Facebook Community Boost kicked off today in Springfield at the BOS Center. Matty De Castro, Director of Global Marketing Solutions at Facebook welcomed participants to Springfield’s Community Boost. Special guest, Mayor Jim Langfelder, offered opening remarks, while a panel of local small businesses kicked off the conversation.
Quote from Mayor Jim Langfelder
“The small business family shops are the backbone of America, and they still are today. Ninety percent of the economy is due to small mom and pop shops or the family-owned businesses in each and every one of our communities. And that’s really what it’s all about… those challenges that we face together and Facebook understands those challenges and they help us connect not only in our home town but in our region, our country, or our world.”
Quote from Matty De Castro, Facebook
“When we think of supporting small business, Springfield is a place that we can make a lot of impact… there are 1.2 million small businesses in Illinois, which makes up 99 percent of the workforce or almost 2.4 million jobs. When we think about places we can grow and have an impact on driving growth for your business and creating jobs in our state, Springfield is one of the places that we wanted to be.”
Springfield small business panelists included:
- Christine Bailey of Bailey Family Insurance
- Ashley Lily of Toss the Bouquet Studios
- Josh Flanders of Buzz Bomb Brewing
Facebook’s Community Boost program is designed to help small businesses grow and better compete in today’s economy. The program includes training for job seekers and small businesses looking to strengthen their digital skills. Community Boost will be in Springfield through December 4th.
Sample courses include: Getting Started with Facebook, Connecting with Local Shoppers, Getting Business done with Instagram, Finding New Customers with Facebook, Taking Facebook Ads to the Next Level, Growing your Business Internationally and more.
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