Posted by Biz Central USA Marketing Team on September 28, 2010 under Small Biz and Entrepreneurship,Small Biz Certifications | 2 Comments to Read

The WBENC is the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council. It is a national council that certifies women owned business throughout the country. There are many benefits of getting a minority business certification through this agency.  From gaining useful access to valuable resources and capacity building programs to chances for women owned business recognition awards and promotional opportunities, there are dozens of benefits to reap from the WBENC certification.

Access:

Being a certified member of the WBENC allows you to access current list of supplier diversity and procurement executives at hundreds of major U.S. corporations and federal, state and local government entities that accept WBENC certification.  WBENC certified businesses also have formal and informal opportunities to pursue business deals with National Corporate Members and other WBENC certified businesses.

WBENC certification gives women owned businesses the opportunity to attend WBENC’s annual Women in Business National Conference and Business Fair, and are eligible to participate in face-to-face match making sessions. Additionally, WBENC certified businesses are automatically included in WBENCLink, WBENC’s Internet database of certified WBEs, which is accessible by WBENC’s Corporate Members and other certified WBEs across the country.

WBENC certified businesses are given eligibility to receive sourcing opportunities through MatchMaker365, WBENC’s new online business matching, scheduling, and tracking portal, which helps corporate buyers identify and meet the right WBE suppliers and obtain the right products or services. WBENC certified businesses are encourages to partner with other WBENC certified WBEs to pursue other business opportunities to grow their network and profit.

Capacity Development:

WBENC certification gives women owned businesses access to a number of capacity building programs and activities.  Some of these include: eligibility to receive a Dorothy B. Brothers Scholarship, eligibility to participate in the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, workshops and keynotes at WBENC national events, Webinars, WBENCLink, MatchMaker365, “Just in Time Learning Series” by Susan Bari, access to community of support among WBENC certified WBEs, and articles in WBENC’s President’s Report and WBENC News on website.

Recognition:

WBENC certified businesses are given eligibility for regional representation and national recognition as a Women’s Business Enterprise Star; eligibility for recognition through WBENC’s Applause Award; eligibility for International Luminary Award; and eligibility for recognition through the William J. Alcorn Leadership Award.

Promotion of the Business:

WBENC certified businesses are given use of the WBENC certification WBE seal on their marketing materials, which identifies the women’s business enterprise as certified through WBENC’s national standards and procedures, use of WBENC press release template to announcing the business as newly WBENC certified.

WBENC certified businesses are given eligibility to promote their business through sponsorship of WBENC national events. A number of promotional opportunities are provided in sponsorship packages. WBE Chair opportunities are available and open to every WBENC certified WBE. Although only two WBE Co-Chairs are selected for each national event, this sponsorship opportunity includes year-long promotional and exposure benefits.

WBENC certified businesses are given eligibility to promote their business in a 60 second video on the Elevator Pitch located on WBENC’s website and eligibility to promote their business on WBENC Social Media profiles.

Advocacy:

The WBENC drafts papers and research developed on key women business issues and offers opportunities to participate in surveys so that each business’ voice is represented on key issues, and improves the representation of women business issues in key forums.

There are many benefits to becoming a certified member of the WBENC. As reviewed, the WBENC minority business certification can be key to major access, development programs, promotional activities and advocacy that is key to ongoing growth and development.   If your business is majority owned by a woman it would definitely be in your businesses best interest to join and begin reaping the benefits of WBENC certification.

Posted by Biz Central USA Marketing Team on May 27, 2010 under Small Biz and Entrepreneurship,Small Biz Certifications,Small Biz News | Be the First to Comment

A Webinar about Getting Certified & Securing Opportunities as a Women or Minority Owned Business!

Are you a women or minority owned business that has not yet applied for a WBE or MBE certification? If so, you could be missing out on dozens of opportunities set aside solely for your small business!

There are numerous government agencies at the local, state or federal level that can provide you with a women or minority business certification. Whether you are just starting a business or your company is already established, you can drastically benefit from these MBE and WBE “set aside” contracts.

We invite you to spend a valuable hour with BizCentral USA, and learn the benefits and steps to becoming a WBE and/or MBE certified small business!

Topics of Interest:
•Eligibility for WBE and MBE Certification
•Getting Registered
•Supporting Documentation

Don’t wait any longer to get your small business certified. Take advantage of the certifications that are available today by attending our FREE webinar on Wednesday, June 2, 2010 from 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. (EST).

Posted by Biz Central USA Marketing Team on February 17, 2010 under Small Biz and Entrepreneurship,Small Biz Certifications | 3 Comments to Read

When looking at the Woman/Women Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) Certification, the question I get asked most frequently is. “Is there really a difference between which WBE certification I receive?” The very honest answer to this question is yes. It makes a large impact which agency you choose to certify your business through. If your business is 51 percent owned, controlled, operated, and managed by a woman or group of women then you are eligible for certification. There are generally four different levels of WBE certifications:

1. Local – This certification can be obtained by a local government certifying office, such as a city or a county.  You would want to obtain a local certification if you want to increase your chances of getting business from that particular local agency (such as the city or county in which your business is located).
2. State – This certification can be obtained in most (not all states have a designated program) states through a state certifying office.  You would want to obtain a state certification if you want to increase your chances of getting business from one or more state government agencies.
3. Federal – These are self-certifying, and allow you to sell to the U.S. federal government.  So if you want to sell to the federal government, then you can self-certify that you are a WBE enterprise.
4. National – This is the type of certification you would consider if you want to have large corporations (both privately and publically owned) as clients.  Some large corporations will accept either a National Certification or a State Certification, so before you rush out and get a National Certification, you would first want to see what the requirements are specific to that corporation.

If you are more interested in doing work in the private sector, particularly with publicly traded and privately owned companies, WBE Certification by a third-party certifier is going to be the recommended option. Third party certification (national agency) is geared to the private sector. Such agencies as the WBENC and the NWBOC are third-party certifiers. This indicates that these agencies are an independent entity other than the small business owner or the corporate purchasing entity and are ensuring that the small business is in fact a woman-owned entity.

If your small business is focused on gaining contracts with a government entity, in most cases each city, county, state and federal agency has their own type of certification program which details an individual and distinct process for that city, county, or state. Now you are probably saying to yourself, “Do I really need to get multiple certifications for different purposes?” Due to recent pressure being brought by women business groups, the government agencies are now beginning to accept other sources of certification in addition to their own program. The key, if you find yourself in this situation, is to certify with your home county or city first. By doing this, most other city and county certification programs will reciprocate your home city certification and you can start doing business with Uncle Sam.