PRESS CENTER
Thank you for inquiring about Bizstarters.
Since 1988, we've provided step-by-step new
business planning programs for individuals seeking to make a successful transition from corporate employment
to
self-employment.
Click on the links below to learn more about Bizstarters and its CEO, Jeff Williams.
Company Profile
Company Backgrounder
Company Fact Sheet
Jeff Williams Bio
Press Releases
How We Started
Bizstarters is the evolution of the Go Smart Business Start-Up Center founded in Chicago
by Jeff Williams
in 1988 to provide live entrepreneurial training.
He was stimulated
to start his company after interviews with 100 business owners of
shuttered businesses disclosed that many were profitable when they
closed. Their lack of a well-laid plan had simply made running the
businesses too demanding for them. Jeff thought there must be a better
way to prepare to launch a business and so the Go Smart Business Start-Up Center was born.
In 1998, Bizstarters.com was organized to adapt the Go Smart
curriculum to Internet-based learning. The Go Smart training programs
are now being used by new entrepreneurs both across the U.S. and around the world.
From working with an increasing number of clients who are age 50 and over, it became obvious to Jeff and the Go
Smart Center staff that a business start-up course specifically designed for the 50+ individual was needed.
In 2004, Jeff and his staff created Starting A Business In Your Fifties And Beyond, a self-study course which guides
the user to use their interests, experience and desired lifestyle to identify a business idea that
uniquely suits them. And then it shows them how to use a proven 25-step business planning process to launch their business...in a matter of weeks.
In 2005, the "Start Your Own Business At 50 And Beyond" interactive workshop and accompanying
DVD & workbook
combination were introduced.
To spotlight the new training course, interactive workshop and DVD product, and to support the marketing of additional training materials and courses aimed at
the 50+ audience, the Bizstarters website was completely redesigned in July 2005 to solely feature content, training and
advice aimed at the "fifty and beyond" market segment.
What We Do
Here is a quick run-down of what we offer:
Starting a Business In Your Fifties And Beyond is our flagship training program aimed at the 50+ market segment.
The self-study program combines four components and is offered in three forms.
Program Components
- A 90-page business business idea identification and evaluation guide.
- A 170-page business planning guide.
- A business resources CD.
- Access to a private, online coaching website.
Program Versions
- Self-study course - $99 per person.
- Self-study course plus one-year subscription to our bi-weekly Business Booster telegroups - $299 per person.
- Self-study course plus 2, one-hour coaching sessions with Jeff Williams, plus critique
of the client's business plan by Jeff Williams - $499 per person.
Start Your Own Business At 50 And Beyond
Live workshop and DVD/Workbook combination
This two-hour live workshop answers the ten most commonly asked questions about starting a business at 50
and beyond.
A professionally-produced DVD recording of the workshop as made in February 2006 and is now offered for sale
through the Bizstarters website, as well as through membership organizations and for-profit companies.
Workshop participants and DVD users individualize their learning experience through a series of revealing
worksheets contained in the accompanying 40-page workbook.
Questions from participants and users are quickly answered by the Bizstarters staff through a private, online
website location, the address of which is included in the workbook.
Free Tools & Resources
Visitors to the Bizstarters website can access two special FREE learning tools:
- Free Report: "40 Ways To Start A Great Boomer Business"
- Free Checklist: Retirement Savings Calculator
In addition, we offer on our website a Free Resources area, which includes:
- Quizzes
- How-To Articles
- Subscription to our "50 And Beyond" eZine
Affiliate Marketing
We offer revenue-sharing affiliate marketing of the "Starting a Business In Your Fifties And Beyond"
self-study course through complimentary web-based marketing companies, as well as special discount pricing
on quantity purchase through affinity groups, such as retired teachers associations.
The Path Not Taken
Rarely is so much time and money invested in an effort with such uncertain
outcomes as is the new business planning process in America.
