Miami-Dade County Launches a Free Course on Digital Marketing in Three Languages for All Businesses in the County
The course by Miami-based BizHack Academy is available in English, Spanish and Creole as part of the Miami-Dade Mayor’s commitment to empowering women and minority-owned businesses
MIAMI, FL (August 15, 2023) – Miami-Dade County has launched a groundbreaking free initiative in support of small businesses — a 15-hour course in digital marketing in three languages with accompanying local business directory created by BizHack Academy, a certified Florida Minority-owned Business Enterprise based in Miami-Dade County. Tailored for small businesses, the course offers a streamlined approach to mastering online lead generation, a critical skill for any 21st century business. Businesses that complete the course join a county-wide business directory at BizHack.biz, giving County residents an easier way to shop local.
To maximize its reach, the County will absorb the course’s regular fee of $1,000 to allow owners and employees of businesses across Miami-Dade County to access this resource at no cost. The course is offered in English, Spanish and Creole through the county’s Strive305 Virtual Incubator, a hub for free online training. The course and directory are part of Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s signature Strive305 and Future Ready initiatives, a sweeping set of programs to uplift local enterprises challenged by a pandemic, inflation, and rapid technological change.
The course is called “How to Find Customers Online” in English, “Cómo Encontrar Clientes en Línea” in Spanish, and “Ki Jan Yo Jwenn Kliyan Sou Entènèt” in Haitian Creole. It provides an all-encompassing introduction to digital marketing utilizing BizHack’s proprietary “Lead Building System LBS™.” Participants are equipped with the tools and knowledge necessary to find, attract, and retain customers online. The course emphasizes the fundamentals of digital marketing success, beginning with the crafting of a captivating “Business Story.” Participants then delve deep into targeting their ideal customer, crafting an irresistible offer, and mapping the customer journey, as they are guided in the creation of a successful test-and-learn marketing campaign. Throughout the training, businesses learn to harness data-driven insights to optimize their promotional efforts. For details on BizHack’s marketing methodologies, visit BizHack.com.
The course comes with an additional 20 hours of supplemental recordings, videos, bonus handouts, and extra tools that provide small businesses with the practical knowledge to market profitably. The courses are cornerstone offerings in the Strive305 Virtual Incubator Program and can be accessed here (https://miami-dade-county.teachable.com/).
The digital marketing course and business directory are part of a broader series of award-winning training initiatives created by BizHack Academy (bizhack.com) as part of the County’s Strive305 initiative. Additional elements included scholarships for BizHack’s 35-hour live course on social media advertising with personalized coaching and an ongoing series of free Masterclasses on cutting-edge marketing techniques, including Artificial Intelligence for Marketing and Sales (businesses can register for upcoming masterclasses at https://try.bizhack.com/mcseries).
“The pace of technological change, whether it’s digital marketing or artificial intelligence, is simply breathtaking, and small businesses are struggling mightily to keep up,” said Dan Grech, Founder and CEO of BizHack. “That’s why our path-breaking public-private training partnership with Miami Dade County is so essential. We are providing a national model for how local governments can work with cutting-edge training providers like BizHack to prepare the small business community, particularly BIPOC- and women-owned businesses, for this rapidly changing world.”
BizHack has won top honors nationally from PRNEWS, Ragain’s PR Daily, and the American Marketing Association for its work supporting small businesses. It was honored as a 2023 Minority-Owned Business of the Year in the American Business Awards, one of the country’s top business awards programs. The ABA judges highlighted BizHack’s impact on minority-owned businesses and its comprehensive range of services. “BizHack Academy’s commitment to helping BIPOC- and women-owned small businesses overcome structural, financial, and educational barriers is commendable.” said the judges. “Their focus on providing digital marketing training, coaching, and Fractional CMO services to these businesses is unique and significant.”
BizHack collaborated with leaders from the local Haitian American business community to not only translate the course into Creole but also amplify its reach. Djenane St. Fleur Gourgue, the Vice President of the Haitian American Chamber of Commerce, remarked, “Our Haitian community has been at the forefront of digital technology adoption, proactively embracing it even before the push from Covid-19. Entrepreneurs and business leaders value insights into advanced marketing tools, and we’re honored to offer this knowledge.” Djenane plans to promote the Creole version of the course on her radio show and through email campaigns.
ABOUT THE COURSE
What is “How to Find Customers Online?”
- An introductory course teaching small businesses how to find, attract and retain customers online using the Lead Building System™, a proven process for purpose-driven small business lead generation
- Delivered in 3 languages (English, Spanish, and Creole)
- Open to all Miami-Dade County businesses
- Participating businesses submit a survey to enroll and upon completion that will provide the county a rich data source on local businesses
- Hours of Required Coursework: 15 hours of required video lessons, presentations, handouts and exercises
- Hours of Bonus Material and Additional Resources: 20+ hours of Masterclass recordings, additional videos, bonus handouts and tools
- Estimated Time to Complete the Course: 20-25 hours including online submission of an online Business Directory listing
- Criteria for a Certificate of Completion: Businesses must review all modules and complete all assignments in the Learning Management System
- Completing a Business Directory listing is recommended but not required
What does “How to Find Customers Online” include:
- Free enrollment in the course through September 30, 2023 to every business in Miami-Dade County
- Assessments and surveys, with the results shared with Miami-Dade County
- The Leading Building System Score Assessment
- The Digital Marketing Test
- Onboarding Survey
- Final Feedback Survey
- Listing in a Social Media shared spreadsheet to connect with past BizHackers
- Invite to Private BizHacker Community Channel on Slack
What do participants get when they complete the course?
