There’s no question about it: Our world has changed. As we grapple with the reality of COVID-19, we are all struggling to keep up—not just as individuals, but as nonprofit leaders and business owners.
Fear and anxiety are high. Supplies feel scarce. Distraction is in overdrive.
And yet, our world needs your work more than ever.
You are the best of us.
You are the inspirers, the problem-solvers, the helpers.
You may be small, but you are mighty.
According to the Small Business Administration, 99% of businesses in the United States are small businesses, and this includes nonprofits. Of those, 88% have less than 20 employees. In fact, small businesses employ almost half of the private US workforce.
This means that nonprofits, social enterprises, and social impact companies are vital, not only to our lives, but our culture. So, during this challenging time, how can you succeed when on some days, the odds may feel stacked against you?
Here is my curated list of funding options, marketing and communications resources, current discounts and opportunities, as well as tips for running your business online in this brave, new coronavirus world. I hope this serves as a life preserver during this unprecedented season. And take heart, friends, it is just a season.
By the way, in case someone hasn’t told you today: Thank you for what you do. It matters.
Financial Resources for Nonprofits, Social Impact Companies, and Small Businesses
Many of us will take a financial hit during COVID-19, so if you need financial assistance, here are some resources to help keep the proverbial doors open and lights on.
Benefits.gov helps point you to the right federal benefits that you may be eligible for.
The Small Business Administration has disaster loan assistance available for businesses, private nonprofits, homeowners, and renters. They also created a page for small business guidance and loan resources. And here’s the direct page for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). NAV also put together a quick loan calculator, if you’re curious as to what you might be able to request.
The SBS also has a resource guide specifically for women-owned businesses.
Kiva has extended their free business loans to US entrepreneurs.
Here is some economic assistance specifically for my Atlanta-based business community and those throughout Georgia.
The TODAY Show has hosted multiple segments that provide financial advice to small business owners based on questions they receive on Facebook and Instagram.
An article from The Penny Hoarder outlines multiple funding and loan options available to you.
For my fellow Cobb County residents, the Cobb Chamber is striving to keep you updated and informed, both personally and professionally.
If you are a Georgia restaurant, the Giving Kitchen may be able to help you and your employees through this difficult time.
Forbes has a roundup of roundup of relief for small business owners, including quite a few options in the restaurant category.
Modest Needs is dedicated to helping hourly workers impacted by the coronavirus, as well as others in need of short-term, hourly assistance.
Springboard for the Arts has put together a list of funding resources specifically for the creative arts. Likewise, if you’re an author, poet, writer, or journalist, Poet’s & Writer’s has a guide for you.
Time to rethink your budget? Here are three approaches you should consider.
Vistage has given some good tips on protecting your small business from the virus, including legally.
Yelp has partnered with GoFundMe too add donate buttons to for-profit busineses.
Despite everything, it’s still tax season (though extended), so if you have questions about your small business’s charitable contributions, my friend Deb Meyer has some advice for you.
Facebook is providing $100 million in grants and ad credits for small businesses.
The Open Road Alliance is providing grants and loans to social impact organizations that run into unexpected obstacles.
Duke School of Business has a searchable (and growing) database of capital relief resources for entrepreneurs, nonprofits, and businesses, including grants and loans.
Verizon and LSIC have teamed up to offer $10,000 grants to small businesses, including nonprofits.
Sara Blakely and GlobalGiving have teamed up for the Red Backpack Fund, which will support female-owned businesses. (Sole proprietors not eligible, sadly.)
The final details are still somewhat forthcoming, especially for us itty bitty businesses, but this article from Forbes talks about the new CARES Act, which includes info on the Paycheck Protection Program, giving you the ability to keep your staff paid and working, resulting in loan reduction or forgiveness. (Includes nonprofits and solopreneurs)
Alice has teamed up with other companies to provide immediate, short-term grants to social impact companies.
GoFundMe is matching $500 grants on their platform.
SheaMoisture is providing funding specifically for minority-owned social impact companies through their Minority Business Fund.
Here’s a 12-page summary of the CARES Act, which is better than the 800-page original version, right?
If your organization is too big for the Paycheck Protection Program, check out the Main Street Lending Program.
If you’re in the fashion industry and suffering a loss of income, A Common Thread might be a great place to look for a grant.
NAV put together a state-by-state list of grants, loans, and government/non-profit resources for small businesses.
The Save Small Business fund is providing $5,000 grants to organizations in hard-hit areas who have 3-20 employees.
