You've probably heard the adage, "You have to spend money to make money." So how does that apply to marketing your business? It's a common saying that means it's hard to make money in a business without investing in supplies, products, marketing and advertising, or other business expenses. The breakdown of how much to spend in each area will most likely depend on your business, industry and if you're a B2B or a B2C organization. The key is to focus on marketing as an investment, not an expense.

FromTheDomeThe following guest blog post is courtesy of Abdo, Eick and Meyers Workforce Solutions.In case you missed it, on May 30, 2019, Minnesota passed the Jobs and Economic Development Omnibus Bill. Along with many other budget and legislative items, that bill included several new regulations imposing new responsibilities and recordkeeping requirements for Minnesota employers effective July 1, 2019.These regulations, referred to as “Wage Theft” rules, are intended to ensure that all employees are provided with transparent access to important employment and payroll information and was passed in response to the large volume of wage theft complaints submitted to the Minnesota Department of Labor (DOL) each year.CHANGES & NEW REQUIREMENTS SUMMARYWhile it’s easy to get behind the overall intent and goals of the new Wage Theft regulations, employers need to understand how these requirements will affect the timing and documentation related to many of their most common HR and payroll processes. Here, we will review several key processes impacted by the new regulations: the employee written notice, commissions payment timing, payroll and earnings statement information, and employee handbook policies and recordkeeping requirements.

The following article is written by Marta Berglund, Greater Mankato Growth’s marketing intern. Marta is a junior at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has majors in digital innovation, film and television (DIFT), and communications. She also has minors in French and public relations. 

“You know, the city you go to college in doesn’t really matter because you spend so much time on campus anyways.” When my high school best friend’s older brother told me this my senior year of high school, I believed him, but with a grain of salt. Here I was, one of the few people from my high school about to move more than a few hours away from my friends and family. I wanted to believe that making this drastic move would have some impact on my life and finding a job in the future. But at the same time, I wanted the comfort of knowing that no matter the location of my university, I would still be able to find good opportunities, experiences, and eventually employment. 

The MN Supplier Match is an initiative of the Minnesota Chamber’s Grow Minnesota!® program, seeking to highlight and expand Minnesota’s robust supply chain, increasing business-to-business activity in the state.MN Supplier Match creates value for Minnesota businesses who want the advantages of sourcing from local suppliers: accessibility, short lead-times, shared networks, and trusted quality. It creates value for suppliers looking for new business opportunities with Minnesota-based customers. And it creates value for the Minnesota economy by keeping more dollars in the state and making our suppliers and buyers more competitive.

Operating a small business can be challenging when all you really want to do is explore your passion. That passion is what drives you, makes you work all those hours, and in the end, gives you the most satisfaction. You don’t want to spend valuable time dealing with your network or worrying about network security.

Network security is a broad term and it covers a multitude of technologies, devices and processes used in businesses today. It is a set of rules and configurations designed to protect the integrity, confidentiality and accessibility of computer networks and data using both software and hardware technologies. Every business, regardless of size, industry or infrastructure, should have some form of network security solutions in place to protect it from the ever-growing landscape of cyber threats in the world today. The question you need to ask yourself is, “Are we doing enough?”

The following is a guest blog post authored by Diane Dobitz and Briana Baker who are members of the Mankato Indigenous Peoples Day Committee. Their post is a continuation of Scot Zellmer’s post “On Being A Successful Business in an Ever Changing World” and speaks to the importance of commemorating (and not celebrating) Indigenous Peoples Day on October 14th, 2019.

The following article is written by Marta Berglund, Greater Mankato Growth’s marketing intern. Marta is a junior at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has majors in digital innovation, film and television (DIFT), and communications. She also has minors in French and public relations. 

Field Production and Storytelling has been one of my favorite classes throughout my college career. In simple terms, the course basically tells students how to not go hungry while working in the film industry—or at least how to do their best to avoid it. One Tuesday when I walked into class, I looked up to the screen at the front of the room to see the lecture topic. “How to Network” was the title of the slideshow. My professor began class by saying, “Listen guys, everyone in the working world is going to tell you that networking is the key to success—especially in the film industry, but no one is going to tell you how to do it.” This statement struck me. “He’s right,” I thought. Networking is one of the keys to successful marketing, but what’s the secret to it? 

Greater Mankato was again on the global stage recently during the Select USA Investment Summit in Washington, D.C.

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This is a yearly gathering of leading policy experts, government officials, investors and companies from around the world looking for opportunities.

Greater Mankato was there along with the state's Department of Employment and Economic Development and a handful of other regional representatives pitching the state and our respective regions.

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