3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: Oct. 11

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- What's happening in small business today?

1. Will small business matter in tonight's debate? Last week's debate between President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney referred to small business 29 times, according to Huffington Post. What will Vice President Joseph Biden and VP Republican candidate Paul Ryan say tonight about small business? The debate takes place in Danville, Kentucky.

2. Venture accelerator launches in Telluride. A business accelerator launched Thursday in Colorado with the goal of supporting innovation and entrepreneurship across the U.S. The Telluride Venture Accelerator will focus on new and expanding companies in the areas of outdoor recreation, tourism, natural products, health, energy, water and education. The program prioritizes companies producing cutting-edge technological products and services such as software, mobile, apps and hardware.

"Start-ups face many hurdles on the road to success," Telluride Venture Accelerator director Jesse Johnson says. "Business accelerators like ours can help new companies overcome those challenges and give them a stronger competitive edge."

The program will award three start-ups $30,000 each and provide hands-on support from experienced business mentors. Awardees will have the opportunity to work in the intensive accelerator in Telluride for six months and also get $100,000 in perks and access to an exclusive investors circle. The accelerator is a project of the Telluride Foundation, which uses philanthropic dollars to strengthen local communities and support positive social change.

Those interested in applying for the 2013 program must do so by Nov. 15.

3. Companies with the most social media fan growth in September. In case you're wondering if Facebook (FB) and Twitter interaction really is necessary to reach customers, MarketingCharts has posted its latest information on which companies were listed as the top 10 brand movers for September for each social media site.

For Facebook, as determined by the growth of users who "liked" the company, Amazon (AMZN) took the top spot with 12.9 million fans, up 28% from August. Red Bull, Coca-Cola (KO) and Wal-Mart Stores (WMT) had the next largest fan growth, respectively.

On Twitter, as determined by additional followers in September, Samsung Mobile grew its followers by 15% to 3.1 million. Victoria's Secret, NASA (yes, that NASA) and Starbucks (SBUX) rounded out the top four spots.

-- Written by Laurie Kulikowski in New York.

Follow @LKulikowski

To contact Laurie Kulikowski, send an email to: [e-mail].

>To submit a news tip, email: [e-mail].

RELATED STORIES:

>>How One Woman Broke Into the Auto-Supply Industry

>> Brick-and-Mortar Card Stores Thrive in Internet World

>>5 Sports Stars Buying Franchises As Their Next Play

Follow TheStreet on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors, reporters and analysts from holding positions in any individual stocks.