(music) Hey everyone, I'm Sheila Jenkinson and you are listening to the Growing Small Town Nebraska Podcast where my co-host, Marcie Sextro, and I ask community leaders and business owners about their efforts in revitalizing the Cornhusker State. If you love your small town and you're looking for ways to make it even better, or maybe you're interested in what this revitalization movement may mean for you and your family. Join us as we talk with small town Nebraskans making our state the definition of "The Good Life."
Please stay tuned at the end of this episode for a big announcement concerning the Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast.
(music) Spring has sprung and J & H Produce and Greenhouse is ready with a large selection of annuals, perennials, hanging baskets and more. Their open house is the first weekend in May each year. Make sure to visit this beautiful self-serve produce stand and greenhouse, located five miles west and one and three quarters of a mile south of Plainview. It's worth the trip. They're open daily 7am to dusk. Follow them on Facebook for updates and giveaways at J&Hoduce/Greenhouse.
(Music) Thank you to 4th Street Sweets for sponsoring this episode. For your chocolate fix or an original gift you can find 4th Street Sweets at 103 North Fourth Street in Norfolk. See their delicious treats on their Facebook page: 4th Street Sweets. Let them sweeten your day.
Hi everyone. I'm Marcie Sextro. And we are coming to you from the Intersect Co-working and Incubator podcast booth in downtown Norfolk. Intersect is a co-working community that gives workers the spaces and tools they need to succeed. Intersect is your place to collaborate with others and get things done. Find out more on their website: intersectcoworking.com.
If you've been listening to the podcast very long, you will have heard our guests talk about Sourcelink. And what a wonderful thing it has been for them. Today on the podcast, we're joined by Scott Asness, the program director for Sourcelink, Nebraska that helps entrepreneurs and business owners connect with business support. Welcome to the podcast. Scott,
Thank you for having me today. Excited to be here.
Well, you spearheaded the design and launch of this program. So we'd like to hear how the idea came about and how you got it all started.
It was an idea that was in the making for many years. There were always conversations around where can we find resources for entrepreneurs and business owners to start and grow their business and Nebraska didn't have something like that. Most of the surrounding states do have that type of service, I believe a few years back, it probably would have been prior to 2020 Ther.e was an initiative called Blueprint Nebraska and one of the initiatives out of there was to find a way to help connect entrepreneurs and business owners with resources just to make that a little bit accessible in Nebraska. Well, the Nebraska Business Development Center out of the University of Nebraska, Omaha, we stepped forward to host this program and platform. So I was brought on in July of 2020 to start mapping our entrepreneurial and business development resource ecosystem in Nebraska.
Wow, very nice. What are three of the primary goals of Sourcelink?
Our first goal is to make resources a little bit more accessible in Nebraska. Entrepreneurs and business owners oftentimes will say what do I do? Where do I go first. And we want to be that go to place where people can come and receive our concierge service, so to speak, I like to say that we're an entrepreneurial consierge to connect entrepreneurs and business owners with resources. But also transparency, what kind of resources are available in Nebraska, and over a 18 month period, when I was building Sourcelink Nebraska, we identified over 500 organizations. And we're closing in on about 1000 different resources across the state of Nebraska that can help entrepreneurs and business owners, primarily nonprofit government and education entities that that support starting growing businesses scale. The other thing too, is it's not just about connecting with resources for business owners and entrepreneurs. It's about creating support systems around anybody that is involved with business. It is difficult to own your own business, there's going to be challenges and being able to reach out to somebody, whether it be a mentor or a resource program in Nebraska that can give you some sound advice. So we're trying to do those three things primarily.
Well, we appreciate it. And I know others do too. Because yes, you start a business. And so many people have the vision and the dream for what they want to do, but they don't know how to go about it. And so having that starting point, and that help, that is just pivotal for those new businesses. And we're actually listed on Sourcelink, Nebraska, as a resource, and we're just really grateful for that. I Googled the podcast one day and I'm like, Oh, we're on Sourcelink Nebraska.
Yeah, I was connected to you and I made sure to link you into our podcasts section because we have several podcasts in there. I do think, you know, podcasts, this is a learning opportunity for people to you know, learn what's what's in Nebraska to support them. More, get some ideas. So, you know, we want to make sure that we're connected to our podcasts and the well. Yeah.
