Grants are available for small businesses, usually funded by the government, that provides the owners of small business with some money to get their business running without adding to the financial stress of opening a new business.

This is of course helpful for the small businesses, but it also helps the economy by creating more jobs and better technologies, services and products. Finding small business grants can be a bit of a free-for-all, and there are some things that should be kept in mind during the process.

1. Industry-specific grants

Luckily for business owners in certain industries, many small business grants are industry specific. For those in health, agribusiness, technology, and science, there are a lot of grants focused on these industries. This is likely because these areas are where big changes are happening, and where the government feels there is much progress to be made.

2. Non-industry-specific grants

Of course, that is not to say that all grants are industry specific. Although it might be a little easier to find grants based on a specific industry, there are opportunities that exist – especially for entrepreneurs and even more specifically for young entrepreneurs and student entrepreneurs. These grants and funds work to encourage young people to follow through with their innovative ideas and help these people to create a solid base for their new business.

Some of the grants offered by the government that are non-industry-specific come in the form of a bit of training – the advice and skills that new business owners probably need – as well as a small grant, just up to $5,000 or so, to help them get started.

3. Grants based on location

Small business grants are developed based on a need in the economy for such businesses, so there are also grants for people who are opening or who have small businesses based on their location. These grants exist do exist in big cities, but there are also a great many that are made available in less populated regions, like in the Northwest Territories and similar regions within Canada.

Every province has specific grants that they offer to small businesses within their province. Helping with the creation of local businesses helps the province by helping business owners with ground-breaking technologies and new ideas make that province the home of their ideas. It means bringing money to the province and opening up jobs for its citizens.

4. Funding for business and export expansion

Small business grants are not just for new businesses opening up, there are also grants available for small businesses who are looking to expand their market, especially to include exports. These loans allow small businesses to work towards moving into different global markets, without having to carry the weight of the significant costs associated with entering into and getting acquainted with those markets.

5. Earth-friendly grants

Grants that are becoming increasingly more popular are grants that are for businesses focusing on lowering greenhouse gas emissions. A big focus, especially in next-generation thinking, is on making processes environmentally friendly, and being aware of the impact that a business has on the earth.

6. Paying to get a grant

Many grants are available but require that the business owner puts some money in too. It might seem counter-intuitive to have to pay to get money, but it actually makes a lot of sense. If you’re starting your own business, you should have some money set aside to do so, and when it comes to grants like this, you usually only need about 25% of the money you are asking for. These grants help new businesses to fully accomplish the goals they would have been just short of achieving otherwise.