Sigma Nu Tau Headquarters has Moved to USASBE!

February 2024 Newsletter - Issue 69

Dear Nancy,

Big News! Sigma Nu Tau's Headquarters has moved to USASBE!

We are very pleased to announced that the headquarters of Sigma Nu Tau Entrepreneurship Honor Society has moved to the U.S. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship's headquarters in Decatur, Illinois! They will be processing Petitions to Establish College Chapter forms as well as fulfilling your orders for your spring induction ceremonies!

Procedure for Spring 2024 Induction Ceremonies:

Please submit the following forms (click on the form name for the updated form with USASBE's contact information):
Membership Application Cover Sheet along with your
Student membership applications
Faculty membership applications
Entrepreneur or Honorary membership applications
by March 15, 2024 (deadline for all chapters)
by email to SigmaNuTau@usasbe.org or
by mail to Sigma Nu Tau Entrepreneurship Honor Society, c/o USASBE, 100 N. Merchant St., Decatur, IL 62523.

Procedure for Schools that would like to apply to start a Sigma Nu Tau Chapter:

Please submit the following two items:
The Petition to Establish a Sigma Nu Tau Collegiate Chapter Form
A Letter of Endorsement from your dean, vice president of academic affairs, president or chancellor that indicates your school's ability to support and accommodate the honor society on your campus
by email to SigmaNuTau@usasbe.org or
by mail to Sigma Nu Tau Entrepreneurship Honor Society, c/o USASBE, 100 N. Merchant St., Decatur, IL 62523.

2023-2024 is a Milestone Year for Sigma Nu Tau--Celebrating our 15th Anniversary in May 2024!

Sigma Nu Tau was founded in May 2009 at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh! We will be chartering our 48th Sigma Nu Tau Chapter at Stetson University on April 4th, and we hope to reach or surpass our 50th chapter this spring.

Outstanding Chapter Awards Program - Start Planning Now to Enter!

If your chapter would like to be considered for an award in the 2024 Outstanding Chapter Awards Program, please be sure that we receive your Annual Report by June 1st. You are eligible for the Chapter Merit Award when you hold an induction ceremony for your new members. For more active chapters, you can put in for the Silver and Gold Outstanding Chapter Awards. The two most active chapters are honored as Overall Outstanding Chapters and will receive a plaque and cash prize. The brochure and Annual Report form can be found below and also on our website.

Even More New Items Added to our Sigma Nu Tau Online Store?

For the direct purchase of items with the Sigma Nu Tau logo, please visit our online store at https://sigma-nu-tau.axomo.com/ to view the apparel, office accessories, bags, and serveware that is available.

Please note that lapel pins, honor cords, and tablecloths must still be ordered directly from Sigma Nu Tau (rather than from the new website). If there are other items you would like to see offered at the store, please let us know!

Wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day,

Nancy J Church, Ph.D.

President

SigmaNuTauEntHonorSociety@gmail.com

(518)564-4169

(518)572-5028 (cell)

P.S. This will be the last newsletter that I send out to everyone! I'll be turning the newsletter over to the very capable staff at USASBE!

Click here for brochure

Click here for annual report form

Sigma Nu Tau Store

New Items Added Every Week!

Click to visit our Store Website

Business Competitions, Scholarships, Grants & Other Opportunities

(1) The Snowflake Startup Challenge

The Snowflake Startup Challenge is a contest for early-stage startups that are building innovative applications and products powered by Snowflake’s Data Cloud. The winner and finalists may receive up to $1 million in investments from Snowflake, mentorship from industry leaders at NYSE-listed companies, along with global exposure, and the opportunity to ring the NYSE Bell!

Deadline to apply: March 1, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (PT)

For more information: https://www.snowflake.com/startupchallenge/

(2) The Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) competition

The most prestigious international competition for students who own and run a business is the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA). In an effort to advance to the GSEA Global Finals, nominees compete against their international counterparts in a number of regional and national contests. GSEA assists student entrepreneurs who want to grow their firms to the next level but need contacts, recognition, and mentorship.

To be eligible for this award you must be an undergraduate or graduate college/university student with a company operating for at least 6 months with at least $500 in generated revenue or $1,000 investment. There are several different locations where these competitions take place. The different competition location deadlines differ from one another.

