By definition, microenterprises are businesses that require less than $35,000 in capitalization to start and have fewer than ten employees. Most are focused on the owner’s personal expertise—consulting, design, lawn care—and may not require a physical location. Microenterprises—both online and brick and mortar— represent about 77% of overall businesses in...
On Thursday, April 21, SourceLink hosted Building Rural Communities Through Entrepreneurship, a webinar on strategies for growing rural communities through entrepreneurship-led economic development. The session was moderated by SourceLink’s director of strategic partnerships, Dara Macan, and panelists included: Nathan Ohle – President and CEO, International Economic Development Council Nicole LaChapelle...
Spring is a season of growth and new beginnings that often leads to a renewed sense of energy and motivation. If you’re feeling like your entrepreneurial ecosystem engagement has been dormant, you’re not alone. During the pandemic, many ecosystem builders have felt challenged maintaining meaningful engagement with their network. As...
In 2017, we shared 3 ways to empower your entrepreneurial community. While those tips are still relevant, the pandemic and heightened awareness about the importance of building equitable and inclusive ecosystems has surfaced new challenges. Here are some additional recommendations for empowering your network in 2022. 1. Make your ecosystem inclusive. Racial...
We are experiencing unprecedented opportunities for communities to evaluate how best to respond to short-term needs while building resilient solutions for long-term success. While it might be tempting to jump right in, it’s important to take the time to evaluate successful outcomes and develop a strategy to achieve your goals....
Every January, the number of people who Google “how to start a business” jumps to hundreds of searches a day. This year in particular, many of these searches are coming from the millions of Americans who quit their jobs in 2021. While starting a business is a common new year’s resolution,...
In our commitment to entrepreneurship-led economic development, we’ve made it our practice to regularly share insights and lessons learned while celebrating success stories along the way. It is our hope that by delivering this content, we will start conversations, spark collaboration and ultimately make a positive impact in advancing equitable...
Creating strong inclusive ecosystems of support for entrepreneurs is key to a community’s economic success, however sharing collective impact can be challenging. In celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week, SourceLink’s Dara Macan and Rob Williams recruited a panel of local ecosystem builders in Fort Worth, Texas, northern Louisiana, Iowa, and Puerto Rico...
Entrepreneurs are a hardy breed. They’re used to overcoming challenges and quickly pivoting, and at no time in recent history has the world needed those qualities more. While the circumstances of the last 20 months have been challenging, those with an entrepreneurial mindset have adapted to overcome each successive obstacle. Even...
Affiliates agree that getting the word out about their SourceLink networks to entrepreneurs and business owners is one of their highest priorities. To support our affiliates, we’ve recently held three virtual discussions on marketing in March, May and July. The basics In May, Abby Smith and Jessica Toms from CruxKC, SourceLink’s marketing partner,...
