New Loans & Grants Search Tool Provided by the Government … and Other Cool Tools

I wanted to blog about a great new tool that was launched by the SBA’s Business Gateway Program to help small business owners find government loan, grant and venture capital programs. So many business owners are looking for financial resources and assistance that new tools are being developed all the time. This is the latest and greatest – there’s nothing like it.

This search tool is the first of its kind to provide access to federal and state programs in a single, easy-to-use tool.  This tool provides one website to find financing programs that business owners can apply for. So many business owners are looking for financial information – this tool is really easy to use.

The loans and grants tool is simple. A business owner completes a survey of 15 questions and is presented with a list of loans, grants and venture capital programs.  The questions are simple, including some the following – no complex information required to use this:

• A dropdown with industry selection
• Nonprofit vs. for profit businesses
• Veteran status
• Minority owned businesses
• Location

After answering these questions, a list is generated of available loans and grants, which is being expanded continuously. This list includes the program title, which links the user to the website describing the program; the sponsoring agency; and a brief description of the program. Results are segmented by the type of financial assistance (loan, grant, venture capital).

Another very cool tool from the government is a permits tool called “Permit Me”. You can enter your business type and location and this tool generates a list of licenses and permits that you need in your locality for your specific business. The most common types of businesses are included but if you have a unique requirement, definitely send these folks a note and they will work to add other businesses and new content.