Where to Find Business Help

 

Where do small-business owners get information to help them run their companies? According to a recent survey, the most popular sources are magazines and newspapers, followed by books and software. The next choice? Local business organizations such as chambers of commerce and Rotary Clubs. That doesn't surprise the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, since 75% of its members are businesses with 10 or fewer employees. Mary Lou Bessette, president of Bessette & Co., a home-based consulting business in Phoenix, even uses her state chamber of commerce office for client meetings. "I can meet customers at my home," she says, "but if they don't like miniature dachshunds, I'm in trouble."

Where do you get information about running a business?*
Magazines and newspapers 25%
Books and software programs 22%
Associations (such as chambers of commerce) 15%
Past personal experience 11%
Education and training 9%
U.S. Small Business Administration 7%
Friends and family 5%
Nowhere 4%
Other business owners or businesspeople 3%
State and federal government 2%
*NUMBERS DO NOT ADD UP TO 100% BECAUSE OF MULTIPLE RESPONSES.
Source: Survey of more than 300 small-business owners with fewer than 100 employees, conducted by New England Business Service Inc., in Groton, Mass., 1996.

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