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HEY SMALL BUSINESSES - AI isn’t replacing entrepreneurs—it’s speeding them up 🚀 For Marine vet and entrepreneur Branden Lark, the real edge isn’t cash or connections, it’s time. Used intentionally, AI is the ultimate time-compressor ⏱️
He leans on it to bust through language barriers, turn messy data into quick decisions, and even asks it to push back—“tell me where I’m wrong”—to make his ideas sharper 🤖💡 Small businesses that wield it like this can play at big-company level and grow faster 📈 Want to see how he does it? Check out Branden: https://www.facebook.com/brandingbybranden/

Branding By Branden Long Beach branding and marketing agency focused on creative and result-driven solutions. Website, SEO, social media, online advertising and more.

This week, Meta and CBIA co-hosted an AI training for small businesses in Hartford. Nearly 40 small business owners came together to hear about how AI tools can help them and their businesses. Great event with great business leaders.

To everyone in Philadelphia, Meta held a Screen Smart event last week with Philly parents along with teen mental health experts and Meta execs at Lilah Fishtown. Great event with over 50 Philly parents to hear about the tools parents and teens have to make their social media experience more positive.

If you didn’t think you liked vegan desserts, San Antonio couple Marcus and Cara Pitts might just change your mind!

After switching to a vegan lifestyle, they started their business and share a space in a bakery on the south side of San Antonio — relying on Facebook ads and organic press to drive their online shipping orders.

Cara used her lifelong love of baking to create vegan desserts her grandmother could enjoy. After much trial and error, she came up with their signature Red Velvet Donuts, which gained the approval of her grandmother and church community and was the final push they needed to launch Southern Roots Vegan Bakery.

Cara promoted her small online business by going to local farmer’s markets. This is also where she met Tabitha Brown, host of the popular Facebook Live and Instagram product review show “Very Good Mondays”, and Tabitha’s daughter fell in love with the Red Velvet Donuts. Soon enough it appeared on Very Good Mondays and their orders went through the roof overnight.

It’s safe to say that through their use of Facebook and Instagram, they have been able to take their business to new heights.

Allie Lanham never imagined she would own and operate The Hangry Lady, a charcuterie catering business that provides colorful, flavorful food with a healthy twist.

Why did she start this business and just how are Instagram and Facebook helping her reach new people?

Well, Allie’s weight loss journey in high school led to her finding a passion for health and food. Now she is a 24-year-old vegetarian, who takes pride in cooking delicious food while being able to accommodate dietary restrictions and share knowledge about how food affects us. The more people learn about where their food comes from and how it impacts their livelihood, the more likely they are to make health-conscious decisions.

As a young business owner, Allie has found social media helps her reach new customers and have conversations about nutritious and enjoyable meals.

“Instagram and Facebook have been helpful for not only showing our delicious offerings but also allowing us to have meaningful conversations,” said Allie. “I hope to continue to grow my business so more Eastern Iowans eat healthier, delicious food.”