More than 1.5 million new businesses are launched each year, with
more than 70% doomed to fail by the fifth year. Millions of dollars
of start-up capital are wasted, not to mention the psychological toll
on hundreds of thousands of well-intentioned people.
American teenagers understand that they must take training before
they are permitted to drive a car.
But as adults the same individuals attempt a process that demands
even more knowledge, with little or no training - launching a new
business.
What makes the high rate of small business failure so bitterly ironic is that
the process of business launch is based on steps that have been successfully
completed many times before.
At Bizstarters, we offer step-by-step training and planning tools designed to feature a wide variety of business
planning techniques that draw from the real-world, street-smart experience of the Bizstarters founders and hundreds of his
start-up clients.
We have found that: the path is often not taken, because it is not made clear!
Bizstarters provides the path.
The Bizstarters.com site presents a clearly defined planning process
for moving from the entrepreneurial tingle to a smoothly running business.
Key decision points are based on the accumulated wisdom we have gained
from guiding more than 4,000 new entrepreneurs through live and online entrepreneurial
training programs.
The power of the Internet permits each participant in the process
to become a member in a community of like-minded individuals, sharing
knowledge and fighting the feeling of isolation. Being able to access
online learning programs whenever it is most convenient, lets each Bizstarters'
client learn at their own pace; on their own schedule!
Company Fact Sheet
Bizstarters is devoted to guiding entrepreneurially-oriented individuals, who are age 50 and over,
to successfully launch and run their own small businesses.
We fulfill the needs
of aspiring entrepreneurs leading very busy lives by combining a disciplined
planning process, a shared community, carefully selected products
and services, a committed interactive dialogue and a sincere desire
to witness successfully launched businesses.
Strategic Alliances
Bizstarters continually pursues co-marketing relationships with
corporate marketers of product and services offering unusual value
to early stage entrepreneurs.
Products and Services
Bizstarters offers a line of entrepreneurial assessment and training
products, marketed under the brand names of Go Smart and Bizstarters,
as well as distributing best-selling small business advice books, guides, CDs
and videotapes.
Headquarters
Bizstarters.com LLC is headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois,
a suburb of Chicago.
To reach us:
Voice - 847-305-4626
Fax - 847-305-4627
Email - info@bizstarters.com
Web - http://www.bizstarters.com
Jeff Williams is the creator of the line of Go Smart entrepreneurial training products and programs,
the founder of the Go Smart Business Start-Up Center and the co-founder of Bizstarters.com LLC, which
markets and distributes the Go Smart product line via the Internet.
His credentials include:
- Training of more than 4,000 new entrepreneurs.
- Winner of state and national awards for guiding unemployed individuals to become their own bosses.
- Facilitator at the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business.
- Member of the Illinois 100 -- Small business advocate group.
- Author of seven small business management guides, as well as the monthly online column, The Fifty-Plus Entrepreneur.
- Co-author of the Mastering Small Business - Marketing guide, distributed by Dearborn Publishing.
- Contributor to national small business magazines - Entrepreneur, Small Business Start-Ups and the
Wall Street Journal Online, to name a few.
- Marketing executive with such Fortune 500 companies as Corning and Sears, Roebuck & Co.
- MBA in marketing from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.
- Bachelor of Science in Commerce degree from the University of Virginia.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BIZSTARTERS OFFERS BOOMERS AN ATTRACTIVE ANSWER TO QUESTION POSED BY NEW PBS SPECIAL: "CAN YOU AFFORD TO RETIRE?"
Boomers will be long on life expectancy but short on income, according to the producers of a new Frontline special, entitled: "Can You Afford To Retire?" to be shown on PBS stations on May 16, 2006 (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline).
The reality this show will present may be news to some viewers, but it has been known for sometime by Jeff Williams, CEO of Bizstarters, a business start-up firm that specializes in helping people 50+ re-invent themselves as small business owners.
