[Nfbofnc] Fwd: [Nfbnet-members-list] NFB/eBay Entrepreneurs Project

[Tim Jones]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Mary Ellen <mgabias at nfb.org>
Date: Wed, Nov 17, 2010 at 12:05 PM
Subject: [Nfbnet-members-list] NFB/eBay Entrepreneurs Project
To: nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org



On September 15, in a joint press release, the NFB and eBay announced the
NFB/eBay Entrepreneurs Program..



We are now seeking blind people who want to participate in this innovative
pilot program.





Business Start Up Pilot

The NFB/eBay Entrepreneur Project is looking for serious entrepreneurs who
want to create new eBay businesses or expand existing businesses to include
eBay selling. We will offer successful applicants intensive eBay training
and connect them with successful blind business people and other experts who
will provide assistance in specific areas, such as business planning,
development, and working with accessible accounting software.



Individuals chosen for the Business Start Up Pilot will take part in an
intensive training program at the NFB Jernigan Institute in Baltimore. They
will receive transportation, lodging, training classes, accessible training
materials, and ongoing mentorship support.



If running your own eBay business appeals to you, please write us at
entrepreneurs at nfb.org and request an Entrepreneur Program package. Your
letter of interest should include:

   - a resume describing your employment and education history, with
   particular emphasis on entrepreneurial projects;
   - a brief description of the product or service you intend to market
   using eBay; (Is this a completely new enterprise, or are you intending to
   create an eBay outlet for a business that already exists?)
   - a basic budget outline.




Because this is a pilot program intended to demonstrate the viability of
eBay businesses run by blind individuals, we must select from applicants
those with the strongest plans and the greatest willingness to mentor the
blind people who will follow.





Training the Trainers



In order to provide opportunity to as many people as possible, we will train
interested blind people to be eBay certified education specialists. EBay
Certified Education Specialists are people who buy and sell on eBay
themselves and want to create a business teaching others how to do it. The
trainers we train will be equipped to teach other blind people who use
screen readers; they will also be certified to teach the sighted. With
ninety-two million people already using eBay and more joining the community
every day, the business opportunity for anyone who can teach them how to be
more effective is enormous!



The Certified Education Specialist training will consist of a program that
will take place at the NFB Jernigan Institute in Baltimore, plus follow-up
individualized support and group teleconference training. Those selected for
the “Train the Trainers” program will receive transportation, lodging,
training classes, accessible training materials, and ongoing mentorship
support.



Is being an eBay Certified Education Specialist for you?



If you have a deep desire to be of service to others, an entrepreneurial
spirit, the aptitude to teach, and basic computer literacy using screen
readers, we want to hear from you.



Because selling on eBay has not been readily accessible to blind people in
the past, you will not need to have experience as an eBay seller to take
part in the first “Train the Trainers” class. However, you will need to
demonstrate success in buying and selling on eBay in order to graduate and
receive certification.



You will need some ability to use a screen reader to access web sites,
though it is not necessary to be a screen reader power user.



To apply to enter the “train the trainers” inaugural class, send a letter to
entrepreneurs at nfb.org explaining your background, qualifications
(particularly your entrepreneurial and/or teaching experience), and telling
us why you want to become an eBay Certified Education Specialist.



Testing the Waters



Even if you do not yet have a perfectly developed business plan, we still
want to hear from you. As eBay trainers receive certification, we will help
connect you with them so that you can get started on the path to running
your own eBay business.

Contact entrepreneurs at nfb.org or phone

Mary Ellen Gabias, coordinator

NFB/eBay Entrepreneurs Project

(410) 878-2660 for further information or an application package.

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-- 
Tim Jones
North Carolina Food Service
Fort Bragg, NC
Office:  910-396-2297
Cell:  704-491-1486