SCL Biz: Everything Business in Sonoma County

Get your vineyard ready for winter with erosion control workshops offered in Spanish & English by Gail Davis of the Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office.

November 8, 2007 – Morning (Spanish) & Afternoon (English) sessions
St. Francis Winery & Vineyards, 12870 Los Amigos Road, Healdsburg

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A workshop with speakers on spraying safety and strategy will be presented in Spanish only; topics include “Safety – Cost to Company & Employees,” by Alberto Zamora, Beam Wine Estates and “Dormant Spray Strategies & Timely Topic,” by Daniel Robledo, UAP.November 10, 2007 8:30 am – 11:30 am
Windsor Regional Library, 9291 Old Redwood Highway, Building. # 100, Windsor

These workshops are presented by the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission and the Sonoma County Grape Growers Foundation. For more information and reservations, call 707-522-5862 or email ipm@sonomawinegrape.org.

This is a Redwood Empire Small Business Development Center workshop:

“This class will provide an overview of business law concepts for the small business owner, addressing the general business legal issues that most entrepreneurs face when starting or growing a small business.

Topics include: entity formation, taxes, copyrights, patents, trademarks, employment and real estate. There will be a panel of legal representatives to answer your questions.”

November 7, 2007 9:00am – Noon
Redwood Empire SBDC Conference Room
421 10th Street; Santa Rosa CA 95401
1-888-346-SBDC

Information & online reservations

Learn how Clover-Stornetta planned for and accomplished three generations of family ownership.

Speaker: Dan Benedetti, Chairman of the Board and a panel discussion with Jim Andersen, Steve Herron, and others, moderated by Brad Bollinger, North Bay Business Journal Editor-in Chief.

November 1, 2007
For information and reservations, call Linda Perkins at (707) 579-2900, ext. 211

Congratulations to DeLoach Vineyards, in Santa Rosa, for being included in the September 2007 issues of ForbesLife Magazine. Featured in The Eye, “French innovator Jean Charles Boisset put his money where your mouth is by releasing DeLoach’s superb luxury bottling, the 2005 Sonoma Stage Vineyard Pinot Noir ($85), with what’s known in the biz as a Stelvin closure– that’s a screw cap to us.”

Benziger Family Winery, in Glen Ellen, and Araujo Estate Wines, in Calistoga, are featured in Richard Nalley’s Wine column, in the same issue. “Witchy Wines,” is about biodynamics in the vineyards and SCL Biz particularly liked Nalley referring to our local vienyards as “…labels that wine lovers (and auction speculators) see in their dreams, rare and prized trophy wines.”

Thank you to Jon Mandell, the COO of Confabb.com, for his follow-up to the news item about Trade Shows:

“Just wanted to chime in and add a resource to your trade show directory bullet. If you point your readers over to www.confabb.com they’ll find a searchable directory of more than 50,000 meetings, conferences and events from around the world. It’s the largest directory on the web. There are also social media tools integrated into the directory so users can interact, communicate and keep in touch before, during and long after the event ends. ”

You can search the directory by keyword, location, a person’s name, etc., or browse by category. Register for a free account to add your event. Thanks, Jon for a nice resource for SCL Biz readers.

Trade Show in a Day: Get It Done Right, Get It Done Fast, by Rhonda Adams and Betsy Bozdech [The Planning Shop, 2006], will help you get the most out of a trade show. There’s a timeline that will help you know what to do and when to do it; select the best booth and how to design your display; which trade show services you really need and which you don’t; detailed logistics planning, including shipping – even sample scripts for talking to people who visit your booth.

TSNN – The Ultimate Trade Show Directory – Want to attend a trade show or showcase your product or service at a show? Search Over 15,000 Trade Shows, Exhibitions, Public Events and Conferences.

The Sonoma County Economic Development Board presents several seminars throughout the year that address key opportunities, challenges, and initiatives facing Sonoma County. This is the next in this year’s series.

“Back by popular demand, register today to hear Dr. Christopher Thornberg’s state and local economic forecasts. This leading analyst will discuss the future of California’s economy, the real estate market, and how your business may be affected in 2008. Chris Thornberg is a founding partner of Beacon Economics, and an expert in the study of regional economies, real estate dynamics, labor markets, and business forecasting. Prior to launching Beacon Economics last year, he worked with the UCLA Anderson Forecast where he regularly authored its outlooks for California, Los Angeles, and the East Bay as well as a number of specialized forecasts for regions and industries.”