Finimpact has curated a list that includes some of the above, as well as additional loan and insurance options you might not have seen yet.
Global Giving is granting $1,000 to at least 100 vetted nonprofits, with no lengthy application required.
Charity Charge guides you through five questions to help you make the most of your nonprofit or small business credit card.
500 Female Founders is increasing their commitment with more resources, mentorship, and investment.
Three, new government credits available as of May 7th to all employers regardless of size, including tax-exempt organizations.
Did you know that the $2 trillion stimulus bill that was passed leaves out immigrant families? Here’s a great financial resource for DACA recipients.
Magic Johnson is offering $100 million in loans specifically for minority- and women-owned small businesses.
LISC has just announced new grant partners to increase funding for women and minority-owned small businesses affected by COVID-19.
Women looking for a small business loan should visit the national Chamber of Commerce website.
Consumers Advocate has reviewed and outlined the best small business loans based on loan options, application requirements, and the average rates and fees.
LISC opened up new small business grants, and are giving priority to underserved areas, but applications are due February 9, 2021.
Worried about your taxes? Here’s a small business tax guide for reference, including tax rates by entity type. (Choose them for your tax or accounting services and get $100 off when you say I referred you!)
Tips on Working From Home and Running Your Business Online
New to working from home? Or working from home with a house full of kids, partners, spouses, and pets? Here are some ideas to keep you productive.
Besides toilet paper, I should’ve bought stock in Zoom. If you’re just getting familiar with the platform, they’re hosting a few webinars to get you up to speed.
Here’s a great, to-the-point guide from The Skimm. I especially like that they included tips for staying on the same page as your boss.
Hypepotamus put together this list for startups, but the advice is applicable to just about any business.
Here’s some advice for hiring employees and running meetings online.
The Management Team has provided input for how to manage a team remotely.
Is your motivation waning during this extended time at home? We have some advice.
If you have the time and ability, this might be a fantastic opportunity for a business retreat. (I take them quarterly.) There’s no time to plan like the present, right?
Harvard Business Reviewe answered 15 popular work from home questions. Is one of them yours?
Trying to decide between Google Hangouts and Zoom for your online meetings? Click the link for a breakdown.
This Fast Company article has some stellar advice from the perspective of a CEO, including how to reinforce your mission, vision, and values.
Here are some good tips from NPR, including addressing managing expectations and knowing your own limitations, both of which are super important.
Share the joy. Have you been enjoying all the free-flowing memes online lately? Even though many of you work on serious issues, take a moment to share a laugh with your team. Having fun together matters, too.
Still trying to figure out what your response should be from a business perspective? Silver Lining has a “Business Unusual” workbook to walk you through possible answers.
Once co-working spaces open back up, should you move your team there? Here are some pros and cons.
CocoFax put together a list of over 500 remote working tools to help you be more productive and efficient.
CreditCards.com put together a guide specifically for disabled entrepreneurs who want to start a business.
This work from home guide explains how to set up your office space for both productivity and comfort.
OutwitTrade asked dozens of individuals for their work from home trips, and there are some great pieces of advice that I haven’t seen mentioned in other spots, such as: “Start working when you’d normally start your commute, not when you’d normally get to the office. Then you’ll have extra time for interruptions.”
Novoresume has not just tips for working from home, but how to find a remote job, and expected salaries for some remote jobs.
Need tech support for your Mac while working from home? One of these 17 tips might just be the support ticket you need . . . without the wait.
Obviously, I’m a big fan of communication, but it doesn’t always work the same with remote teams. Here are six tips for effective remote communication.
Marketing Resources
While many small businesses and nonprofits have had to shutter their doors during the coronavirus, sadly, there are still a lot of us who are working. That means, you still need to let people know about your products and services—hello, marketing! Here’s how to get the word out.
With everyone at home and online, this is an excellent time to improve your website!
Crisis or not, here are my tips for how to make time for marketing.
This is amazing advice from Hootsuite’s Vice President of Corporate Marketing on how to pivot your social strategy. I also love this quote by him, “Employees will remember leaders who led. Customers will remember who showed up, what we said, and how we helped them.”
Here’s an awesome resource list for event planners, complete with examples to follow, if you need to cancel an event or move it online.
My friend, Meg Casebolt, wants to make sure you get found online while everyone is at home, so she’s hosting free SEO workshops during March and April.
The Adobe Digital Summit will be held for free on March 31st!
