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Eleven Regional Organizations Partner to Support Entrepreneurs
CLEVELAND, May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Eleven partners from across Northeast Ohio today launched a new program to support the region's entrepreneurs. NEO411.biz, which provides assistance both online and through a call center, is a collaborative partnership between 11 key small business service providers in the region. The partners are: The Akron Commercialization Center, The Akron Industrial Incubator, BioEnterprise, CAMP, COSE/Greater Cleveland Partnership, GLIDE, the Greater Akron Chamber, JumpStart, NEOSA, NorTech and the Youngstown Business Incubator.
"As rich as our community has been with resources, they have not been easy for entrepreneurs to find," said Steve Millard, COO of the Greater Cleveland Partnership and executive director of COSE. "We recognize that to grow the region's economy, we must invest in small business and nurture entrepreneurs."
NEO411.biz is designed to be a starting point for entrepreneurs at all stages of developing their businesses. It makes available resources from a number of organizations in the region, in addition to the program partners, that offer help with many aspects of entrepreneurship-business planning, banking, funding, product development, commercialization and others. It also offers information on the regional economy, real estate, banking and finance, quality of life and area companies.
"Designing a portal that will give entrepreneurs immediate access to assistance that takes them from the idea stage to business formation, production and even funding fulfilled a need in the market," said Dan Colantone, president of the Greater Akron Chamber. "The partners came together from across the region because we realize that economic growth and entrepreneurial potential do not stop at political boundaries."
NEO411.biz staff will work directly with entrepreneurs and small businesses, quickly assessing their company's unique needs, then assembling the appropriate resources and involving the program's partners in expediting the assistance process. The staff also works to understand the needs of the region's entrepreneurs, the services provided by the partners and other organizations, and fill the gaps by locating additional resources, or helping to develop new services to fill unmet needs.
"Many of the entrepreneurs who contact JumpStart have an array of questions about their businesses, and sometimes, those questions are really another organization's area of expertise," said Ray Leach, president and CEO of JumpStart. "NEO411.biz can evaluate the needs of a business and connect it with the organizations that best suit the client's specific and unique needs."
The program's reach will extend to 13 counties within Northeast Ohio, including Ashland, Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Stark, Summit, Trumbull and Wayne.
"Our goal is to make entrepreneurial assistance easy, streamlined and simple," said Brad Nellis, NEO411.biz director. "We have the resources we need and the right partners to make a difference."
Nellis has more than eighteen years of business experience in Northeast Ohio. His experience includes sales, consulting, marketing and banking, in addition to owning and operating a small business for several years.
NEO411.biz was conceived after receiving feedback from the region's entrepreneurs that they did not feel a sense of community, know what resources existed or know how to access them. The idea of developing one location -- a "gateway" -- was born to simplify the process of resource identification and partnering for entrepreneurs.
The call center of NEO411.biz will be housed at the offices of COSE and the Greater Cleveland Partnership. The program is funded by COSE's Innovation and Competitiveness Initiative.
NEO411.biz can be reached at (800) 505-4811 or (216) 696-1292 and via e-mail at info@neo411.biz.
COSE/Greater Cleveland Partnership
CONTACT: Kati Tarmann of Greater Cleveland Partnership, +1-216-592-2236,or ktarmann@clevegrowth.com
Web site: http://www.clevelandgrowth.com/
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