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Keynote: John Sternlicht, SRI International
Presentation: Trends in the State of Virginia’s Business Growth and Startups
SESSION 1: KNOWING YOUR MARKET
Any organization that expects to be successful must know and understand its market. Is your incubator program actually serving the appropriate market? Has your market changed since your last study (assuming there was one)? This session will explore the critical importance of regular market studies to capture new and previously unidentified clients. The session will provide tools for market assessment which are not complex or expensive, but are extremely useful. The creation and execution of a sound marketing plan will demonstrate value to your clients, partners, stakeholders and other funding sources.
SESSION 2: EVALUATING YOUR PROGRAM
You may know your market, but does your incubation program reflect the needs of the clients in your market or markets? What kind of programs and rigor do your clients need for success? Who presents the program? Must clients attend if they are to graduate? Should clients pay extra for classes, formal or informal? What about special equipment or laboratory space needs? This session will discuss the importance of regularly evaluating your incubator client service program and will explore various approaches to determine if you’re meeting your clients needs and expectations.
SESSION 3: MARKETING ON A SHOESTRING BUDGET
Attracting new tenants is crucial to the continued success of an incubator. Even though you may have a current market study there will be challenges to reaching new clients, stakeholders and investors. Few, if any incubators have $100,000 budgets for client attraction. This session will explore methodologies to develop creative and effective techniques to market your program and services to potential clients, stakeholders and investors on a shoestring budget.
BREAKFAST
Keynote: Daryl Scott, President, Attaain.com, Blacksburg, VA
Presentation: Competitive Intelligence and Your Marketplace
“Integrating Competitive and Market Intelligence to Provide Strategic Advantage for Incubator/Accelerator Companies”
Attaain Inc. delivers “active intelligence for strategic advantage” with AttaainCI, the comprehensive web-based solution for researching, analyzing and real-time tracking of competitive intelligence and market intelligence about companies, people and markets crucial to the success of any business. The AttaainCI Business Incubator/Accelerator Program enables early-stage incubator companies to use sophisticated intelligence tools to hone their product and marketing strategies to compete more successfully in their markets. Learn more about key areas in which competitive/market intelligence can impact the growth of incubated companies, and find out how your member companies can take advantage of real-time intelligence to improve their business strategies and tactics.
SESSION 4: SUSTAINABLE PROSPERITY
Funding is always a difficult and complex challenge for incubator operations. Incubators usually must draw from many sources for operating funds, including: grants, sponsor contributions, service fees, rental fees, work contracts, joint ventures, and other creative sources. This Session explores various funding strategies that can lead to ongoing, sustainable funding for your incubator and its programs. The relationships of incubator partnership structures, stakeholders and overall regional and business support strategies will be discussed in detail.
SESSION 5: VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ASSISTANCE
Overview of Online – “Business One Stop”
Learn about the DBA’s exciting new program to greatly simplify your business support issues and an important tool for your incubator program.
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