If your cause is particularly relevant to the coronavirus conversation, this might be a great time to engage an influencer or get some good press. (Pro tip: If you’ve been previously featured in the media, reach back out to the journalist to see if you can help them again. Everyone is scrambling for relevant and helpful content!)
Since you’re home (and everyone else is, too), this might be a good time to start a YouTube Channel.
Improve your social media strategy with the use of hashtags. There are certainly lots of new ones popping up these days!
Here’s my Marketing Q&A: Coronavirus Edition held on Facebook Live, where I answered some of the questions I’ve been getting over the last couple of weeks.
The Social Enterprise Alliance gives you four steps for navigating COVID-19 as a social enterprise.
Vincit will create a free e-commerce roadmap that includes a strategy, tech resource recommendations, UX recommendations, and a consultation.
Here are 10 things you can do right now for your marketing and communications, including diagnosing whether your organization is candy, a vitamin, or a painkiller.
Don’t forget all the marketing and communications resources readily available on this site! We want to equip and empower nonprofits, social enterprises, and social impact companies everywhere. :)
Crisis Communications
How do you communicate with donors, customers, partners, and sponsors during tragedy or uncertain times?
My favorite COVID-19 email (is that okay to say?) came from Tiff’s Treats, and it came in the first wave of businesses talking about their response. I loved it because it took a positive stance. It doesn’t downplay the seriousness of the issue, but it does also talk about the good stuff coming out of a bad situation. I think more people should take their lead, and I think cause-focused organizations are in a unique position to follow suit. (Oh, and if you haven’t had their cookies yet, their chocolate chip variety is my favorite on the planet.)
Are you a Wikipedia devotee like me? If so, check out their insanely proactive response back at the beginning of March. I also love how it’s written, like a letter to friends.
3BL is offering free press releases services for social impact organizations communicating about COVID-19
Here are some strategies for communicating the coronavirus internally and externally, as well as examples you can follow.
I thought Lyft had a great response to model. It’s heartfelt, informative, action-oriented, and easy to read.
This post on the Public Relations Society of America blog gives a quick overview to get you up to speed quickly on talking about the pandemic.
Here are seven ways to build trust with your customers and donors during the outbreak.
The CDC has provided communications resources for us all to use, including print resources, videos, and images.
SCORE has created a handy checklist for creating a crisis communications plan.
Smarterqueue, the software I use for social scheduling (read my review here), has some tips on how to adjust your social strategy.
Honeybook will walk you through 18 steps to create a business continuity plan.
This is a good example from L.L.Bean, which speaks to the values of their company.
TalkWalker has laid out a very in-depth view of PR for you, including several crisis communication templates.
Engage for Good has a roundup of stats and studies for social impact organizations, which can help provide data for your response.
Be sensitive, understanding, and responsive. Here’s how Hershey’s pivoted quickly, which is a good example. However, I’ve seen people shaming brands for social posts, commercials, emails, and more, which frankly, I think is overreacting at times. Why? Because these things were probably scheduled weeks, days, or even months in advance. So, let’s all do what we can, and also show some grace while we all try and figure this out, especially as news is changing day-by-day. You may need someone to show you grace down the line.
Pathos Labs has created a playbook of 19 tips for influencers, explaining how they can talk with their audience about the crisis.
Software Discounts and Resources
Lots of companies are offering longer free trials and discounts. Be sure to check in with all of your favorites, or those you’ve been wanting to try.
First, here’s a list of resources, software, and more that I use and recommend.
Conscious Capitalism has moved their April conference online—and is giving it away for free!
My friend Christina at The Contract Shop is offering 20% off of her legal contracts and templates through April 10th.
Hootsuite is offering their Professional plan for free to small businesses and nonprofits until July 1st.
Calendly is offering free Zoom and GoToMeeting integrations through June. And let me take a moment to say, if you are not using a scheduling software like Calendly or Acuity yet, please do yourself a favor and create an account! Minimize those back-and-forth emails about scheduling meetings.
Loom, which is what I use for screen and video recording, is cutting prices, extending trials, and even offering free accounts for educators and students.
Many cell phone carriers are opening up free Wifi hotspot access at this time. Get the full scoop on what telephone and internet providers are doing here.
Take a look at all the ways Shopify is helping its customers with their online and in-person storefronts.
A few female-founded brands are doing a big giveaway for Women’s History Month, including Edgar, a social media scheduling service.
1Password, the software I use to generate and store my passwords, is offering six free months of 1Password Business.
Google (G Suite) is making some features that are normally reserved for Enterprise customers available to all accounts through July 1st.
