NHMade Members Given Opportunity with Website Development Assistance

As a member of the NHMade Board Trustees I'd like to share some news with you that some of you may be interested in or know of someone who could benefit from this opportunity. The deadline is July 17,2009

Here is the announcement from NHMade

NH Made received a grant from the USDA to select 20 small and emerging businesses in Grafton County and/or Coos County to provide the technical assistance they need to develop effective web sites, web site materials, and e-commerce capability. At the conclusion of this program, not only will these businesses have the training they need, they will also actually have an up-and-running attractive web site, e-commerce capability, and a collection of professional-looking digital photos of their products and business locations.

The criteria is listed below. If your business qualifies, please email Ann at ann@nhmade.com by July 17th to apply to be considered by the committee as one of the final 20 recipients.

CRITERIA FOR CONSIDERATION:

Business Demographic and Finances 1. Located in either Grafton County or Coos County and primarily be (80% or more) from towns with a population under 5,000;

2. Primarily be (80% or more) from towns with a Median Household Income that is less than 85% of the state's Median Household Income of $49,467;

3. Business is an up-and-going concern, but producing far less than $1 million in gross sales;

4. Business is registered with the state of NH;

5. Employ fewer than 5 full-time employees;

6. Are U.S. Citizens.

Current Web Presence

1. Have either no web site or a very basic web site with no or very primitive shopping capability that needs enhancement and search engine optimization in order to be found on the world wide web and attract sales;

2. Photography used on the web site is of low quality and unoptimized.

Required Commitment

1. Have internet access and the ability to pay for monthly hosting fees for their web site; (cable or DSL high speed highly recommended over dial-up)

2. Have a computer able to handle the memory and functionality needs required; i.e. Windows XP or newer OR Mac equivalent, 512 MB RAM or more, Internet Explorer 6 or greater OR Firefox 2.0 or greater, and at least on free USB port.

3. Have access to a digital camera needed for keeping their web site fresh with attractive photos; (if no camera, they can borrow one or use a "loaner" from NH Made.)

4. Willing and able to pay $160 as their contribution to participating in the grant program;

5. Commit to attending the all-day conference and the program follow-up event in Plymouth, NH;

6. Agree to devote time working with the computer consultant and photography consultant and do what is necessary and required to get their web site operating with their help within the time-frame specified;

7. Agree to maintain and update their web site as needed once the program is over with the knowledge and technical capability they have learned;

8. Will supply the necessary information NH Made needs to measure the success of this program such as gross sales figures, the number of hours in the business, the number of employees, etc.

9. Be a member of NH Made, or BECOME a member of NH Made, for $75;

10. Agree to sign a letter on your own letterhead confirming that you agree to this commitment and understand all that is being asked. (The actual wording for this letter will be supplied by NH Made for you to sign - it will be similar in scope to what you see listed here.)

NOTE: If you know of a business that is not currently a NH Made member but who could qualify and benefit from this grant, please tell them they are eligible if they BECOME a member of NH Made.

Good Luck!