- A digital Certificate of Completion
- 1 year of access to the course materials starting from the date of registration
- A free entry in the BizHack Business Directory (see deliverable #2 below)
- A $500 scholarship for “The Digital Marketer’s Edge” program, courtesy of BizHack Academy
- Eligibility for an additional scholarship for the “The Digital Marketer’s Edge” program, courtesy of Miami-Dade County (see deliverable #3 below)
What will the course cover?
- Course Introduction
- Unit 1: The Lead Building System™
- Unit 2: The Foundation: Your Business Story
- Unit 3: Pillar 1: Campaign Objective
- Unit 4: Pillar 2: Target Audience
- Unit 5: Pillar 3: Irresistible Offer
- Unit 6: Pillar 4: Thumb-Stopping Visual
- Unit 7: Pillar 5: Compelling Message
- Unit 8: Pillar 6: The Customer Journey
- Unit 9: Putting It All Together
- Unit 10: The LBS In Action
- Next Steps
What will Businesses be able to do after taking the course?
- Use Digital Marketing to Grow Their Business
- Cultivate the BizHacker Mentality
- Tell Their Story of Me
- Identify Their Core Purpose
- Set Their Campaign Objective
- Determine Their Key Performance Indicators
- Understand the Marketing Funnel
- Interpret Campaign Analytics
- Identify Their Ideal Customer
- Craft a Persona Pair
- Make an Irresistible Offer
- Craft an Offer Strategy
- Create a Thumb-Stopping Visual
- Develop Their Brand’s Visual Identity
- Write a Compelling Message
- Use ATV Messaging (Authentic Transparent Vulnerable)
- Use a Call to Action
- Map the Customer Journey
- Find High-Quality Marketing Resources
- Know Free Tools to Help Their Marketing
- Recognize Case Studies of Small Business Marketing
ABOUT MIAMI-DADE MAYOR’S OFFICE STRIVE305 INITIATIVE
The Strive305 program is designed to accelerate the growth of small businesses countywide and support budding entrepreneurs as they launch and grow new businesses.
The program will support the small business community through:
- An online small business and entrepreneurship hub that will inform, educate, and connect small businesses to the resources offered by the county and its partners
- A virtual small business incubator that will feature a full educational curriculum, coaching, and mentorship opportunities for companies of all types and stages of growth
- A countywide network of physical incubators, co-working spaces, and maker studios equipped with the tools entrepreneurs need to launch new ventures
- Multi-week technical assistance boot camps to help small businesses overcome common challenges such as access to capital, finances, business planning, branding, digital marketing, sales, operations, and more.
For more information about the initiative, visit https://www.miamidade.gov/strive305
ABOUT BIZHACK ACADEMY
BizHack Academy’s mission is to help small businesses Grow Faster. They specialize in offering Fractional CMOs — part-time outsourced heads of marketing — who provide strategy, leadership and accountability, and can guide your business from founder-led marketing to a fully fledged marketing department. With substantial C-Suite experience, their Fractional CMOs will not only build you a winning strategy but manage its successful implementation, and at a fraction of cost of a full-time CMO. They specialize in AI-powered tools and business storytelling for purpose-driven companies. BizHack has run on the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) since 2019, and specializes in working with EOS-based companies. Their FCMOs are trained in EOS for marketing, and incorporate tools such as the L10 Meeting, Rocks, and the Accountability Chart into their EOS Services. Dan Grech, BizHack’s founder and CEO, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning former journalist turned entrepreneur and educator, who carries a legacy of teaching, coaching, and entrepreneurship from his grandfathers, a public school science teacher and a professional soccer coach. Past career highlights include leading growth at two software startups, serving as senior director of digital marketing at a large energy company, and taking a hospitality industry SaaS company from pre-revenue to a $2.5M run rate in two years, ultimately leading to an acquisition. Besides mentoring entrepreneurs at various institutions, he has taught at top universities, including Princeton and Columbia. The BizHack team comprises over 60 seasoned Fractional CMOs, each selected for their unique expertise across various industries. They can help you develop comprehensive strategies and execute them by drawing from a broad network of marketing specialists within BizHack’s network, all while maintaining accountability and upskilling your marketing staff through a range of courses, from digital marketing to the latest AI tools application. BizHack’s courses are based on award-winning methodologies like the Thought Leadership Pyramid™ and the Lead Building System™, used in their 7-week accelerated digital marketing program that has yielded participants an average revenue generation of $28.87 for every $1.00 spent on ads. Since its inception in 2017, BizHack has been a catalyst in the digital growth of businesses in Miami-Dade County and globally and has provided over $300,000 in scholarships to more than 150 BIPOC and women-owned businesses. Their clients range from startups to Fortune 500 companies, including NBCUniversal, Novartis, and Royal Caribbean. Their free Masterclasses sponsored by Miami Dade County have won national awards and positively impacted over 4,000 businesses. BizHack was honored with awards from the American Marketing Association and Ragan’s PR Daily, recognized as a Top Startup by The Miami Herald, and was named a 2023 Minority-Owned Business of the Year in the American Business Awards. For more information, visit www.bizhack.com, call (786) 664-7324 or email info@bizhack.com.
