Whether your business is growing more every day or you’ve reached a plateau, it’s always a good time to check in with an objective and savvy business guru to see if you’re on the right track.
Only 44% of new businesses with more than one employee survive more than four years, and only 31% make it past seven years, according to the Small Business Administration.
To fight those odds, here’s a bevy of government-affiliated resources to give your business a tune-up. The best part? Their services are free or available for a nominal fee.
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Small Business Administration
The nation’s agency charged with promoting small business growth and entrepreneurship offers free online classes that cover marketing, networking, and even crime prevention. Most of the tutorials take about 30 minutes to complete.
SCORE
The nonprofit Service Corps of Retired Executives bills itself as "counselors to America's small business" and is dedicated to educating entrepreneurs on the formation, growth and success of small business nationwide. SCORE is a resource partner with the SBA and has 370 chapters throughout the U.S. and its territories, with some 11,200 volunteers. Working and retired executives and business owners donate their expertise as business counselors. It also offers free electronic newsletters, online workshops and in-depth information tailored to women entrepreneurs.
Small Business Development Centers
These 63 centers, at least one in each state, provide management and counseling assistance to current and prospective small business owners. The centers assist small firms with financial, marketing, production organization, engineering, trade assistance and other issues. It’s a joint effort of the private sector, educational community and federal, state and local governments and is partly funded by the SBA.











