DLBA’s education and small business classes will run from January to March, and includes an opportunity for free personalized coaching.
Over the next three months, the Downtown Long Beach Alliance (DLBA) will be guiding small businesses owners and entrepreneurs, both budding and established, in its eighth annual education series.
The nine-week course will take three hours every Saturday from Jan. 20 to March 16, covering topics such as “The Value of a Business Plan,” “Digital Marketing” and “HR Basics,” culminating in a pitch practicing session for business owners to receive feedback from their peers and educators.
Stephanie El Tawil, DLBA’s Economic Development and Policy Manager, said the classes contain valuable information for people both just starting their business and those who want to freshen up on the new technologies of their industry. Cal State Long Beach’s Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is a longtime partner in hosting the series, and students are encouraged to apply as well.
“There are constant changes behind the digital services that they can use to help with,” Tawil said, using bookkeeping, digital marketing and accounting as examples. “They get to see the real world trends as they’re growing.”
For the first time ever, DLBA is adding a “study hour” element to the classes, where attendees are invited to stay after workshops conclude and go over what they learned with their peers and industry leaders.
“We were finding that people can take in the information, but then you leave the class and life takes over, so they were struggling to apply the lessons to their own businesses,” Tawil said. “We want them to take the content and have guided hands for [applying it].”
The full schedule of classes are as follows:
- The Value of a Business Plan – Jan. 20
- Creating a Business Model Canvas
- What is a Business Plan?
- All Things Accounting – Jan. 27
- Financial Literacy and Statements
- Tools and Resources
- Digital Marketing 101 + Finding Funding – Feb. 3
- Website Design and Construction
- Elements of Social and Digital Marketing
- Funding Opportunities – Become Bankable!
- Your Marketing Plan – Feb. 10
- Writing your Marketing Plan
- Identifying your Consumer
- HR Basics and Putting it All Together – Feb. 17
- Organizational Development
- When and How to Hire Staff
- Where to Local Your Business – Feb. 24
- Site Selection
- Understanding Leasing Terms and Negotiations
- Building your Strategic Plan – March 9
- Setting Goals
- Acquiring Partners and Customers
- Pitch Practice – March 16
Residents can sign up for whatever classes address their needs best, or attend all classes.
One of the main goals of the classes is to attract more businesses downtown and “entice them to come” to the area. According to a 2023 report from DLBA, there’s been a 65% increase in the number of vacant office buildings downtown. In November, the Long Beach City Council asked the city manager to explore options to revitalize the downtown area.
Tawil said, “the more diversity we can bring into the area, the stronger our current businesses get.”
While the classes have a focus on Downtown establishment, Tawil said the lessons on site selection and lease negotiations can be applied to anywhere.
Those who attend at least seven classes will be invited to apply for three months of free one-on-one coaching services from the Downtown Long Beach-based business strategy company Fuller Management.
Three business owners or entrepreneurs will receive personalized coaching on whatever areas they identify as needing the most assistance, such as marketing, strategic development, digital management services and more. Selections for the program will be made based on the pitches given at the last session.
Residents can sign up for the education series on Eventbrite for free. Classes will take place every Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon at Studio One Eleven (245 E Third St.).
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