Small business owners understand that success comes after investing time, money, and energy. Various grants and programs are available to help small businesses find success quicker.
Small businesses that have a great idea or noble intention stand a chance at being awarded a grant or selected for a program. Ready to find out more? Blacme shares the following insight to help you determine the best grant or program for your venture.
Choosing an LLC as a Business Structure
When starting a business, entrepreneurs are given a choice of business structures to select. Each option has its own benefits and pitfalls, but a limited liability company (LLC) is one of the most popular choices for small businesses.
As a legal entity, LLCs are easy and affordable to both form and operate. There are several additional benefits to choosing an LLC as your business structure. Here are a few of them;
● Limited personal liability to protect personal assets
● Less paperwork and a simple administrative process
● Tax advantages such as pass-through taxation
● Ownership flexibility
● Management flexibility
● Flexible profit-sharing options
When registering a business, it’s important to meet all legal requirements. These legal requirements can differ from state to state.
Hire a Formation Service
Each state has different legal requirements for starting a business and for forming an LLC. If you want your business to be legally valid, then it needs to meet each of these requirements. Researching the process by yourself can be intimidating, and that’s where a formation service can help.
Rather than hire an expensive lawyer to help dot the i’s and cross the t’s, a formation service offers affordable guidance. A formation service provides independent support for simple, fast, and cost-effective company registration.
Grants and Programs for Small Businesses
Regardless of the industry that you aspire to impact, there will most likely be a grant or program to help. Here are three options to kickstart your research.
Kuvio Impact Grant
Kuvio Creative is a business dedicated to helping other businesses. As a full-service web design and development company, Kuvio Creative has access to valuable digital skills. The organization strives to make a difference by providing entrepreneurs with small business grants and free services.
Applications for the Kuvio Impact Grant open three times a year. The grant, which offers up to 100 hours of free services, is reserved for nonprofits, women-owned businesses, minority-owned businesses, and veteran-owned organizations.
Find out more about the Kuvio Impact Grant here.
4.0 Schools Fellowships
Businesses that strive to improve education in the United States could be eligible for a fellowship from 4.0 Schools. Whether it’s a school, technology tool, or educational service, 4.0 Schools want to hear about it.
The fellowships offer small grants of $600 for business owners who want to put an early-stage idea into action. Larger grants to the value of $10,000 are available for more established businesses in the industry.
4.0 Schools are inspired to support businesses that work to make education more equitable and responsive to real needs.
Find out more about 4.0 Schools Fellowships and the application process here.
Microenterprise Development Program
The Microenterprise Development Program reserves grants for refugees that want to start a business. The grant is also available to support refugees with established businesses.
The grant, valued at $15,000, is offered by the US Department of Health and Human Services. Refugees who are not yet US citizens may participate in the grant program and benefit from the opportunity to grow a profitable business.
Find out more about the Microenterprise Development Program and the application requirements here.
Written by Jim McKinley, www.moneywithjim.org