For more information: https://gsea.org/GSEA/GSEA/Apply.aspx?hkey=4aa8f2bd-1008-4b06-be32-9551431b9699

(3) e-Fest Pitch

Take your business idea to the next level and join e-Fest next year. Submission of your video & pitch deck for this competition opens February 1, 2024. Start working on your pitch deck and video now for a chance to win!

Deadline to apply: February 1 - March 3, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (PST)

For more information: https://efest.biz/compete

(4) Utah Entrepreneur Challenge

The Utah Entrepreneur Challenge (UEC) is a statewide, student business model competition. This competition focuses on developing student businesses for a chance to win $60,000 in cash & prices. There is a business model that must be completed that is split into three components:

(1) a business-model submission

(2) a video submission

(3) the final live presentation and interviews during the UEC final event.

Online Information Session will take place on December 6, 2022 and January 10,2023 to learn more about the competition.

Deadline to apply is: February 21, 2024

For more information: https://lassonde.utah.edu/uec/guide

Videos & Podcasts for Entrepreneurs

Watch Here

Be Consistent; Inspirational Speech by Indra Nooyi

Startup Stories

Length: 3 minutes

"Startup Stories features a motivational video by PepsiCo's CEO, Indra Nooyi, recounting her Indian upbringing and path to leading Pepsi, encouraging entrepreneurs to maintain consistency, curiosity, and a lifelong learning mindset, emphasizing the pursuit of passion over temporary endeavors."

Listen Here

Business Should Be Fun, and by Following Gavin Zuchlinski’s Principles, It Can Be

Gavin Zuchlinski

Length: 19 minutes

"Gavin Zuchlinski is the founder of Acuity Scheduling, the slickest way for businesses to automate and manage their appointments online, allowing clients to schedule themselves. He is a self-professed tech geek and espresso maniac who wholeheartedly believes that business should be fun."

Watch Here

Make Smart Decisions; by Warren Buffett

Startup Stories

Length: 4 minutes

Startup Stories offers Warren Buffet's best motivational insights emphasizing the significance of smart decision-making over mere correctness, focusing on decision quality rather than numerical outcomes, and the weight of habits in our lives."

Practical Articles for Entrepreneurs

"American Entrepreneurship is on the Rise"

Abha Bhattarai

The article highlights a surge in American business launches, notably driven by women and people of color in the wake of the pandemic. Babson College's findings indicate a substantial increase, with almost 1 in 5 adults engaged in initiating or managing businesses within the past 3½ years. This surge signifies not only innovation and job creation but also an enhanced competitive edge for the United States. Despite global recognition as the third-highest in entrepreneurship rates, challenges such as economic uncertainty and escalating costs pose significant hurdles.

Moreover, the report underscores the obstacles faced by minority groups in securing funding and employment opportunities, spotlighting personal accounts like Cheryl Shao's struggles as a double minority entrepreneur. The report emphasizes the notably higher rates of entrepreneurship within Black and Hispanic communities, often fueled by challenges in conventional employment. This trend is accompan- ied by a shift in the demographic landscape of entrepreneurship, with younger adults driving increased start-up activity and a diminishing gender gap in business ownership.

However, the resilience of these new ventures faces persistent challenges, exemplified by cases like Joseph Smith's soap business, which experienced a downturn in sales following the easing of pandemic restrictions. Despite these hurdles, entrepreneurs like Smith highlight the rewarding aspects of entrepreneur- ship, including personal fulfillment and the flexibility to prioritize family life.

Abha Bhattarai, "American entrepreneurship is on the rise", September 14, 2023.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/09/14/small-business-entrepreneurship-gem-report/

"Every Entrepreneur In 2023 has to ‘See’ and Understand Trends in Order to be Successful. Key Insights on How to Spot Important Trends"

Bernhard Schroeder

Trends, irrespective of visibility, impact entrepreneurs aiming to create innovative products or services by analyzing past, present, and future trends, considering various industry variables. Distinguishing between macro and micro trends is crucial, recognizing their influence across industries and markets. Entrepreneurs are advised to discern between enduring trends and fleeting fads, leveraging global macro trends to seize opportunities in regions with early trend adoption.

For every macro trend, multiple micro trends emerge, exemplified by the pandemic's work-from-home trend fueling various micro trends. Embracing data-driven decisions and gathering insights from industry experts and customer feedback remain pivotal. Entrepreneurial success relies on understanding customer needs, avoiding assumptions about their preferences, and gathering extensive customer insights from online forums, social media, and firsthand observations.

