Entrepreneurial Tightrope: Getting grants

• Once you're in business, there are options for profit and nonprofit companies
• There are websites and data bases for finding grants, learning how to write grants
• The government has 26 agencies with 176 listings of small business opportunities

Recently a woman told me she was leaving her job to start a day spa. She asked me which part of the government should she go to for a grant to start her business.

I'm asked the "where-can-I-get-a-grant?" question often. Just yesterday, a guy sent an e-mail seeking information on one for a dog-care company. I always answer such requests by saying grants are not available for getting your business up and running. But once you are in business, then you do have options.

Because I am asked this question so much I decided to go to an expert. I asked Dr. Beverly Browning, a Phoenix-based grant-writing specialist affectionately known as Dr. Bev by friends, colleagues and clients, to give us a peek at what's out there for small business owners.

"Although there is no mainstream money to get a business started," she said, "there are opportunities for small business people to do business with the government."

Dr. Bev recommends a visit to the government website www.fbo.gov for learning more about those business opportunities. At another website -- www.findrfp.com, this one privately run and subscription-based -- you can stay on top of specific government requests for proposals (RFPs).

Dr. Bev says there are 26 federal agencies with 176 listings that apply to small business. Most of this money in turn moves down to various state agencies. For example "Workforce Development" comes from the U.S. Department of Labor. So if your business offers employment and-or training-related services there could be money waiting for you.

The various state Housing Authorities monies come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. So, for example, if you are in the home-renovation business, there is grant money available for the repair, improvement and modernizing of the dwelling of low-income occupants to improve health and safety standards.

This is a couple of examples of the hundreds of opportunities out there. I am currently reading Grant Writing for Dummies, and it's a great start for venturing into this area for both businesses and nonprofits.

She said that many business people find it easier to subscribe to a private grant-management database, such as e.civis to find grant opportunities. "Just this morning, I signed into ecivis.com and saw 200 grant opportunities for business development," she said.

She went on to explain that grant writing is not always easy. But, there are many entrepreneurs who write their own grant proposals. To make it easier for them, she has designed a training workshop and travels the country teaching profit and nonprofit businesses how to writegrant proposals.

For those who don't want to deal with writing their own proposal, she has developed a database of highly skilled grant writers who she can pair you with to write your grantorlook over what you have written and help you tighten up the loose ends and point out possible weaknesses.

Dr. Bev gave me more information than this column allows. So I asked her to supply me from time to time with possible grant funding opportunities available for small business owners. And she agreed! I will pass these opportunities on to you so that you can be more certain of a happy and a more prosperous new year.

In the meantime, she welcomes your questions. Find her at www.bevbrowning.com.

Gladys Edmunds' Entrepreneurial Tightrope column appears Wednesdays. As a single, teen-age mom, Gladys got by doing laundry, cooking dinners for taxi drivers and selling fire extinguishers and Bibles door-to-door. Today, as founder of Edmunds Travel Consultants in Pittsburgh, she is a private coach/consultant in business development and an author. See an archived index of Edmunds' columns. Her website is www.gladysedmunds.com. You can e-mail her at gladys@gladysedmunds.com.