Marketing Expert Starts Own Agency
Judi Virgulak is a seasoned marketer with 16 years' worth of experience in both the traditional and online facets. After having spent many years in various management roles she founded JumarMarketing, LLC, a full service marketing agency in Norwalk, CT.
Upon starting the business, Judi's cousin, also a small business owner and client of SCORE's, recommended that she speak with a SCORE counselor. From the initial conversation a very valuable and successful relationship has developed. Judi and her counselor began weekly meeting which helped solidify the foundation for the business and its future growth.
Later another SCORE counselor with specialized expertise was added to Judi's team. With their combined support and expertise, they helped to expand JumarMarketing, LLC's services, team and presence. Judi feels the support and guidance SCORE provides, whether it involves day to day business, strategic insights, staffing, finance, etc., is priceless. They have helped to secure speaking engagements to expand awareness and continue to push the organization to evolve and become better.
As a small business owner, Judi understands the value that SCORE offers and takes the partnership very seriously. She has developed professional relationships through SCORE that otherwise would have been impossible.
Medical Insurance Specialist uses SCORE to Gain Customers
Katalin Goencz has always worked in the healthcare industry, where she could help people. After learning the complicated details and intricacies of medical insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid, she decided that this was the field for her, and in 2002 an idea was born. Katalin had already set up a business entity for her husband's computer services, naming it O&K Consulting LLC. When the time came to start her own business, she created a more descriptive name: MedBillsAssist, (dba O&K Consulting.) “However,” she notes, “having a business does not necessarily mean having customers, and that's where SCORE came in.” Once she asked for help, an experienced business person stepped in to guide, listen, help, and advise with business development. By the second meeting another SCORE counselor joined in for additional guidance in marketing, and they've been a team ever since.
As her business grew, it evolved into a variety of divisions to serve different markets: helping individuals with medical claim denials, keeping claims and insurance companies in order with reimbursement rates, helping medical practices understand billing and Medicare, helping the 65+ age group sort through their options with Medicare and all its parts, and most recently, working with an international company to negotiate medical costs in the U.S. for their employees.
Katalin spent the first few years finding ways to promote her business and develop a reputation in the community. In 2005 all her hard work started to show promise. In 2006 she increased company revenues six times compared to the previous year. For 2007 her revenues improved another three-fold and she has just been certified to do business with the state of Connecticut.
Periodic meetings with her counselors open new ideas, marketing niches, and areas for expansion. “SCORE makes me feel like a president with a board of advisors,” she says.
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• Every time I come to a SCORE workshop there is an important nugget of information that changes the way I conduct business. I am always learning important new skills that create new opportunities.
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Website Designer and Internet Marketing Expert, Jeff Seaver, Breaks out of Business Rut.
“In spite of the extensive experience I've had in business, we were continually running into problems with issues like planning, records, forecasting, funding and marketing. I went to SCORE on the advice of a friend. I was initially skeptical that SCORE counselors unfamiliar with the specific issues involved in my business could be of help. Instead, I discovered an age old truth, that business is business, whether it's running a hair salon or buying and selling businesses themselves.
"My counselor understood key basics and helped me to develop a plan, both short-term and long-term, to approach my work in a truly “adult” way. Since then, the business has become easier to manage, clearer to understand, track and forecast, and-most importantly-billings have increased dramatically.
"I can't recommend SCORE highly enough. The old saying “there's no such thing as a free lunch” turns out not to be true. SCORE is there for no other reason than to help small businesses launch, thrive and expand, and the only payback requested is that we go on to contribute to the health and prosperity of our communities and our country."
Insurance Salesman Starts Own Agency
Victor B. Frazao has been in the property and casualty insurance business for over 22 years. He started selling insurance working for agencies and considered himself an excellent salesman.
In 1994 Victor decided to branch out and open his own agency. He quickly leaned that there is a lot more to running an agency than being a good salesman. He heard of SCORE through a friend and was assigned to a SCORE Counselor. That was 12 years ago.
Victor loves to tell the story about his first counseling session. His counselor arrived and started asking Victor questions about sales, margins, cash flow etc. He jotted all these numbers down on the back of an envelope. At the end of the session he looked up at Victor and said “Victor I think we can fix this”. And fix it we did. Internal operating controls and financial management were the keys to success. The agency now has 10 employees and two location, in Trumbull and Bridgeport Connecticut, and is very successful
As the business grew another SCORE counselor was added to the team. An attorney by profession he also has an excellent business background including being a director of a regional national bank. This co-counselor volunteered valuable advice particularly in the area of acquiring new client books of business.
Five years ago Victor applied for an SBA loan to purchase his office condominium in the Trumbull Professional Center. His counseling team was a big help to him in preparing and submitting his successful loan application. The SCORE team continues in a mentoring relationship with Victor.
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