So you talked about NBDC, which we've had Cathy Lang on before. But there's other groups that you're connected with and have collaborated with to have this source link happen. Tell us about those.
Yeah. So prior to 2020, the Nebraska Business Development Center, Nebraska Extension, and Rural Rrosperity, Nebraska helped bring the Sourcelink platform to Nebraska. (The) platforms out of the University of Missouri, Kansas City, that's where it originated. And now there's affiliates all across the country. We're our own independent operating program. But we do have that support system in Sourcelink. That's out of the University of Missouri, Kansas City. After that, I started working with all our resource partners across the state. You know, I mentioned that close to 1000 different resources that are available over 500 different organizations. So me and my team, our job is to know, we don't know, we do find it. So we're always working with our partners, whether it is to provide resources, or maybe there's a gap in our ecosystem for maybe an educational opportunity. Last year, I worked with Nebraska Enterprise Fund, we developed a legal series for business owners, and we would bring up different topics and do a webinar to help cover that because you don't know what you don't know. So we want to help make sure that that information is out there. So when somebody does approach an attorney with their business, they have some great questions to ask.
So as you know, Scott, of course, we're interested in helping small towns grow throughout Nebraska, and how has Sourcelink specifically helped (and) do you think, in growing those small towns?
Making the resources accessible, so it is easier to start a business. It's not easy to start a business, but bringing some clarity. And we do that two ways. As far as Sourcelink Nebraska, on our website sourcelinknebraska.com, please check it out. It's a great website. You can search for those resources to the Resource Navigator on there, you can filter them according to your needs. There's information about those resources, there may be links to the social media, there's links to websites, there's descriptions, what services are provided. And you can actually connect with those organizations via those profiles. But our best service for connecting is through our personal action plan. And we have that request form on our website on my team. I have Brandi O'Malley, she's our network navigator, our guru for connecting to resources across...
You've got a concierge and a guru...
...the browser. And yes, yes.
And she creates customized plans for our entrepreneurs and business owners, they submit a request and the next day, they'll have that plan in their email with a list of resources with descriptions and who to contact. It's a warm handoff. In 2022. It was our first full year of operations, we did about 1400 referrals. In 2023, we did over 6000 in Nebraska, and we're on pace to surpass that, again this year, I thought we hit baseline at 2023. It's not, there's something really great happening here in Nebraska as far as entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, building businesses, and I'm starting to see how much this resource was needed.
We agree. And we're seeing that,
Absolutely. And it's fun to see, because a small business can make such an impact. In a small town, you can have one or two small business owners that come in and just really boost economy. And then it starts that kind of that spark to be able to have more people are like ooh, and want to live in that town. And then your population grows, and then another small business, and we're just seeing that. I've had several small businesses myself, and you can get started, you can get to a certain point, and then you hit a wall of like, I don't know what to do from here. So I just encourage everyone to go to Sourcelink because that really makes a difference in being able to move forward in your small business. It's a wonderful thing.
Absolutely. We're in that, you know, we're that center. And we were gonna look what resources and supports are best for that person. It is individualized, some resources are more effective for somebody than maybe another person or like we like to say the right resource at the right time when trying to find that for the person. Because a lot of times I've done this myself, I was thinking about starting a business and the first thing you do is maybe approach a bank. That's not the first place to start.
No, no.
But many people do that because they go I want to start a business. I need money. Well, there's a whole bunch of other things that you need to do develop a network, a support system, make sure you have a solid business plan. All the things that are needed. Yeah. And you know, I think as far as small towns growing and support and I'm originally from Norfolk, I graduated from Norfolk high in 97. This downtown is night and day. It really is and it's encouraging to see what has happened in Norfolk and what can happen when the right things are in place at the right time. You have a strong community college here in Northeast community college, you have the support of Wayne State College with that project growing, you know, Growing Together with Angie Stenger, Intersect co-working, just so much energy down here. It was nice. I went before the podcast this morning and went down here to the coffee shop and sat there and had a coffee this morning. Very nice.
Which coffee shop did you visit?
