The Business Education Expo (BEE) organized by Eatonton Main Street took place on March 21, at the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce, where five panelists discussed various aspects of opening and operating a business.
“Whether you have a business or are thinking about opening a business, this will be great information,” Eatonton Main Street Manager Lauren Singleton told about two dozen attendees. “Starting a business can be overwhelming, but you’re not alone.”
Marshall Rich, a cybersecurity expert and owner of Rich on Cyber in Eatonton, talked about the importance of protecting a business from cyberattacks.
“Everybody is vulnerable and gets hacked at some point,” Rich said. “The question is, how resilient will you be and how fast can you recover and get your operations back up?”
Among other things, he reminded people not to store facial recognition, fingerprints, and voice recognition files on their phones. Rich also recommended using strong passwords, frequently changing passwords, using two-factor authentication methods, and backing up a business’s most critical data to the cloud or an external drive.
Shona Bales, a lender from the Farmers & Merchants Bank, talked about the financial aspects of opening a business. “The biggest thing is financing your dream,” she said. “We want you to succeed and grow your business.”
Bales described various financing options, including loans and grants. She explained that with businesses not yet established, the decision to grant a loan is based on the prospective business owner’s personal credit and work history.
She also emphasized the importance of being prepared and having a business plan prior to applying for a loan and encouraged business owners to be knowledgeable about their businesses.
“Be prepared to provide the data. Think the details of your business plan through; tell where you got your data from,” Bales said. She also mentioned the website of the Small Business Administration (sba.gov), which has a lot of useful tools, too.
Tim Broyles, the owner of Tim Broyles Insurance and Financial Services, talked about the importance and types of insurance available while sharing possible scenarios for different types of businesses.
“Don’t wait until something happens,” he said. “No one saw the COVID situation coming, right? Be proactive and plan ahead as much as possible.”
Answering a question from the audience, Broyles explained the difference between professional insurance and general liability coverage. He also explained that people starting a business from home will have a very low-expense policy because the home itself is insured, but such a policy has to be separate from a general home insurance policy.
Putnam County State Court and Eatonton Municipal Court Judge Michael Gailey and the owner of the Gailey Law Firm talked about the legal aspects of opening a business. He recommended getting affairs in order before starting a business, just in case something that can take the entire business down happens.
He emphasized the importance of establishing relationships with trustworthy professionals in federal, state and local governments.
“There are a lot of attorneys, but you need to find one you have a connection with,” he suggested. “Same with a CPA, a banker, an insurance agent, or a realtor.”
Gailey also encouraged people to read all contracts before signing and to review their estate plans at least once every five years.
Finally, Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce President Maggie Milner described different options the Chamber offers, as well as its tourism and marketing efforts. She also mentioned benefits that Chamber membership offers, such as the Georgia Chamber SMART Plan and the Georgia Chamber 401(k) retirement plan.
“We’re a hub for businesses. We joke internally that we’re the community’s yellow pages. We’ve got brokers on everything under the sun. With that, we also have investors. We believe when you engage with us, you’re invested in your community at large,” Milner said.
“I’m a firm believer that everything is about relationships. A piece of advice I got from my very first boss was people give to people. Doesn’t matter if it’s a non-profit or a business, it’s about a relationship with another individual.”
Eatonton Main Street is part of Main Street America, a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center and a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Its mission is to preserve and enhance the historical and cultural character of Eatonton through economic development.
To learn more about Eatonton Main Street, visit online at downtowneatonton.com.