Buy Local: Facemasks and other PPE
Recently Greater Mankato Growth distributed 66,000 face masks in Blue Earth and Nicollet Counties in response to the statewide mandate. The intent was to assist businesses in welcoming customers, keeping employees safe, and assisting in keeping costs down for area businesses. See full news release here. Read More
Member Exclusive Advertising Discounts
As our community looks to get back into business, it will be critical for businesses to advertise and share with the public their status and what they’re doing to make sure their customers are safe. We also know that often when you need to advertise the most is when cash may be tight – especially now.
Recognizing that, Greater Mankato Growth worked with local media partners to arrange for discounted advertising packages exclusively available to our members. We’d like to thank The Free Press & KEYC News Now for stepping up in the true spirit of community to lend a helping hand to get our businesses back on their feet by offering these special rates for Greater Mankato Growth members.
Below are the discounts being offered by each media company. To take advantage of the offer, you can simply contact the identified individual and let them know you’re a Greater Mankato Growth member. They will verify your status based on a list of members provided to them.
Greater Mankato Growth has an entire Online Toolkit of resources to help our businesses open safely.
GMG Q2 Report
Our entire team at Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. works each day to bring value to our members and drive increased vitality to the Greater Mankato region. To ensure that we’re effectively updating our partners and the community on our work, we revamped our annual report. Instead of a once-a-year 40+ page document, we’ve transitioned to a quarterly report in a new, condensed infographic layout. This has allowed us to streamline and considerably reduce staff time as well as printing costs all while making the content easier to digest, more immediate, and more impactful. I invite you to take a look at our Quarter 2 report.
Visit Mankato working with influencers to promote Greater Mankato as a travel destination
It’s no secret that “word of mouth” has always had a strong effect on consumer behavior. If John Doe is patronizing a business and just scarfed up the #WorldsBestPizza, social media is going to know about it. On the contrary, the door of publicity can swing both ways especially if Mr. Doe had to wait a few extra minutes in line to receive his car rental and then plasters his negative review all over the Internet. So in reality, influencers are everywhere sharing their #BestTimeEver and #NeverDoingThatAgain experiences. Anyone can be a critic, but who’s to say they are a credible source? Some have even gone so far as to “arrange” negative reviews on their competitors (UFF DA!).
Influencer marketing has been a strong initiative of Visit Mankato and developing effective strategies through research of our local markets. We have built relationships with notable influencers from around the country that align with our destination’s assets. From there, we work with local businesses to build an itinerary and create an experience for these influencers to promote Greater Mankato by sharing their story through various mediums to followers from all around who share similar interests.
Changing For and With Your Business
The following article was written by Kallie Kleinschmidt, who is part of Greater Mankato Growth member company, Eide Bailly. Kleinschmidt shares a few considerations to keep in mind as a business professional in a constantly changing world, along with information about Eide Bailly’s free webinar series.
At Eide Bailly, we get it. Change is hard, but it’s inevitable. This past year, our country underwent the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act—the largest tax reform legislation in 30 years—and it was a rollercoaster of change. These new rules and regulations caused confusion and frustration by impacting every business and all individuals in some way or another. The impact was seen not only in our own accounting practice, but also with business owners and individuals, which is what inspired us to find a way to keep our clients, colleagues and friends informed. That’s when we created the Business Trends Webinar Series. This year-long webinar series was made with you and your business in mind. We want to help you stay informed on current business trends, so you can plan for your future and prepare for change.
Each month, two to five one-hour long webinars are hosted online. They are free, open to the public, and they offer continuing education credits to all. These informational and educational webinars are hosted by some of Eide Bailly’s brightest thought leaders in the industry to keep you informed and up to date with current business trends, new regulations and any current changes your business could be going through at that time. We understand the importance of setting yourself up for success, so we cover a wide variety of topics each month to help you advance your business through information such as: information technology, tax planning, forensic accounting, employee benefit plans, small business owner retirement plans and more. Having the right information at the right time can help you make the best decisions for not only yourself, but your business, too.
To get you thinking about yourself and your business, here are our top four considerations for 2019 that may impact your business and lead to big decision making:
- Evolving Technology. The rate of innovation and technological changes are faster than anything we’ve experienced before. Staying abreast of new software solutions and how best to access information when and where you need it is incredibly important. This can lead to improved and quicker decision making along with increased efficiencies.
- Cybersecurity. Along with evolving technology, the risk of cybersecurity incidents has risen. Having a plan in place to protect your data and respond to cyber threats should they occur is crucial.
- Wealth Planning. Planning for your future has never been more important. Understanding new tax laws and putting a solid estate, wealth and retirement plan in place will provide peace of mind for successful financial future.
- Tax Credits and Deductions. Tax laws and regulations are constantly changing. Staying aware of available opportunities, including credits and deductions, can save you time and money.
At Eide Bailly, what inspires you, inspires us. We want to help you grow your business and find your own personal success. If you want to stay informed on current business trends and new regulations, consider joining us for any or all of our webinars at eidebailly.com/Business-Trends.
Supporting the 2019 Big Ideas Challenge
Greater Mankato Growth is proud to announce our support of the 2019 Big Ideas Challenge at Minnesota State University, Mankato. First, Second and Third place challenge winners will receive a 2019 Engaged Greater Mankato Growth Membership.
Attend The U.S. Chamber Small Business Series For Free
Greater Mankato Growth members have the opportunity to attend an upcoming event put on by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. The U.S. Chamber Small Business Series will make a stop in the Twin Cities on Tuesday, July 24th in Minneapolis. As an additional benefit of being a member of Greater Mankato Growth you can attend for free by using promo code: SBSMNChamber. Read More
GMG Member Benefit: Certificate of Origin Certification
Doing business overseas that requires a Certificate of Origin stamp? As a member business of Greater Mankato Growth, that service is included in your membership. A Certificate of Origin is an important international trade document that certifies goods in a particular export shipment are wholly obtained, produced, manufactured or processed in a particular country. GMG will certify your paperwork at no cost ($100 value per certificate). Non-GMG members pay a premium of $10 per stamp. Contact our Director of Member Relations & Office Operations, Karen Toft. Read More
Pulling back the curtain
We at Greater Mankato Growth (GMG) can sometimes look pretty mysterious. What does GMG do? It doesn’t hold property, make anything or have a profit stream. Just what is it anyway? Read More
Greater Mankato News Digest
Welcome to your Greater Mankato News Digest. Every other week we will share news highlights and headlines of Greater Mankato Growth as well as a recap of our Member News feature that just launched in January 2016.
2016 Greater Mankato Business After Hours & Before Hours Schedule Just Released!
We are excited to announce the 2016 schedule for our most popular and sought-after networking events, Greater Mankato Business After Hours and Business Before Hours. This year’s lineup is sure to impress and offers so much variety, we are looking forward to seeing all of you! Read More
