Startup Steps for Your Digital Business, SMALL BUSINESS INSIDER, SBE Council
In a Small Business Insider blog post, small business expert Barbara Weltman writes that 2022 is looking to be another good year to start an online retail business. Based on the current new business application data, entrepreneurs obviously see opportunity in the growing digital economy. Barbara notes that the opportunities are definitely there, but entrepreneurs need to understand how to get things right from the start. She covers a few of these key areas in her piece.
Startup Ideas for Success: Getting Your Ducks in a Row, SMALL BUSINESS INSIDER.
AnIntuit survey predicts17 million new businesses will start up in 2022. The survey found that nearly three out of five people wanted to start a business and 20% will actually do so in 2022. In a blog post covering startup basics, Barbara Weltman writes: “Of course, there’s a lot of important information that new business owners need to know. The first idea for 2022 for startups is to organize properly right from the get-go. Here are 5 things to do before you open for business.”
12 Hottest Marketing Trends for 2022, Crowdspring.
“The last two years have confronted us with many challenges. Businesses found themselves up against new walls, and marketers have had to rethink marketing strategies and tactics. If you want to compete and grow revenues this year, you must understand current marketing trends and how you can successfully navigate them.”
NVCA Launches New State Small Business Credit Initiative Resource Page.
The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) has developed a new resource page for economic development agencies, state representatives, and VC professionals to learn more about the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). The program was recently reinstated with $10 billion in funding as part of the American Rescue Plan and is intended to provide capital to small businesses and startups in underrepresented regions and communities that can be used either for debt or equity investment programs. Each state is slated to receive a minimum of $56 million.
USDA: Food Supply Chain Guaranteed Loan Program
The Food Supply Chain Guaranteed Loan Program is a part of USDA’s Build Back Better initiative to strengthen critical supply chains and our food system. This program guarantees loans of up to $40 million for qualified lenders to finance food systems projects, specifically for the start-up or expansion of activities in the middle of the food supply chain. The program will support new investments in infrastructure for food aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storage, transportation, wholesaling, and distribution to increase capacity and create a more resilient, diverse, and secure U.S. food supply chain. Learn more here.
The Gig Economy is Trying to Solve Health Care’s Burnout Crisis, Axios.
Welcome nurses! As Tina Reed writes: “Amid a nationwide nursing shortage and burnout crisis, tech companies say they could be part of the solution by allowing nurses to essentially join the gig economy.” And significant money is flowing into platforms and models to enable this work. For example:
● Nurse staffing app connectRN raised $76 million in VC cash last month, and TrustedHealth raised $149 million in November.
● Meanwhile, ShiftMed raised $45 million in October, Nomad netted $63 million in September and CareRev completed a $50 million Series A funding round in April.
Will Patterson, CEO of CareRev, said: “People want to work for themselves in this industry.”
14 States that Make it Easier to Launch Your Business with Startup Tax Credits and Fewer Licensing Restrictions, Business Insider.
“Over the past couple years, some states have made entrepreneurship easier by passing legislation that lifted certain restrictions, enacted tax breaks for young companies, and banned red tape that can make it difficult for some to survive.”
Startup Studio Set to Launch Tech Companies in Northwest Arkansas, Axios
A startup studio begins by identifying a commercial need. Its principals vet the concept, test its potential as a commercial product and develop the skeleton of a company. Cartwheel will focus on ideas that use software as a service.
“Startup studios are really just about diligent, unbiased idea validation,” Cartwheel CEO Joshua Stanley stated in a news release. “We’re seeking to pull the known ‘90% failure rate of startups’ up to the preformation phase to produce new companies that have the highest probability of success.”
7 Keys to a Long-Term Career View as an Entrepreneur, Startup Professionals.
In a blog post Martin Zwilling asks: “Is it possible to be successful in business and not fulfilled?” The answer is “yes” of course, and in this helpful piece he outlines points that will guide you from success to fulfillment. Zwilling writes:
“Following these steps early and always in your career will allow you to be the entrepreneur you want to be with a whole-life view. You will be able to tap unused skills, create better ways to respond to high-stress situations, while still generating more powerful results. Most importantly, you will be able to stay on the road to fulfillment, as well as success.”
Business Intelligence is curated by the team at SBE Council.