November 2, 2007 – 7:00 to 9:00 AM
Hyatt Vineyard Creek Hotel, Santa Rosa

Reservation deadline Oct. 29

More information & RSVP form

“Come to this day and get totally, unabashedly inspired and motivated by listening to women who have launched a cable network, a lifestyle brand, the bible of restaurant guides and a balanced, joy infused life. Don’t be surprised if you leave with referrals, new friends, a new hand bag, a great marketing tip, a connection, a surprise run in with a long lost friend and incredible opportunities to learn, enjoy and move forward in your life or business. This day is unlike anything you’ve ever attended: so check your expectations at the door.” Mariel Hemingway will be only one of many guest speakers.

October 26, 2007 9am – 4pm
Herbst International Exhibition Hall (HIEH) in the Presidio
385 Moraga Avenue, San Francisco

Much more information and online reservations

This is a Redwood Empire Small Business Development Center workshop:

“Do you really know your customers? The use of personas to create dimensional customer profiles allows you to speak directly to your customers and make your marketing more effective. This 2-hour workshop will explain the theory of marketing personas, how to write your own personas and the pitfalls to avoid. You’ll get started writing one persona in class, and leave with simple guidelines for creating, maintaining and using personas to increase your marketing success.”

October 29, 2007 10:00am – 12:00
Redwood Empire SBDC Conference Room
421 10th Street, Santa Rosa CA 95401

More information and reservations or call 1-888-346-SBDC.

Business.gov – Official Government Guide to Federal Government Contracting has everything you need to know about selling your product or services to the U.S. Government:

The California Department of General Services has a website: Selling to the State, with information to help “you understand how your firm can become a potential supplier to the State of California and how the State buys products and services.”

To sell to a Sonoma County agency or department see the website maintained by the Sonoma County Purchasing Division.

There are more great websites on the SCL Biz Guide to Internet Resources.

“Purchasing surplus goods from the government is an easy and affordable way to equip your new and expanding business. From computers to cars to gently used medical equipment, just about anything you can think of that your business might need is sold by the government at or below cost or fair market value. Here’s how it works. When a federal or state agency has extra equipment, seized goods, or forecloses on a piece of property, it is either transferred to another government agency or sold to the public. These goods are sold “as is” by auction or negotiated sale, either online, in-person or both. Online auctions work much the same way as other auction sites, such as E-Bay. You visit an agency’s auction site, register your name, and place your bid.” Check out the Small Business Guide to Government Auctions and Sales for the pertinent federal website.

The State of California Office of Surplus Property Reutilization (OSPR) holds public auctions of surplus materials online every six weeks – the next auction date is December 8, 2007. There is also a California Federal Surplus Personal Property Program.

Tomorrow we’ll look at how you can sell your product or service to Sonoma County, California, or U.S. agencies or departments through contracting programs. The SCL Biz Guide to Internet Resources has more valuable business websites.

The Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring this workshop:

“Whether you’re new to the Internet or looking for ways to improve traffic to your website, it pays to know the basics of e-marketing. Learn how to use your website as a marketing tool as well as how to integrate the Internet into your marketing plan. Key areas of discussion will include: creating high impact, high response websites; increasing popularity and average viewing time; encouraging viewers to return (often); achieving higher rankings in search engines; and online advertising. In addition, the workshop will include discussion of metrics — measure that will come in handy to determine how well your web strategy is working.”

October 26, 2007 8:30am
Sonoma Fire Station Training Room, 630 Second Street West, Sonoma
Space is limited and pre-registration is required. Please call 996-1033.

Don’t Just Do Something, Stand There!: Ten Principles for Leading Meetings That Matter, by Marvin Weisbord and Sandra Janoff [Berrett-Koehler Pub, 2007]. Business meetings – announce one and you may hear long sighs. Weisbord & Janoff will help you to understand what you can control ["the conditions under which people interact, and you can control your own reactions"] and what you can’t ["people’s motives, behavior, or attitudes"] in a meeting. “And, equally important, they offer advice for making sure your own emotions don’t get in the way — for knowing when to “just stand there” rather than intervene inappropriately, unproductively, or futilely.”

For more help visit the SCL Biz Guide to Managing a Business.

There are various retirement plans for self-employed business owners and those who have employees. Check out the IRA Resource Guide for Retirement Plans to learn about the differences among SEPs, 401Ks, Solo 401Ks, Roth 401Ks, traditional and Roth IRAs, and SARSEPs.

For more help with retirement income planning.

This is a Redwood Empire Small Business Development Center workshop:

“You want to take advantage of online marketing ideas but don’t know a blog from a wiki? Does it all sound so technical and complicated and expensive? This intensive 2-hour workshop is an overview of the most popular ways to promote your business online. Learn what is involved, the costs, the pros and the cons. Come away with an action plan that fits your business, your goals and your budget.”

October 24, 9:00am – 1:00pm
Redwood Empire SBDC Conference Room
421 10th Street; Santa Rosa, CA 95401
1-888-346-SBDC

More information and reservations or call 1-888-346-SBDC