This text was posted on WTOP News and written by Vanessa Roberts as a part of BizLaunch’s collaboration with WTOP Information on Small Business September.
Though budding companies in Arlington have lengthy had BizLaunch as a stalwart associate, the county group radically reimagined itself in a number of methods in the course of the pandemic. And lots of the adjustments it made to assist small and midsize companies survive are right here to remain, says Director Tara Palacios.
“The pandemic I don’t assume was on anyone’s bingo card,” Palacios informed WTOP throughout Small Business September. “We didn’t know that this was going to occur.”
Palacios created BizLaunch inside Arlington Financial Growth 20 years in the past with the objective of offering native authorities sources to small companies and startups. “It truly is an area municipality eager to assist its native small companies in order that they’ll thrive, survive, succeed, develop and construct sustainably,” she stated.
We talked with Palacios about BizLaunch packages and requested how they assist SMBs launch and succeed. In the course of the dialogue, she shared ways in which BizLaunch has advanced over the previous two years and the place it’s going subsequent to proceed its mission to assist native companies develop.
BizLaunch Flex 1: Have interaction with small companies and underserved communities any means potential.
BizLaunch isn’t any stranger to utilizing digital and social instruments to succeed in entrepreneurs and enterprise house owners in the neighborhood. It connects with folks on all social channels, even TikTok, Palacios stated. Nevertheless it upped its recreation in the course of the pandemic.
“We needed to get extraordinarily artistic,” she stated. “We had been out placing up yard indicators about our grants, about completely different advertising and marketing promotions and packages that we had been having. And imagine it or not, folks had been getting of their vehicles, they had been seeing the yard indicators, and calling and reaching out.”
It strengthened the significance of being adaptable. Palacios identified that it’s unlucky when a enterprise shares that it wished it had heard a couple of program or a assist service obtainable.
“The way in which we had been utilizing social media previous to the pandemic has shifted, and the way you utilize SEO and the way you get your content material out there’s so completely different,” she stated.
BizLaunch Flex 2: Guarantee even the smallest companies are digitally savvy.
“We had been anxious in regards to the companies that had been used to having a storefront and other people coming to the storefront,” she stated. “With the stay-at-home orders, the entire means folks purchase services shifted.”
At first, BizLaunch centered on establishing new programming, webinars and academic supplies to assist SMBs discover ways to market themselves on this new atmosphere. Nevertheless it more and more started additionally increasing technical help so the companies may set up on-line storefronts and supply different methods to promote and ship their items and companies.
Provided that many small companies are micro companies with typically only a handful of staff, the group additionally partnered with Amazon Internet Companies to assist companies design web sites and ecommerce instruments to compete on the planet’s new regular, Palacios stated.
“It’s very come as you might be. Don’t really feel that you must be an professional. We’ll deliver the specialists to you, and we’ll enable you to by the method,” she stated. “It’s been nice. We’ve had about 200 very various entrepreneurs undergo this system, they usually have gone viral. They’ve had influencers come and go to them as a result of now they’re discoverable. That’s been a variety of enjoyable.”
Plus, it’s not a one-and-done program. BizLaunch offers every enterprise a advertising and marketing and branding steerage e-book and a technical ways e-book. It additionally continues to attach with companies after the preliminary design and growth part to offer assist, Palacios stated.
BizLaunch Flex 3: Assist SMBs create monetary resiliency to pivot and be prepared for future challenges.
A continuing concern for startups and small companies all through the pandemic has been entry to capital, Palacios stated. It was why Arlington Financial Growth instantly established grant packages. However entry to funding has continued to be a chief problem for SMBs, she stated, and having a stable monetary basis is essential for resiliency and long-term success.
“On our horizon is programming the place we are able to educate folks it doesn’t matter what background, coloration, creed you might be. We would like to have the ability to assist empower women-owned companies, BIPOC — Black, indigenous and other people of coloration communities — everybody to grasp what you must do to entry capital and make that course of very clear and really comprehensible,” she stated “We’re going to be doing a variety of work on this upcoming 12 months on whether or not it’s debt fairness, or enterprise funds, or no matter it’s that you simply’re seeking to do.”
To find extra insights for entrepreneurs, startups and SMBs shared throughout WTOP’s Small Enterprise September, click here.
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