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Small Biz Survival

The small town and rural business resource
  • A plain brick building in a small downtown has a window decal that says “Caldwell Workspace: create, connect, work your way” Next door is an ornate brick building from the late 1800s.
    community | economic development | entrepreneurship | rural

    Boost your co-working space with social hours

    ByBecky McCray December 5, 2024December 2, 2024

    When I visited Caldwell, Kansas, the manager of the co-working site said they had filled their private offices, but struggled to attract day users. People who work from home like working from home. They don’t want a full time office, so they said they don’t want to use the coworking space. How can the coworking…

    Read More Boost your co-working space with social hoursContinue

  • Multicolor logo with text that says "Global Entrepreneurship Week"
    announcement | entrepreneurship | global | rural

    Global Entrepreneurship Week – Share your story of starting small

    BySmall Biz Survival July 6, 2023July 6, 2023

    This fall, we will be participating in Global Entrepreneurship Week. Here’s your preview of what to expect from Nov 13-19, 2023.   The challenge of rural entrepreneurship Rural entrepreneurs and small town businesses face extra challenges including online competition, limited workforce and even finding a usable building. Today, creative entrepreneurs are using new innovative business…

    Read More Global Entrepreneurship Week – Share your story of starting smallContinue

  • A person is working on a laptop from a rooftop deck
    marketing | rural | trends

    How small town businesses can market to remote workers and turn them into new customers

    ByBecky McCray May 15, 2023

    With the rise of remote work, more people move to small towns even temporarily to work remotely. Small town businesses have the opportunity to tap remote workers as new customers. Why remote workers are hard to market to New residents who work remotely can be hard to find: they aren’t all working at the same…

    Read More How small town businesses can market to remote workers and turn them into new customersContinue

  • Best practices for rural housing
    economic development | rural

    Best practices for rural housing

    ByBecky McCray July 19, 2021July 9, 2021

    The only housing “best practice” that really works for every town: Keep renewing your town’s core No one likes a mushy core, in an apple or a small town. Build more in the center, less on the outside. Grab a paper map of your town and a highlighter. Circle the oldest neighborhoods, the ones closest…

    Read More Best practices for rural housingContinue

  • What makes a small town a micropolitan or nanopolitan?
    Best of | economic development | rural | trends

    What makes a small town a micropolitan or nanopolitan?

    ByBecky McCray May 22, 2021March 25, 2023

    Quick Summary: A “micropolitan area” is US term for smaller metropolitan areas between 10,000 and 50,000 people. Micropolitans provide shopping and services to their core population and even more rural people in surrounding regions. About 27 million US residents live in micropolitan towns.  Nanopolitans are towns with between 1,000 and 10,000 people. Nanopolitans serve as…

    Read More What makes a small town a micropolitan or nanopolitan?Continue

  • Two Small Town Guys
    entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local | trends

    Remember when we used to try to hide our accents?

    ByChris Brogan May 7, 2020April 30, 2020

      By Chris Brogan I’m originally from Maine. Accents up there come through the nose. Most famously, people from Maine are supposed to say “Ayuh” when we mean “yes.” Midway through high school, I moved to Massachusetts, where you lose the nasal thing, but you also lose all “r’s” from conversation. “It’s hahd to sound…

    Read More Remember when we used to try to hide our accents?Continue

  • Small Steps with kettle corn
    economic development | entrepreneurship | family business | planning | rural | success

    Business plans are not worth the paper they’re written on

    ByDeb Brown February 6, 2020January 29, 2020

    by Deb Brown At least, the old way of doing them Writing a business plan is an intense project that takes up a lot of your time. You spend weeks and weeks on it, and you’re not even sure everything in it is correct. Your financial projections are just wild guesses. You’re not even open…

    Read More Business plans are not worth the paper they’re written onContinue

  • Logo with "Shop Indie Local"
    entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local

    Shop Indie Local adds a new twist to tired Buy Local campaigns

    ByBecky McCray November 11, 2019

      Shop Indie Local summary: Shop Indie Local campaign website This campaign’s advantage:  Usable year round, adaptable to local events and needs, not just a single day “Indie” message is resonating well right now, better than plain “local” campaigns Share the right message: People already think they want to shop local, just need a timely…

    Read More Shop Indie Local adds a new twist to tired Buy Local campaignsContinue

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