The Small Business Association of Michigan's Small Business Weekly Podcast

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Catherine Behrenbrinker, CEO & President of Symplicity Communications in Grand Rapids. "Cybersecurity is the number one thing, no matter what size business, you need to pay attention and have a strategy," she says. "You need to spend money in this area, and especially for a smaller business, I think that's an area that's often overlooked."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 32,000 members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Jill Marlan, CEO and founder of Peak Performance Physical Therapy. "When we go into a community it's really important for us to be able to be ingrained into the communities and be able to give back within the communities," she says. "Last year, we were able to give back to the communities that we serve over $50,000 in donations, injury prevention clinics, leadership education training, how to maneuver the health care system, working with athletes and volunteer work across the communities and across the state of Michigan."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 32,000 members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Annette Crandalll, president of custom injection molder Quality Assured Plastics. "Customer service is everything," she says. "If they can't get the parts they need when they need them and they're not good parts, then they don't pretty much need us. It's helpful now that we're doing so much electronically, because there is a lot of distance between us and some of our customer's physical location."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 32,000 members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Adam McCauley and Ryan Dost, the founders of Sandlot Sports, a very successful screen printing and embroidery business located in the Saginaw Bay region. They've expanded from one location in 2008 to three today. "Growth is hard, because you're experiencing things that you were not used to," says McCauley. You take one step forward, and two step backs every time you do something. We realized early on that we didn't want to grow just for growth's sake, we want to make sure that the business is healthy the whole time and really focus on our staff and make sure we're hiring the right people."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 32,000 members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Mark Haggerty, president of Michigan Solar Solutions, and his residential sales manager Ray Myers. Haggerty cites many factors that make solar energy a good business investment. "There still is a 30% federal tax credit and accelerated bonus depreciation allowances for businesses. Plus, one thing we've seen with a lot of businesses is their motivation is more marketing, where they realize that if it's public knowledge, they've gone solar, just like all these electric cars out there, most of them were purchased not for the return on investment but because it aligns with their motivations," he says.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Britta Carlson, founder of Med Pros Share & EPIC of Marquette. Her company provides occupational, physical and speech therapy services. "I'm really trying to work with Michigan Works and Innovate Smart Zone to figure out ways that we can create a talent pipeline from childcare, getting them really competent in those developmental milestones, passionate about what they want to do, and scaling them to a degree that gets them a higher earning wage to be able to support the lifestyle that they'd like here up in the UP," she says.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Beth Melcher, CEO of MoneyFit in Traverse City and a member of the Small Business Association of Michigan's Leadership Council. "The owner and company relationship – it's important to treat that relationship just as you would a friendship or your marriage," she says. "That kind of partnership, if you realize that your company is a being with whom you need to communicate often, that is going to change your approach."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Scott Ellis, an owner of MichiGrain Distillery and a member of the Small Business Association of Michigan's Leadership Council. "One of my recommendations to anybody that is starting a business or running a business is really to make sure you have the ability to cash call, because that could have really been devastating to us if we didn't," he says. "The other thing I want to say is that I think I made a mistake not owning the building. I highly recommend investing in the property because we can look to move now to maybe a better facility, but we're kind of stuck in a lease."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Anna Sinagra, CEO of OEX-Office Express in Troy. She is a member of the Small Business Association of Michigan's Leadership Council. "People are trying to get their employees back in the office," she says. "A lot of them are very much back in the office, maybe a day here or there. I think it's moving more towards a flexible hybrid scenario. We have a lot of people that really want to attract people back to the office and they're doing that with some of the different offices, furniture and decor."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

On today's SBAM Weekly Podcast, Michael Rogers talks with Alison Beers, the owner of Events North in Traverse City and a member of the Small Business Association of Michigan's board of directors. "People are back meeting in person, so it's great that people are traveling again, they're less reluctant to go to airports and travel to get to the meetings," Beers says. "Again, that human connection is absolutely irreplaceable. When people share experiences together, whether it's a meeting, hearing a speaker, or having time to network, you can't replace that over Zoom, you can't replace that over a quick phone call or a typed memo. So that part has been great, getting our clients to be able to communicate what they want to say to their attendees."

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan's small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We're located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.

Our 31,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)