"I strongly believe that many of my Boomer peers cannot start too soon to seriously explore possible ways to generate more retirement income, including starting their own businesses, if they are to enjoy any sense of retirement security," says Williams. "This is not just a situation of a few isolated people over 50 who are facing a serious financial challenge in the coming years - this is a national financial crisis for Boomers."
Williams cites his own personal situation as increasingly typical of the retirement reality for many Boomers. He is a member of the group representing more than fifty percent of the Boomer workforce who are not eligible to receive a pension. And like many of his peers, his 401(k) account is nowhere near what financial advisors recommend to sustain boomers beyond retirement.
"Maybe 15% of the Boomer population has access to the $1 million-plus retirement savings many experts say you need in order to quit working and enjoy retirement for up to 30 years. The other 85%, if they aren't already, must look for a solution to their savings deficiency," emphasizes Williams.
As Williams points out, there are only so many ways for the typical Boomer to plug the gap in their retirement savings:
1. They can continue to work in the corporate world well into their 60's. Unfortunately, more and more 50+ people are being asked to leave the corporate world, and those fortunate enough to get back in often take a sizeable cut in pay just at the time they need to boost their retirement savings.
2. They can find a part-time job, but those available are less than ideal. How many of us are mentally and physically ready to work at a large chain store for $10 per hour after having been corporate managers?
3. They can receive such a large inheritance that it immediately plugs their personal financial gap. Media stories notwithstanding, experts say that many Boomers will receive much less than $100,000 (if any money at all) from their parents - and it could be 10 years or longer before they receive their inheritance.
4. They can win big at the local casino, in Vegas or at Power Ball. With record profits being reported by gaming companies, need we say anymore about the odds here?
5. They can sell virtually everything they own on EBay, live in one room of their house and take the bus. What boomer wants to volunteer for this lifestyle?
6. Or, they can start a revenue-producing enterprise, making an attractive income satisfying the almost never-ending variety of services being demanded today by both corporations and consumers.
Williams is encouraged by the results of the recent Yahoo Small Business Survey, which revealed that two-thirds of Boomers surveyed say they're considering starting their own business. "We're seeing evidence of this trend, as more and more boomers come knocking on Bizstarters door for help in planning and launching their own businesses," says Williams.
To help prospective Boomer entrepreneurs get started, Bizstarters offers a free report at their website (www.bizstarters.com), entitled: "40 Ways to Start a Great Boomer Business".
About Bizstarters
Bizstarters guides those 50 and over to plan and launch successful businesses through its self-study courses, coaching, telegroup programs and new DVD based on Founder Jeff Williams' award-winning live workshops and training programs. During his career as a business start-up expert, Jeff Williams has coached and trained more than 4,000 new business owners. A fifty-plus business owner himself, Jeff specializes in showing his peers how to start a business that will inspire and reward them. For more information, please visit www.bizstarters.com or contact Jeff at jeff@bizstarters.com.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For A Retirement Business, Ways To Find The Best Fit:
Tips From a Business Start-Up Expert
CHICAGO, IL - According to the latest figures from AARP, 16.4% of age 50+ workers are self-employed, compared to 10.2% of the overall workforce, and people aged 45 to 54 make up the fastest-growing group of new business owners in the U.S. But according to Chicago-based business start-up expert Jeff Williams, people 50 and over need to be very clear on what they do and don't want when selecting a retirement business.
Williams' new self-study training program, "Starting A Business In Your Fifties And Beyond" ($99, www.bizstarters.com/50plus.cfm), shows prospective business owners aged 50 and up exactly how to select and launch a business that matches their desired retirement lifestyle.
Williams suggests these criteria for midlife, pre-retirement men and women thinking about which business to start:
· Look for a business whose work will truly engage you - especially important for burned out corporate refugees.
· Understand how well the income potential matches your retirement income needs and know how much you are comfortable investing to launch your business. Later in life is not the time to shoot craps and risk your future financial security.
