start-up pitcher of his/her choice, while attendees will vote to award a People’s Choice cash prize. Other funding and prizes, including complimentary seats at Plexpod, will be available as well.

Our application portal closes soon -- the original deadline was Aug. 13 but we are offering a one-week extension ONLY to Aug. 20 to ensure all interested companies are included -- and we are hoping you can help encourage the early-stage technology startups you know to apply!

Application link: https://lnkd.in/eDEhKPV

Beyond the cash and prizes, all of our land sharks commit to taking a personal meeting with the pitcher who receives their funding check. These connections have led some of our alumni to incredible success and also helped them enter many of your programs to accelerate their growth trajectories.

For more information, visit purepitchrally.com. You can also read about how this event was recognized as an honorable mention Impact Investor in Fast Company's 2021 World Changing Ideas. The deadline for submitting an application is Friday, Aug. 13. The sixth annual event will be held Monday, Oct. 18 from 2-4pm at the Loews Hotel Kansas City."

CALLING ALL TECH STARTUPS! We’re accepting applications for the sixth annual Pure Pitch Rally, which will be held October 18, 2021. From communications and computing to agriculture and architecture, we’re looking for innovators across all aspects of technology to fill our pipeline. Do you have t...

01/28/2021

Do you know what your business is worth? Is it as much as you'd like? Join our GAME cohort starting on Feb. 18 to learn about valuation principles and find out! Other sessions in the series will address adding value, value drivers, exit planning and strategic planning.

http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07egqosmy2k36fdiya/a021jjkkh9v8oz/questions

09/10/2020

Take a look at this webinar series being offered by SBDC Kansas at JCCC and Kansas Small Business Development Center! Attend all five sessions these next few months and develop your 2021 vision!

For more information and registration, visit https://ce.jccc.edu/courseDisplay.cfm?schID=23317&product=1

03/25/2020

Have you seen this great story?

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/24/us/cowboy-museum-oklahoma-security-twitter-trnd/index.html

You, too, can be a great marketer! GAME Series 2 begins May 7 with Valerie Jennings of Jennings Social Media & Martech presenting "Design & Define Your Digital Strategy."

To register, click or go to: https://ce.jccc.edu/courseDisplay.cfm?schID=16438&product=1

Many thanks to our Sponsor, Crossfirst Bank!

A new internet icon has emerged and his name is Tim.

02/05/2020

John Jantsch, founder of Duct Tape Marketing, will tell how to consistently deliver real-world marketing ideas and strategies for small business.

11/22/2019

Vince Haworth from Bank of the Prairie did such a tremendous job with his 'behind the curtain' look at how a bank REALLY reviews a loan request at yesterday's GAME session! So, we'll be doing our financial projections segment at the Dec. 12 session - bring a P/L and balance sheet! And bring an idea for an investment you might make in 2020: a line of credit, a new office, a new warehouse, additional staff, or ____________? We'll run the numbers!

Also, we discussed contingency planning - see below:

As a follow-up to last week's discussion of contingency plans: Our latest GAME cohort members worked through scenarios that they should plan for, which included: illness/death of a principal, the classic fire, flood and tornado, and then a whole passel of modern threats such as bank accounts being hacked or frozen, ransomware, robbery, phishing (or social engineering), active shooters, dumpster diving...

What else should your business have a plan in place for? In terms of prioritization (think: likelihood and impact), what are your first three scenarios?

11/13/2019

As we prepare for 2020 and our strategic plans, some things inevitably require capital: new services, marketing, staff, shifts, facilities… Even opportunities and big contracts can cause a cash crunch! On November 21, GAME participants will be working hands-on, creating financial projections for the next year or more, facilitated by Kansas SBDC advisors. Please bring:

• A P/L or income statement for 2018
• A P/L or income statement for 2019, to date
• A current balance sheet
• And think of the investment you’d like to consider (for example, a new hire)

The deliverables for the session will include pro forma income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements for the next 1 – 3 years. It’s your financial plan!

Vince Haworth from Bank of the Prairie promises us a “behind the scenes” look at how banks really review loan applications, so that you’ll be ready when you need financing. And trust us, a good bank partner is the cheapest money out there! To prove our point, here are some 'non-bank' lenders - with interest rates up to a whopping 99%! Yikes!

Online business loans have become a popular financing option over the past decade as banks have scaled back on loans to small businesses. Small-business loans made up nearly half of…

10/27/2019

Control your future by registering today to attend the SBDC Succession Planning conference this Friday, 11/1 - only a few days left to register!

Register here:
https://ce.jccc.edu/courseDisplay.cfm?schID=16178

Come learn from bestselling author John Brown of the Business Exit Planning Institute, whose business expertise is sought after by many companies nationwide!GAME

10/22/2019

Value Stream Mapping is the topic in this week's GAME workshop. What's your favorite GAME session thus far and what did you learn?

10/10/2019

Join us Thursday October 17 for the next GAME session! We'll be discussing your business' process, its people and its values. Are they aligned with each other? If you haven't yet, register now to join the GAME: https://loom.ly/7ILMprM