Connected Commerce Council (3C) to Host Skills Connect Events for Small Businesses
The Connected Commerce Council (3C) has announced a multi-state small business training program: Skills Connect. The Skills Connect events are designed to improve small businesses’ understanding and access to digital tools through direct education, training, and mentoring. Events are scheduled in eight states, including Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas. Skills Connect is hosted with the support of 3C’s Partner Council which includes Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Square.
Skills Connect events are designed to be a dynamic two-way communication where small businesses can learn from digital experts and major international tech firms, and where those same experts and companies can learn directly from small business participants in the marketplace. Each event will feature small tech-powered businesses, local innovators, and media experts discussing digital tools, marketing strategies, and approaches to grow their businesses, increase revenue, and improve efficiency. 3C also supports the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) ongoing effort to better understand the role of digital tools and technologies for America’s economy and small businesses.
“Digital tools and platforms are the foundation of success for the modern day American small business. Small businesses that use digital tools are nimbler, more efficient, and able to reach more potential customers. It’s no surprise that digitally-powered businesses earn twice the revenue and are three times more likely to be creating jobs,” said 3C President Jake Ward. “That’s real growth and it has implications for the economy at large. The Connected Commerce Council is committed to providing the absolute best materials and training to educate its small business network through our Skills Connect series.”
The Partner Council works with 3C and its membership to educate small businesses on how to maximize and optimize their use of tools and technologies to start, run and grow their small businesses. 3C Partner Council members are active participants in the Skills Connect events, providing materials, expert speakers, and general support for the series.
“The Partner Council is committed to the continued success of small biz through the development of accessible, scalable tools and technologies that meet the specific needs of small businesses. Through the investments of companies and service providers like the 3C Partner Council members, small businesses are able to grow faster, more efficiently and with less risk. Partner Council members believe, as 3C members believe, that we are in this together,“ Ward continued.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is currently accepting public comments and is scheduling a series of hearings on “Competition and Consumer Protection in the 21st Century” in order to evaluate the need for regulation in the technology sector. Over the next several months, 3C will be helping its small business members across the country submit comments about the value of digital technology for small business and how SMBs utilize these tools to run an effective and profitable company.
Ward added, “The FTC has provided us with a vehicle to help hundreds of businesses engage directly with regulators on issues that are critical to small businesses. We have to make sure that the agency understands how valuable these tools and technologies are to SMBs or we’re not doing our job. Tech policy is small business policy and we are here to make sure that’s fully understood and taken into account by regulators.”
3C held its inaugural Skills Connect in Boulder on August 16th. The next Skills Connect events will be in Atlanta, GA on September 24, Kansas City, MO on November 14, and Charlotte, NC on November 28.
About the Connected Commerce Council
The Connected Commerce Council (3C) is a non-profit membership organization with a single goal: to promote small businesses’ access to essential digital technologies and tools. 3C provides small businesses with access to the market’s most effective digital tools available, provides coaching to optimize growth and efficiency, and works to cultivate a policy environment that considers and respects the interests of today’s small businesses.
