Finding funding for tourism projects is always a challenge. One set of funds that gets overlooked for tourism is the USDA Rural Business Enterprise Grants (RBEG) for towns of fewer than 50,000 people. The Kansas Flint Hills region is working togetheron tourism training. Photo (CC) by TravelKS. RBEG funds are intended to support rural entrepreneurs…
Many small businesses can’t qualify for a small business loan from a traditional local bank. A bad credit record disqualifies many. Lending standards have tightened. Some small towns are limited by local banks that don’t support small business; others don’t have locally-owned banks any more. The good news is that alternatives are available. We are…
The Brag Basket is our tradition of sharing. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one April 6-8, 2012. Have some good news this week? Put it in the Brag Basket. And have a beer. Beer and Bread Basket.(cc) by Master Timothy on Flickr Don’t hold back because of that word, “brag.”…
This downtown art project comes from Waynoka, Oklahoma, population 927. Far from a dressy, stodgy downtown, they have a casual attitude. It’s a working class town with history as a railroad community. The wooden utility poles downtown were in bad need of a new coat of that boring silver paint. What happened instead is far…
As small town business people, we don’t give ourselves enough credit. What we learn in the tough environment of small towns gives us a valuable perspective. We know what it’s like to survive an uncertain economy and through times with zero income. Just like the national economy today. We know how to manage multiple lines…
The Brag Basket is our tradition of sharing. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one March 31-April 2, 2012. Have some good news this week? Put it in the Brag Basket. There’s a reason for the book basketthis week…Photo (CC) by Lauren Pressley Don’t hold back because of that word, “brag.”…
PayPal, a huge name in accepting online payments, is jumping into the world of local small businesses accepting credit cards with PayPal Here. It’s a new service, not fully rolled out yet (as of March 2012). The PayPal Here triangle reader is sure to remind you of the Square reader. It strikes me as quite similar to Square, but…
Many small businesses can’t qualify for a small business loan from a traditional local bank. A bad credit record disqualifies many. Lending standards have tightened. Some small towns are limited by local banks that don’t support small business; others don’t have locally-owned banks any more. The good news is that alternatives are available. We are…
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