Relief Resources for Small Businesses
However, some businesses are finding it harder to qualify. With forced closures for industries like restaurants popping up around the country and lenders increasing their requirements, we can’t facilitate funding for every borrower.
But our help doesn’t stop there. We mean it when we say we’re in your corner. Even if we can’t directly help you get the capital you need, we’re dedicated to helping you access the resources you need in this fight.
We will update this post as more information becomes available.
Federal Business Assistance Programs
SBA Disaster Loan Assistance
The US Small Business Administration (SBA) is offering low-interest federal disaster loans in designated states and territories to provide working capital to small businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Kabbage is launching an online hub to help boost sales for small businesses. The site will allow anyone in the US to purchase gift certificates from participating small businesses, providing small businesses with the capital they need today. Customers can then redeem the gift cards for remote-based services now or save them for when the crisis has subsided.
Restaurant-Specific Assistance
Tech companies in the restaurant industry have announced programs to support local restaurants.
DoorDash is offering support programs for both restaurants and their dashers. The merchant program provides a combination of commission relief and marketing support for new and existing DoorDash partner restaurants.
The dasher assistance program provides financial support for dashers who are diagnosed with COVID-19 or put in quarantine by a public health agency and meet a baseline of time on the platform and number of deliveries completed.
Yelp is providing $25 million in coronavirus relief in the form of waived fees and free services to local restaurants and nightlife.
State & Regional Business Assistance Programs
In addition to federal resources, small businesses can find support on a local level.
New York City
New York City has launched 2 programs to support small business owners through the crisis.
- NYC Employee Retention Grant Program: Small businesses with fewer than 5 employees can apply for a grant to cover 40% of payroll costs for 2 months to help the small businesses retain employees.
- NYC Small Business Community Fund: Zero-percent interest loans up to $75,000 have been made available for small businesses with fewer than 100 employees that have seen sales decrease by 25% or more because of COVID-19.
San Francisco
Washington
Resources for Transitioning to Online Business
Small businesses are adjusting to the upheaval of their brick-and-mortar businesses by transitioning to online business. These resources have been curated to help small businesses who want to make the switch but don’t know where or how to start.
Website Building Tools
A website is the first thing you need to conduct business online. If you don’t already have one, these platforms make it simple and quick for small businesses to build a website.
Free website builders:
Paid website builders:
Shipping Services
If you’re selling goods online, there are 2 ways to deliver them to your customers. You can offer limited-contact or no-contact pickup from your store, but you can also ship products, which allows you to do business in a larger geographic market.
Here’s where you can learn more about the major US carriers:
Email Marketing
To be successful, you want to inform your customers that they can now find your business online. Email marketing allows you to keep in contact with your customer base and nurture those relationships.
You can easily set up and manage email marketing with these companies:
General Information
For general information regarding COVID-19, we encourage small business owners to consult the following resources:
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Originally published at https://www.lendio.com on March 19, 2020.
