Grants are Real And Available!

Serenity Now for Entrepreneurs is thankful to have Stephanie Sang from Granted as part of the team. As the owner of Granted, Stephanie is an expert on all things grants. Read on as she shares her thoughts and expertise.

This is a statement I hear all the time and I’m baffled every time. When business owners say that they aren’t prioritizing grants this season or this year, it tells me that they are essentially saying ‘No’ to free money.

Business owners who tell me this often fall into one of these three buckets:

1. They don’t know what’s out there: Government grants are geared towards certain business activities such as investing in marketing overseas, funding to hire staff, and even investment in technology. Not all programs are going to be around forever and some, like the investment in technology one, went unused and therefore didn’t end up getting renewed in the following year’s budget.
2. They base decisions on now: While I learned in mindfulness training, you want to always stay present, with grants, you always want to be ahead. This is the difference of being ‘in the know’ versus ‘missing out….again.’ What is your business doing in the next year? Where would potential grants fit in?
3. They see grants as ‘one-hit wonders’: Speaking to a business recently, I realized that those who have used grants before may see it like playing the lottery, you buy a ticket, you win once, you’re ahead, and you don’t play again. The opposite is true. Your business could benefit from multiple grants throughout the year, some will even allow you to offset your investment of the cost-sharing component with another grant!

Companies can do lots to stay afloat on grant programs. There are numerous mailing lists that you can join that will notify you of grants.

Check with the business associations that you are involved with as they may have some resources. Look at grant sites such as Innovation Canada where there are other resources such as advisory support and loan programs for initiatives that may not be grantable.

Or just contact a grant consultant and have them walk you a grant strategy for your business. They will watch out for grant opportunities and be your concierge notification system when new grants match your business needs.

Want to do it yourself? Solutions like GetGranted are out there to help SMEs gain peace of mind by tracking new grants and program changes.

“Here’s the bottom line. Grants are real and available for businesses in Canada. ‘Free money’ should always a priority, whether manage the process on your own or outsource a fractional grant department. Go get your first grant today!”