Forbes put together this fantastic list of free software you can use during the crisis. Some of these are already my favs!
Mailchimp is offering free services to those with paid accounts. Your application must be submitted by April 30th.
Google is providing free ad credits for select small and medium business accounts.
Hypepotamus has a list of discounts, resources, leadership advice, and financial links for Southern startups.
Don’t have a graphic designer on staff? You can get a bevy of free poster templates, social media images, graphics, and more from Canva, Unsplash, and PosterMyWall.
Sparkhouse is offering to make a free video for local small businesses, in order to help them get the word out.
Need to build a new website or improve the one you’ve got? Jottful will provide you with a free, online roadmap.
With all of your employees working remotely, you may need to increase employee engagement and retention. Clarity Wave is giving you a free, three-month trial of their software to do just that.
If you’re hiring right now, ShareAble for Hires is offering free pre-employment background checks to small businesses through July 31st. Get great people back to work!
Resources Specifically for Nonprofits
Hooray—lots of places already offer nonprofit discounts. But, now more than ever, you might be able to find freebies and offers that work in your favor.
Was your fundraiser canceled as a result of the virus? This Mobile First post will walk you through some alternative options.
Here’s a comprehensive list compiled by a few nonprofit professionals that you can also contribute to.
Use the hashtag #NPCOVID19 to find recent updates and additions on the virus, and #Comms4Good anytime.
Along with other great resources for nonprofits of all sizes, Candid has created a funding summary for those who are supporting the response to the coronavirus.
Blackbaud has a great list of event and fundraising resources during possible impact.
The Small Business Association has disaster loan assistance available for private nonprofits.
My friends at Funraise have put together “Virtual Event Ideas From Nonprofit Event Experts”.
Asana is giving away free licenses to nonprofits working on the COVID-19 response.
The Nonprofit Finance Fund is telling you what you should be doing right now.
Our friend and personal fundraising coach, Debbie Barron, will talk you through some techniques that ring true anytime or season.
Marc Pitman gives you the “3 Biggest Mistakes of Fundraising During a Recession”.
Victoria Vrana of The Gates Foundation has some terrific advice for grantors and funders.
Boardable is giving you a 90-day free trial.
The Georgia Center for Nonprofits has put together a wonderful guide that includes employee and stakeholder care.
Be sure to care for your volunteers at this time! They matter now more than ever.
Don’t forget about all the technology discounts you already have at your disposal via TechSoup. They also have a list of resources for remote work.
WiredImpact has created their own list of resources to get you through this time, including topics like operations and HR.
Anytime is a good time to make your nonprofit stand out online. Madeline Kardos of Candid shows you one easy way.
The Communications Network is crowdsourcing a list of resources, examples, and best practices for nonprofits, as well as creating a crisis communications triage kit.
Even if they’re already awesome, there are a few ways your board can support you in good times and bad.
River Network has compiled a variety links for you, including a few that address equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice.
My friends over at Charity Charge interviewed the CEO of Global Impact to get his take on how nonprofit leaders can step up during times of crisis.
Anyone else a Lyft fan? They regularly provide community funding through LyftUp, and are also trying to figure out how they can help governments, healthcare entities, and nonprofits on the front lines of the coronavirus through this form.
This is a terrific article in the Harvard Business Review about fundraising during the coronavirus, plus an example of how to do it well.
Here are some additional grant funding opportunities that you may not yet be aware of, brought to you by NonProfit PRO and GrantStation.
Don’t forget to join the Endangered Nonprofit Coalition to receive materials that will help you promote your mission.
Additional Resources
Looking for personal resources? I’ve got you covered over at my personal blog. Here are my ideas for making the best of the coronavirus at home. Why not stay positive, right?
And my friend who contracted COVID-19 has been sharing her advice and tips for getting through the coronavirus with friends informally on Facebook, so I took them and created a blog post on my personal blog (with her permission). It’s helpful to hear her first-hand perspective, as well as some things we aren’t regularly hearing in the media.
Did I miss something important? I’ll be updating it as we get through this situation. Leave it in the comments, or email me at: kristi@signify.solutions
And since we’re all in this together, would you mind sharing this post with someone who may need this information?
PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:
I’m Kristi Porter, and I help cause-focused organizations understand and execute effective marketing campaigns so they can move from stressed to strategic. Your resources may be limited, but your potential isn’t. Whether you’re a nonprofit, social enterprise, or small business who wants to give back, I’ll show you how to have a bigger impact.