It was the Downtown Coffee Company.
We have great coffee shops. Yeah.
Yeah we have several of them. So fun. You can go to a different one every day.
When we're gonna meet, we're like, which one are we going to today? Well, we went to this one last time.
Nebraska has a thing for coffee. I see all these networking events and it's always coffee and this coffee. Well, I think you know, everybody really likes to have coffee and network. We got to have coffee shops,
Well, if there's coffee I might show up. That's just the truth of it.
So I think too at the downtown Norfolk, like you said, and we always say it's not your mama's downtown Norfolk because even for our our children, it's not like when we grew up here, and it is really encouraging the small towns, not just around here, but throughout the state. Because people are seeing that difference for sure.
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We talked a little bit about some of the obstacles and some things that are difficult when starting a business. Now Sourcelink itself - any obstacles or any major hiccups in the starting up of Sourcelink Nebraska?
Not with Sourcelink Nebraska, it was interesting because we did start building it right in the middle of the pandemic. You know, the pandemic started March 2020. We started building this program in July 2020. And everybody was home. You know, our research partners, most people were not working from home that did help Sourcelink Nebraska in the sense that I could get on five to six zoom meetings a day and talk to our resource partners, tell them what I'm doing and learn about the resources. And I did that for 16 to 18 months just continually connecting with the partners to learn. And so something that could have been very, very challenging, I guess maybe that's a silver lining, I don't know. But it did help with being able to access our partners and being able to sit down and talk with them. One of the most difficult things with Sourcelink Nebraska, and it's our biggest challenge is making sure that our resources are up to date. There's a lot of movement in economic development in Nebraska. So we're always communicating, we're always connecting with our partners to know if there's any changes because although we can't be 100% perfect all the time, we want to make sure we reducing as many barriers as possible when somebody's looking for help.
When we know because of confidentiality you can't really share personal business success stories. But you had given the number you know that you're getting more and more referrals and more people coming to the source. What kind of overall stats or details can you give us about Sourcelink and the impact it has on Nebraska right now.
We measure impact by the connections, we can't necessarily measure if a business started because of us because I think that wouldn't be completely accurate, because it really is our resource partners that are ultimately really providing that support to do that. We're making that connection. So we're always looking at are we making things accessible? Are we there for our resource partners to to make sure that they're aware of what's going on? We try to watch what's being asked for. When somebody is online, and they're searching our resource. Navigate into the link the number one search thing on there is space, places like co working spaces, office space kitchen,
Podcast booths when you're remote and might want to record from somewhere.
Absolutely. That's actually at about five or six times the rate of the next search.
That's interesting.
But when somebody reaches out to us for that individual assistance through our personal action plan, it is business planning and being able to get connected to organizations that can help you with your business plan. For example, as you know, I'm from the Nebraska Business Development Center and we have four programs a service and one of those is our Small Business Development Center, SBDC, which something Nebraska can be proud of. Nebraska was one of the first in the country have an SBDC over 40 years ago. It started right here in Nebraska but they can help with anything with that business plan financial projections and so forth. At no cost. They won't do it for you, but they'll do it with you and they're phenomenal. We do have people all across the state that can help. But we have support right here in Norfolk, as well. But also we do have a government contracting program called Apex Accelerators. As you know, the government buys everything.
Yes.
And it's another way businesses can have another revenue stream. So you know, government contracting, is it just and we have free consulting for that we have individuals across the state that help we also have an innovation program. Maybe if you have new technology, you want to create a business, we do have that support as well. And then we have Sourcelink Nebraska.
Yeah, awesome. Before the podcast, we were talking about the entrepreneurial navigator. And we had just had Alicia on from out inSydney. So tell us a little bit because you work with that program as well, a little bit.
Yeah, we work very closely with E3 Sydney, the Energizing Entrepreneurial Ecosystems, which what they're doing with that I believe every community should adopt that type of model...have that boots on the ground person that can help connect entrepreneurs and business owners. So the Cheyenne County Chamber out in Sydney contacted Sourcelink, Nebraska, over a year ago, and that action plan request form, we're actually able to embed on their chamber website. Many people will approach their chamber if they're looking to start a business or need help with their business. So it's there for them. And when those action plan requests come in, we make sure to include that program. So it's back and forth communication, we help them with resources with connecting with that personal action plans. Brandy, our network navigator meets with Alicia on a regular basis. So we want to create this cohesive ecosystem in Nebraska. And there's other communities that are involved with this E three type of work and hopefully this will continue across the state because Sidney truly is a great model for that.
