Marketing is top concern for Kansas small business, according to report

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Rhea Landholm, brand marketing and communications manager, rheal@cfra.org, 402.687.2100 ext 1025

Kansas – The top concern for small businesses in Kansas is marketing, according to a report released today by the Center for Rural Affairs and Kansas Hispanic & Latino American Affairs Commission.

“The Sunflower State – Assessing Our Business Garden: 2017 Kansas Small Business Needs Assessment Results,” is authored by Adrienne Vallejo-Foster, executive director of Kansas Hispanic & Latino American Affairs Commission; and Dena R. Beck, senior project leader and loan specialist of the Center for Rural Affairs.

The authors conducted a survey in spring 2017, gathering information from Kansas small business owners and resource providers to identify strengths and areas that need attention. They received 533 responses, representing 84 percent of counties in Kansas.

“Feedback from people who serve small businesses is an important piece of the puzzle, as they provide valuable insight,” Beck said. “Local lenders and resource providers know what businesses need to be successful, they see the businesses from a community-level, and understand the importance of those businesses to the communities and local economies.”

The survey is modeled after a Nebraska Small Business Needs Assessment conducted biennially since 2008. Questions are based on financing, startup needs, current needs, business growth inhibitors, and training and technology needs.

“To ensure business owners are offered the products and services they need, it is imperative to simply ask,” Vallejo-Foster said. “As citizens, large business owners, and business lenders and providers, we need to pay attention to those needs and assist if we want our downtowns, communities, and local economies to thrive.”

Partnering organizations were instrumental in distributing the survey to desired audiences. Those partners include Kansas Department of Commerce, Kansas Economic Development Alliance, Kansas Hispanic Economic Development Corporation, NetWork Kansas, Phillips County Kansas Economic Development, Russell County Kansas Economic Development, and Western Kansas Rural Economic Development Alliance (wKREDA). 

For more information and to view “The Sunflower State – Assessing Our Business Garden: 2017 Kansas Small Business Needs Assessment Results,” visit cfra.org/publications.

 

Established in 1973, the Center for Rural Affairs is a private, non-profit organization working to strengthen small businesses, family farms and ranches, and rural communities through action oriented programs addressing social, economic, and environmental issues.

Center for Rural Affairs receives funding from the Small Business Administration, United States Department of Agriculture, Nebraska Business and Innovation Act through the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, United States Department of Treasury, Peter Kiewit Foundation and other sources. Women’s Business Center is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All Small Business Administration funded programs and services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities and/or persons with limited English proficiency will be made if requested in advance. This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer.