1. Grants for Business Startups and Expansion
Are there Grants to Help you Start or Expand your Business?
If finding grants for individuals is a challenging task than trying to find grants to
start or expand your business is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.
Generally, the federal government does not offer grants to help you start your
own for-profit business or make it grow. Uncle Sam does not also give grants to
help you cover your business operating expenses or pay off debts incurred by
your enterprise. It used to do so back in the seventies and eighties, allocating
money for CDCs or Community Development Corporations. However, this is not
an available option now.
But this does not necessarily mean that you can’t find grants for your enterprise
venture. There are still rare treasure troves of available grants if you’re looking
for funding for your own business. Be ready to do a lot of searching, however, as
these grants are not going to be easy to find.
When it comes to grants for start ups and expanding your business, you can look
up business plan competitions, private grants, and state grants.
Business Plan Competitions
Business plan competitions, as the name suggests, are contests started by
universities and other funders for the best business plan. Whoever can write the
best business plan will receive grant money to be able to start their business. Yes,
it’s a tough way to get a grant (but then again, getting any form of funding is not
easy). If you’re joining a business grant contest offered by an educational
institution, you are going to be competing against equally-brilliant postgraduate
students. If it’s sponsored by an organization that accepts entries from all parts
of the globe then you are up against the best international minds.
But the good thing about joining a business plan competition is that you learn a
lot from it even if you don’t actually get to win. Some of the contests are designed
so that feedback is given to all participants in whatever stage of the process. This
means that even if your business plan is rejected outright, you still receive
valuable insight from experienced mentors who can help you improve your
business plan, the foundation for any ultimately successful enterprise. Those who
advance to the next level of competitions can get the chance to attend
conferences, workshops, and mentoring programs—all non-monetary benefits
that any neophyte entrepreneur can certainly benefit from.

2. Here are some examples of business plan competitions that we have sourced
from the Internet just by typing the keywords “business plan competitions” on
Google.
1.
MassChallenge (http://masschallenge.org)
MassChallenge is the world’s largest accelerator program and startup
competition that seeks to connect resources and entrepreneurs. Any early-stage
startup from anywhere in the world in whatever industry can apply to
MassChallenge. Benefits include mentorship and training, free office space,
access to funding, and media, among others. They highlight the fact that they
don’t put restrictions and take no equity from the participants.
2.
Harvard Business School New Venture Competition
(http://www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/new-venturecompetition/overview.html)
Formerly known as the Business Plan Contest, this competition sponsored by
Harvard Business School gives an opportunity for students to put their
entrepreneurship principles in practice. The winner gets $50,000 in cash plus inkind services while the runner-up receives $25,000 in cash and in-kind services.
For the business track, all teams are eligible to enter for as long as they have at
least one Harvard Business School student. For the social enterprise track, all
teams entered are eligible as long as they have at least one person who is: a) an
HBS MBA student, b) a Harvard University Reynolds Foundation Fellow, or c) a
full-time Harvard graduate student currently enrolled in the Social
Entrepreneurship Collaboratory or the Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector
course at KSG.
3.
Wharton Business Plan Competition
(http://bpc.wharton.upenn.edu/competition.html)
In this 7-month platform, entrepreneurs and their teams fight for the Venture
Finals which award three top prizes. The group with the best business plan walks
away with The Perlman Prize which carries $30,000 cash prize and $15,000 of
in-kind services. The contest is divided into two phases: Phase 1 is an advisory
phase and is optional while Phase 2 is the competitive phase—you must enter
Phase 2 if you want to compete for prizes.

3. There are still other business plan competitions offered by other institutions.
Check them out weekly so you are updated on the newest contests and can
prepare accordingly. Two other sources for listings of contests for budding
entrepreneurs are Biz Plan Competitions
(http://www.bizplancompetitions.com/) and changemakers
(http://www.changemakers.com/).
Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on
Money Management Tips.
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Writing Cover Letters for Grant Applications
Grant Application Cover Forms
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