Montana Marketplace – Tools For Business Workshop & Trade Show Preparation Session, 10/9, Great Falls, MT

2006-10-09 08:30:00

Missouri Room of the Great Falls Civic Center

Contact: (406)268-3713 or online at http://www.msugf.edu/Workshop.pdf

“Tools for Business” workshop and Made in 2007 Montana Trade Show Preparation Session is scheduled for Monday, October 9, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in the Missouri Room of the Great Falls Civic Center.

This day-long workshop is offered to Montana entrepreneurs and is tailored especially to those considering participation in the 2007 Made in Montana Marketplace in March. The cost of the workshop is $75.00 and includes morning and afternoon coffee and lunch. There are $25 scholarships available on a first-come basis. The deadline for registration is October 4. Information and registration materials are available by phone (406)268-3713 or online at http://www.msugf.edu/Workshop.pdf.

Last year 57 people participated in this workshop and one of the workshop participants received the 2006 Made in Montana Marketplace–Best of Show Award. This workshop is essential to entrepreneurs who are new to the Made in Montana Marketplace, but is also recommended to any returning Made in Montana Marketplace participant who wants to review marketing principles, learn more about the Marketplace, or earn credits toward a Creative Arts Enterprise Certificate. Those completing the workshop will receive a notebook of tips for the creative entrepreneur, qualify for a free booth critique at the Made in Montana Marketplace, receive an endorsement certificate for use at the Marketplace, and will qualify to gain credit for five micro-components of the MSU-Great Falls Creative Arts Enterprise Certificate program.

Finding a price, creating an image, and building a display are topics to be offered during the workshop and trade show preparation session. The morning sessions will include, “Pricing Your Product for Success,” “Selling Wholesale and Retail,” “Tapping into the Wholesale/Retail Cycle,” “Profiling Your Customer,” “Building Sales with Customer Relations,” and “Gathering Information from the Customer.” Afternoon topics will touch on “Developing a Look,” “Adopting Marketing Concepts,” “Creating a Trade Show Booth,” “Heeding Post-Show Details,” “Fulfilling Orders,” and “Building Customer Relations.” There will also be an opportunity to learn about on-site logistics for the Made in Montana Marketplace–March 2 and 3. Participants may also register for the Marketplace trade show.

The workshop presenters are Dr. Cindy Kittredge, Director of the MSU-Great Falls Creative Arts Enterprise Program, and Dr. Marilyn Besich, Director of the MSU-Great Falls Business and Entrepreneurship Program. Both individuals have presented at the 2006 United States Association for Small Business Enterprise conference in Arizona. They have also shaped the groundbreaking Creative Arts Enterprise Program designed to help Montana artisans learn how to build a sustainable business, and have presented at other conferences, including the National Career Clusters Institute and the International CraftNet gathering in Santa Fe. In addition to their academic expertise, they offer experience in marketing and a working knowledge of the world of micro business.

“Surviving as an entrepreneur in Montana takes extraordinary creativity, a lot of hard work, and a healthy dose of persistence,” says Dr. Kittredge. “We believe that those in the creative sector who stock their toolboxes with useable business skills increase their chances not just to survive, but in stead to thrive.”