http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/paypal-co-founder-to-build-a-city-on-the-sea.html

What an awesome idea!  A floating incubator!

We have three new BizBuilderSC classes on the calendar for Charleston.  One is coming up quickly, the other two are in the Fall.   Register now!

NxLevel for Start-Ups – Charleston, begins on Monday, May 21 and runs for ten weeks.  Register now!

NxLevel for Start-Ups – Charleston will be offered again, September 10 to November 19, 6 – 9 p.m., Mondays, at the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce.  It is for entrepreneurs who want to test the feasibility of their business concept and create a business plan as their blueprint for their start-up venture.

NxLevel for Entrepreneurs (Existing Businesses) – Charleston will be offered from September 12 to November 28, 2012  (No class September 26 or November 21), 6 – 9 p.m. on Wednesdays at the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce.   It is for entrepreneurs who want to expand an existing business and need the skills to make it grow.

Go to the calendar to register now!

So what exactly is Pinterest?  Well, besides from being a virtual pinboard that allows you to organize and share items you find online, the social media platform is one of the fastest growing sites of 2012.

Check out this video we’ve found on Entrepreneur.com that outlines the fives steps for businesses to effectively use Pinterest

Register now for NxLevel for Business Start-Ups.

NxLevel for Business Start-Ups is a 10-session, 30-hour course that addresses the questions that every entrepreneur needs to answer before starting a business venture.  It’s been proven that the entrepreneur who plans is the entrepreneur who succeeds.  Participants develop a start-up business plan during the course to test the feasibility of their business concept and to act as the blueprint for their start-up venture.

Trained facilitators, who are entrepreneurs themselves, will take you through an interactive process to help you evaluate your business concept, set your financial goals, identify your market niche and needs, and build your business plan. 

Class begins Monday, April 16, 6-9 p.m. at the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce.  Visit www.bizbuildersc.com to register.

Innovation encourages the launch of new businesses, provides growth opportunities for existing businesses, and attracts leading-edge businesses from outside the area.  Imagine what potential technology  transfer opportunities between these industries, four clusters identified in www.opportunity-next.com, can mean for our region.

Join the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce for three days of discussion and idea sharing with leading experts.  Be an industry leader that is part of developing this key regional, competitive advantage.

Featured Sessions:

• Amazon, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft  plus many more
• Benefitfocus CEO Shawn Jenkins talks transformative technologies
• Futurist Rick Throckmorton gives outlook on impact locally, nationally and globally
• Tours of Clemson Wind Turbine Drive Train Testing Facility and Trumpf Medical Systems

March 14-16, 2012
The College Center at the Complex for Economic Development at
Trident Technical College

For more information visit www.eteconference.com or contact Jill Galmarini at 843.805.3015 or jgalmarini@charlestonchamber.org.

Let’s face it, we live in a world full of inventions.  Everything that we’ve come to love, and even hate, started off as an idea that oftentimes stemmed from a need.

What that being said, what goods/services do you provide that you would like to sell to the U.S. Government?

We stumbled upon a great article by the Small Business Administration that provides advice on How-To | Selling to Government – Resources to Get You Started that may be just what you need to put the wind into your sails.

The Department of Commerce has launched the new South Carolina Business Network  website SCBizNetwork.com that will give companies and entrepreneurs expertise, tools and connectivity to help their businesses grow. This site has the potential to impact hundreds of existing business owners and entrepreneurs in this state with management and training information needed to make sound business decisions in a ever-changing
marketplace.

A lot can happen during the course of a normal business day. Endless emails, limitless voicemails, and mile-high stacks of files can have even the best business person drained by the time Friday rolls around.  While we love the hustle and bustle of a great work week, we ought not neglect the importance of finding time to just breathe. Our gift to you this Friday is a website that we’ve found that encourages you to take time to do just that.

Thanks to calm.com , you can enjoy wonderful serene backdrops that have a great ocean sound. www.donothingfor2minutes.com has challenged us to not touch our computers for 2 minutes while we stare at the beach. Think it’s easy? Try it! Take the time to relax every now and then. Better yet, pass this along to co-workers or family members you know that deserve a little mini vacation.

Quick: what’s the first thing that comes to you mind when you hear the word Expo?  If you’re like me, you probably envision endless rows of rectangular tables all adorned with tablecloths plastered with logos.  You may even think of hundreds of pamphlets atop these tables with some fancy gadget – also with the company’s logo – all design to increase brand awareness and brand recognition.

We are sure you can agree that if any company has a shot at “sticking out” in the midst of hundreds of other companies, we must take a fresh look at trade show displays.

There is a lot more to creating a successful event than putting up a great display.  You need an effective strategy that covers what you should do before the trade show/expo, how you should execute during the show/expo and proper measurement techniques after the show/expo.

It is for this reason that the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce has decided to host Keys to Expo Success Wednesday, March 21, 8-10 a.m. at the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce (4500 Leeds Ave., N. Charleston).  This training is being held at no cost thanks to Skyline Exhibits & Design.

Discussion topics include:

• Setting goals and realistic expectations
• Understanding all the players involved (other exhibitors, prospects/attendees, and show personnel)
• Budgeting and amortizing your investment
• Designing with a purpose
• Promotions/Marketing
• Effective booth staffing techniques
• Lead management
• Measurement

A social media expert  will also be on hand to explain how to effectively use digital media before and during the trade show to promote products or services.

Be sure to register today as space will fill up quickly.

For more information, or to register for this training, contact Erica Wright at ewright@charlestonchamber.org or 843.805.3002.

Encircled by beautiful views of the Ravenel Bridge, the Ashley River, and downtown Charleston, The Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce hosted the inaugural session of its newest series – Brain Food for Business: Eat It!

During this sold-out event, professional trainer and business consultant, Jay Handler, explained how to tap into the power of LinkedIn and how to use the dynamic search engine as a tool to build referrals and broaden one’s business network.

To keep the LinkedIn conversation going, we thought that it would be helpful to provide small businesses with tips on how to maximize LinkedIn to achieve desired results.

Small Business Trends, and award-winning online publication for small business owners, posted an article entitled 6 Ways SBEs Can Benefit From LinkedIn that we believe may be extremely valuable.  We also found an interesting post on the LinkedIn Blog entitled Ten Ways for Small Business to Use LinkedIn .

So press past the apprehension and dive on into the world of LinkedIn.  Who knows? Your very next business lead could be one link away!