Accessing diverse trend reports from reputable sources like McKinsey, Deloitte, and Statista aids entrepreneurs in substantiating insights and connecting crucial dots for potential startup success, providing valuable trend insights and projections. Leveraging such reports eliminates noise and supports informed decision-making, potentially leading to groundbreaking startups.

Bernhard Schroeder, "Every Entrepreneur In 2023 Has To ‘See’ And Understand Trends In Order To Be Successful. Key Insights On How To Spot Important Trends", Feb 4, 2023.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernhardschroeder/2023/02/04/every-entrepreneur-in-2023-has-to-see-and-understand-trends-in-order-to-be-successful-key-insights-on-how-to-spot-important-trends/?sh=2bcc33046562

What's Mailchimp?

Apps for Entrepreneurs

Email marketing is vital to business success, as it assists you in making sales, reconnecting with old customers, finding new customers, and promoting your brand. Mailchimp offers a marketing and customer relationship management (CRM) app to help you market and expand your business. With this app, you can:

use contact import tools to find fresh customers
see reports and insights for campaigns, social media posts, landing pages, and audience growth
add images into the app to use within your campaigns
record notes and tags
receive recommendations to improve marketing efforts
call, text, and email directly from Mailchimp
build, adjust, and send email marketing newsletters, campaigns, and automation
create and publish ads for Instagram and Facebook
improve online sales using tools such as abandoned cart automation and actionable insights.

Mailchimp offers a variety of free and paid plans to suit businesses of all sizes.

Click here to visit Mailchimp.com

BILLING:

Free Plan: Easily create email campaigns and gain insights into your customer base. The free plan does not allow you to view all templates or set up email schedules. Additionally, Mailchimp branding is included in the free plan.

Cost: $0 per month

Standard Plan: Enhance your sales potential with personalization, optimization tools, and advanced automations.

Free Trial: Available for the first month

Cost after Trial: Starting at $20 per month*

Essentials Plan: Ensure timely and relevant content delivery with testing and scheduling features.

Free Trial: Available for the first month

Cost after Trial: Starting at $13 per month*

Premium Plan: Scale rapidly with dedicated onboarding, unlimited contacts, and priority support, designed for teams.

Cost: Starting at $350 per month*

Sigma Nu Tau Mission

"To promote, recognize, honor, and reward academic excellence in entrepreneurship and to encourage and recognize the practice of principled entrepreneurship."

4 types of membership:

Student, Faculty, Entrepreneur, Honorary

Current Chapters:

2009

#1 - SUNY Plattsburgh - Founding Chapter

2011

#2 - Kent State University

#3 - Belmont University

#4 - California State University - San Bernardino

#5 - Clarkson University

2012

#6 - High Point University

#7 - Claflin University

#8 - Suffolk University

#9 - Middle Tennessee State University

#10 - Baruch College

#11 - John F. Kennedy University

#12 - Rowan University

#13 - Illinois Institute of Technology

2013

#14 - University of Baltimore

#15 - New York Institute of Technology

2014

#16 - George Washington University

#17 - Husson University

2015

#18 - York College of Pennsylvania

#19 - University of Iowa

2016

#20 - North Central College

2017

#21 - University of Scranton

#22 - Harding University

#23 - Western New England University

#24 - Morgan State University

2018

#25 - St. Edward's University

#26 - Azusa Pacific University

2019

#27 - Pennsylvania State University

#28 - University of Arizona Global Campus

#29 - University of Nevada at Reno

#30 - Rollins College

#31 - East Carolina University

2020

#32 - Virginia Union University

#33 - Susquehanna University

2021

#34 - Iona University

#35 - Sam Houston State University

#36 - Mercer University

2022

#37 - Fayetteville State University

#38 - Shenandoah University

#39 - Harris-Stowe State University

#40 - Western Carolina University

#41 - Iowa State University

#42 - Fort Hays State University

#43 - Clark University

#44 - Colorado Christian University

#45 - University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

#46 - Berry College

2023

#47 - St. Mary's University

#48 - Stetson University - April 4, 2024

#49 - Hampton University - forthcoming

#50 - University of South Florida - forthcoming

Your school could be the next new chapter!

"Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success."

- Dale Carnegie (1888 - 1955)

American Author and Speaker