Well, that's fantastic. Anything today that maybe we missed that you want to point out to our listeners?
You know, if you're thinking about starting a business, make sure you're reaching out to find somebody to mentor you, whether it's through SCORE, you can go on the SCORE website and request a SCORE mentor. I actually do that in my free time. As a volunteer, I volunteer as a SCORE mentor and just having somebody to bounce some ideas off of look for that. But also reach out to Sourcelink Nebraska, and start learning about what resources are available to you in the state. If you get on our website. There's a lot of information on there. It's not just the resources, but we have guides that are available. We have stories. We have, you know, we have the podcasts listed. We have an events calendar as well that we partnered with Nebraska Angels, startup LNK, and Silicon Prairie News. And they've actually embedded our calendar on their websites as well, because we want no wrong door. If you want to find an event in Nebraska, you can find it on our website, or maybe their website.
I know time is a big factor for small business owners. And when you're trying to get things started, it's just such a great resource to be able to go to one place. I spend a lot of time in research and when you can just go to one place and know that everything that you need to help you with your questions. And if they don't have the answer, you can just put in a request form and ask hey, I don't know this, what do I need, you know need? That is just invaluable. It really is for a small business owner. So we really encourage our listeners to take a look at that.
For sure. Well, we've enjoyed learning more about Sourcelink Nebraska but we do Scott always ask one final question. And that is because you're from the Elkhorn area? Yes?
Yes, yes. Yep. We live in way west Omaha.
So what do you love about living in small town, Nebraska?
I think it's the people. Everybody's always so friendly. What I like to see, I guess in the arena of entrepreneurship and business development, there's a lot of creativity. I think when you're in small towns and may not have as many resources available to you, I see some ingenuity, a lot of ways to get things done. And I think that's what's great about small town, Nebraska.
Well, thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today.
Yeah, we really enjoyed getting to meet you and great job and great work that you're doing right now.
Well, thank you so much. I appreciate you inviting me back to my hometown.
Let's go have some coffee.
Please stay tuned after this quick break for a big announcement concerning the Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast.
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Hey everyone, Marcie here. I'm popping on today to share a little podcast news. When we started the podcast, my goal was to help out Nebraska small towns that I loved so much and pursue my passion for writing. However, as Sheila and I quickly discovered a podcast is a full time and sometimes even more than a full time job. After much consideration and prayer after 38 episodes, I will no longer be co-hosting the Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast. But please don't be concerned. Sheila is going to continue to share how small towns can thrive. And I want you to check out her new Sheila's Shout-outs for places to visit across the state because we have some wonderful places. I want to thank our podcast listeners, sponsors, family and friends, everyone who's supported this venture into the Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast. And I encourage you to continue on with Sheila because she has great things planned. It was so special to meet so many fellow Nebraskans that are making such a difference in growing small towns and I am so lucky to be able to have the friendships that I've gained from that. I encourage you to view to get involved and to continue helping your small towns grow because as we know, Nebraska is the Good Life. And we want that to continue. So thank you to everyone and blessings on everything that you're going to be doing in the state of Nebraska.
I just want to take the time to wish Marcie the best in all that she does in her future endeavors. Without Marcie, the Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast would not have come to fruition. This was her idea. She brought me on board and I am very thankful for that. Look for a post on our Facebook page where you can wish Marcie well on her next adventures.
(music) If you're interested in being a guest or a sponsor of the show, you can find out more information on the website or email me at growingsmalltownne@gmail.com. The Growing Small Town Nebraska podcast can be found on Apple, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Amazon, Pandora, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. Regular episodes come out the second and fourth Tuesday of each month. Sheila's Shout Outs are on the first and third Tuesdays and sponsored podcasts launch on select Fridays. Join me again next time as I talk with business and community leaders who are working to revitalize the Cornhusker State. Thanks for listening!
