GETTING THE MOST OF YOUR WBENC CERTIFICATION______ Back To Main Page


Have You Made The Most of Our Products and Services?

by Ana Maria Manresa

In 2007 we produced several new products and services specifically to promote our WBEs and provide additional key marketing opportunities.  In the time since their development, we've had several WBEs take advantage of these opportunities but there are still many who have not.  This first issue of Getting The Most of Your Certification is dedicated to getting the word out to those WBEs who have not taken advantage of these great new opportunities.

Take a moment to review these great opportunities to market your business to local, state and national corporations, government agencies, and other WBEs.  These are just a few tools available to our WBEs to make the most of their valuable and exclusive WBENC certification:

   Annual Report
The WBDC is pleased to announce that an Annual Report will be available to our WBEs, Corporate Sponsors and the public every year summarizing the efforts and financial status of the Center. This publication will be available every year at the end of the first quarter. In this document you will find an Executive Summary, a list of Board Members, Corporate Council Members, and WBEs. Also included is information on our WBEs: Done Deals, Forums, WBEs by Region, Awards & Recognition, Testimonials, and key statistics.
Available: After the first quarter

   Who’s Who Among Florida WBEs
Who's Who Among Florida WBEs features our Florida Women Business Enterprises (WBEs) with a company profile that includes owner and company information, Done Deals, and a highlight of successes for the year. This publication is available in print form to our WBEs and corporate sponsors, as well as online in our Members Only section. This is a handy tool to have when searching for information about WBEs. Corporate Sponsors, WBEs, and the general public have access to a hard copy directory of our members with key information about their businesses including products & services.
Cost for one page profile: $75

   The Purple Pages Online Directory

The Purple Pages is an “online directory” of our WBEs. Each participating WBE provides us with a colorful and informative ad about their business. The ad will have a direct link to the WBE’s website and includes meta tags which increases exposure on the Internet.  Ads are categorized by industry, WBE name and region. The directory includes only certified WBEs and is a very useful tool for anyone searching for Certified Women Business Enterprises.
Cost for 12 Month Subscription: $250

   WBENC Annual Conference
The Annual WBENC Conference, Women in Business, is held once a year in a major city of the United States. The Conference occurs in the summer usually during the third week of June. This is an excellent opportunity to meet national and local corporate sponsors, WBEs and other business contacts. The Conference is 3-4 days and includes a very successful Business Fair, several valuable workshops, and a variety of networking events. This is definitely a must attend event with over 2,400 attendees to meet and network with.
Host City for 2008: Atlanta, GA

    Monthly Live Meetings
Our monthly Live Meeting workshops provide key information about WBE membership, WBENC and the WBDC. Live Meeting topics include: I’m Certified, Now What?; WBENCLink Training; and Roundtable Discussions brought to you by our Corporate Sponsors. These Live Meeting sessions provide a forum for our Corporate Sponsors to communicate important vendor-related information to our WBEs. The sessions also allow our WBEs to share information, participate in important discussions about their certification, and establish a platform for both WBEs and Corporations to exchange information and insight.

   Corporate Close-Ups
This is one of the most valuable services we provide our WBEs and Corporate Sponsors. A Corporate Close-Up is organized by one of our corporate sponsors to provide information to our WBEs on how to do business with them.  It is usually coordinated by the Vendor/Supplier Diversity department of the sponsoring corporation. At these events you have an opportunity to meet the buyers, managers, and vendor/supplier diversity executives. You are given specific instructions for working with the buyers and introduced to the key contacts for your industry. These are definite must attend events.

   Matchmaker Events

Another one of our most valuable services, these events are designed to bring corporations and WBEs together in a one-on-one format. Usually the WBEs fill out an application which is then sent to the corporation for review. They match qualifying applicants with their respective corporate representatives and a meeting is setup. These are usually 15 minute one-on-one meetings with a corporate representative in a decision-making capacity. These events are only open to our Certified WBEs.

   Ambassador Program
The WBDC Ambassador Program is designed to offer a personal introduction to our new WBEs as well as provide guidance and support to our new and existing WBEs. It is a program of volunteer WBEs whose experience and success in marketing their certification can benefit other WBEs who are new or simply having issues breaking into new contracts. The program matches WBEs with Ambassador WBEs by location. The Ambassador WBE is committed to providing valuable insight to recipient WBEs on marketing to corporations and the Federal Government.

   Pour at Four; Books and More
The WBDC has organized two local book clubs in Miami, Florida and Tampa, Florida. These social events are designed to provide networking opportunities to our WBEs in a social and relaxing setting. A book is selected and reviewed at every meeting. Wine and cheese are provided.

   Holiday Party
Our Annual Holiday Party celebrates the successes of our WBEs for the year. It is the year’s final opportunity for our WBEs to meet and network with Corporate Sponsors and other WBEs. While being a good networking occasion, it is also a nice social event that brings together business associates, colleagues and friends. New relationships are formed and old ones are renewed in our final event of the year. And don’t forget that each Holiday Party benefits one local charity.

   Done Deals™

Done Deals are an opportunity to share contracts awarded between WBEs, local, regional, and national corporations, and the Federal Government. This list is a good resource for both Corporations and WBEs. The more Done Deals that are reported the more exposure to both corporations and WBEs. Done Deals provide a great marketing opportunity and a way to share WBE successes.

For information on any of these products or services, click on the image icon or you can contact Ana Maria at anamaria@womensbusiness.info