· Match the physical demands of your chosen business to your energy level. A business that requires long hours every day or hard physical labor may not suit those 50 and older.
· If day-to-day variety is important to you, rule out businesses that involve doing the very same thing for each customer.
· Do you love or hate technology? While most businesses require some computer use, consider the extent to which you'll need to use other technologies, like wireless gadgets and the world wide web.
· Decide whether you want to learn a whole new set of skills, or build on skills you already have.
Jeff Williams is the founder of Chicago-based Bizstarters.com LLC, through which he
has presented business start-up training and coaching to thousands of new business owners.
A 50-plus-business owner himself,
he is the author of eight books on business start-up, and presents
his "Starting A Business In Your Fifties And Beyond" program to a growing number of 50-plus clients. He can be reached at jeff@bizstarters.com.
A free copy of his report, "10 Tips To Have Fun & Make Money In Your Own 50+ Business," is available by
visiting http://www.bizstarters.com.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Finding Work At 50 And Over - Age Can Be A Barrier;
But Is A Great Advantage To Those Starting A 50+ Business
CHICAGO - A number of national business magazines have recently featured articles on how 50 and over
corporate managers are finding their age to be a major deterrent to finding and holding a job. But
according to Chicago-based business start-up expert, Jeff Williams, 50+ individuals who choose to launch their own businesses enjoy some real advantages over their younger counterparts.
Williams' new booklet, "10 Tips To Have Fun & Make Money In Your Own 50+ Business" (free, www.bizstarters.com), includes a section on how prospective 50+ entrepreneurs should see their age not as a weakness, but as a great strength.
Williams highlights a number of entrepreneurial advantages people 50 and beyond enjoy:
· They've learned to be patient to let good things develop.
· They like to carefully research and conceptualize new ideas.
· They're disciplined in managing money.
· They know how to work well with a variety of people.
· They're clear on what they do and don't like.
· They know how to budget their time.
· They have a keen sense of good, and bad, customer service.
· They know what they are good at doing and have confidence when they're doing it.
Jeff Williams is the founder of Chicago-based Bizstarters.com LLC, through which he has presented business start-up training and coaching to thousands of new business owners. A fifty-plus business owner himself, Jeff specializes in showing his peers how to start a business that will inspire and reward them. He can be reached at jeff@bizstarters.com.
A free copy of his booklet is available by visiting http://www.bizstarters.com.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lifestyle Choice Should Come First For 50+ Entrepreneurs, Says Expert
CHICAGO, Illinois - To truly enjoy a new adventure as their own bosses, people 50 and beyond should carefully examine what day-to-day lifestyle they wish to enjoy before getting too far into their selection of a specific business concept, according to Chicago-based business start-up expert, Jeff Williams.
"Most 50+ folks have put in 25 years or more of hard corporate work, sometimes in jobs that were less than satisfying," says Williams. "At this point in their lives they should see starting a business as a way to do what they truly love to do in a very profitable way".
Williams' new booklet, "10 Tips To Have Fun & Make Money In Your Own 50+ Business" (free, www.bizstarters.com), includes a checklist which permits the reader to evaluate the importance of a series of 50+ lifestyle characteristics, and then to see how their selections may influence their choice of a business.
The lifestyle criteria offered in the checklist include:
· How many days a week to work.
· How many hours per day to work.
· The opportunity to take chunks of time off for travel.
· The ability to combine travel and work.
· What time of day to start work.
· To work by themselves…or around others.
· The opportunity to continually learn new things.
· The chance to do something artistic.
· To use the latest in technology.
· To primarily work in their office…or to get out and around a lot.
Jeff Williams is the founder of Chicago-based Bizstarters.com, through which he has presented business start-up training and coaching to more than 4,000 new business owners. A fifty-plus business owner himself, Jeff specializes in showing his peers how to start a business that will inspire and reward them. He can be reached at jeff@bizstarters.com.
A free copy of his booklet is available by visiting http://www.bizstarters.com.
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