What to Know About Single Mother Business Grants

Statistics over the last couple of years show that female-owned businesses are among some of the fastest growing in the country. Interestingly, single moms starting their own businesses are far more common than most of us would think. That’s because plenty of women who find themselves in such a situation decide to take charge of their lives and start a business that will eventually provide financial security for them and their families. But like any small business owner, single mothers need to work hard in securing funding for their businesses.

One source of funding is the small business grant. Small business grants abound for various groups of individuals based on business interests, income level, and any other number of factors. For single mothers, there are a number of organizations willing to offer business grants to help them secure their futures. It's simply a matter of putting in the time to look and put together appropriate grant proposals.

Be Careful of Scams

Unfortunately there are unscrupulous individuals looking to take advantage of single mothers trying to start a business. They do so by offering to help you find business grants for a substantial fee, then never really produce anything of any value. There are some legitimate grant funding services available, so in order to tell the difference just pay attention to the language an organization uses. A legitimate grant funding organization knows that the federal government does not provide small business grants. They also know it's usually not possible to get all of your funding just from grants alone.

In reality, any useful information you're able to glean from grant finding services is information you could get on your own if you had the time to put into it. Grant information is readily available online, from your local chamber of commerce, through various trade organizations, from single mother-based support groups, and so on. While it may take some time and effort on your part to find available grants, at least you won't have to pay a substantial fee for someone else to do it for you.

Choosing Your Grants

There are specific grants dedicated for single moms as well as general grants that any business owner can apply for. If you're a single mother starting your own business you probably want to start with the ones specifically aimed at your demographic. That way, you'll face less competition than you will for general grants available to everyone. Once you've applied for all the single mother grants you qualify for, then you can begin to expand out into other opportunities that are more general.

Keep in mind that many of the grants aimed at specific demographic groups require that applicants certify their eligibility. For example, you might have to provide proof that you are indeed a single mother in addition to simply writing a grant proposal. Certification can be done by producing some documents on your own, or you can be certified to a national accrediting organization. The latter option increases the likelihood you'll get your grants. It also allows you to bid on federal contracts once your businesses is up and running.

The Grant Proposal

Unlike a small business loan, there isn't an "application" for a grant per se. Instead, you write a grant for proposal that may or may not be accompanied with a short application form. Your grant proposal is the most important part of your request; it is the one thing your grant writer will pay the most attention to. Therefore it is imperative that grant proposals be written well. It is important that:

• proper English is used
• all the information is presented in a logical and meaningful manner
• that your proposal be as brief as possible while still being concise

Writing successful grant proposals requires a bit of persuasiveness. In other words, you need to be able to "sell" the grant provider on your business model. Simply having a unique idea might not necessarily get it done. Therefore, if you're not sure how to do it you might want to take a course or two from your local community college or continuing education center. If such resources are not available in your area you can take courses online or look for instructional books and videos from your local library.

Typically a grant proposal requires an objective overview of your business model plus your mission statement, philosophy, goals, and the ways you plan to achieve those goals. A properly written grant proposal tells the grant writer all about you and your business without being overbearing. You also want to be informative without sounding like you're making a sales pitch. Using your grant proposal as a sales pitch is one of the quickest ways to make sure it ends up on the bottom of the pile. And with so much competition among single mothers and other businesses, being at the bottom of the pile is not something you want.

The Difference between Grants and Loans

One of the things that many small business owners don't understand is the difference between a grant and a loan. A grant is essentially a financial "gift" that doesn't have to be repaid. When repayment is required, it is only under very specific conditions that may not necessarily be met. On the other hand, a loan for business purposes is no different than a loan for a car, a house, etc. Keep in mind that the federal government only aids businesses by offering low interest business loans. They do not make grants, under any circumstances, for business purposes.

At the state level, you may occasionally find a handful of small business grants that have been made available via private funding. More often than not however, state funding will be in the form of low-interest loans just as it is at the federal level. Most of your small business grants are going to be from private organizations and non-profit groups trying to help certain types of individuals go into business for themselves.

If you're able to secure a low interest loan you'll probably do so through a local bank. That's because the federal government does not have its own loan offices complete with walk-up counters and customer service reps. The loans are administered through local banks and other lending institutions in your area. The loans are also serviced by the same companies, so you'll be making your monthly payments to them. Make sure you abide by the terms of your loan in order to keep yourself out of trouble.