Level Up! Digital Marketing Program

Level Up! Digital Marketing Program is sponsored by Riverside County. This program assists businesses in enhancing their digital marketing strategies and online presence through virtual training and one-on-one consultations.

Upon completion of the program, participants receive a $2,000 grant for digital advertising campaigns.

Riverside County Main Street Digital - OCIE SBDC Main Street Digital Grant Program Riverside County Main Street Digital Grant Program The County of Riverside is offering a six-week Main Street Digital Grant Program, which will provide training and funding to small brick-and-mortar retail businesses.

Riverside County-based businesses continued the need for financial assistance to increase their revenue due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is based on the availability of funds, program guidelines, successfully completing the training, and submission of all required information and supporting documentation.

Businesses that complete training may be eligible to receive a digital marketing grant of one thousand dollars ($1000. 00). The grant must be used by the business for a paid advertising campaign, developed during the training program and in conjunction with an SBDC consultant.

Applications will open soon . Applications received online after this due date and time will be considered late and will not be accepted so long as the County has received at least 28 qualified applications by the stated deadline. The County anticipates the number of applications will exceed the amount of grant funding available for disbursement under this program.

As a result, grant funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Please complete the entirety of the application and ensure all of your information is correct. If required fields are not complete you will receive an error notice which will not allow you to submit the application.

For best results, we recommend using the following browsers: Chrome, Safari, Firefox. After submitting your application, you will receive an email confirmation. The SBDC has created a new virtual training program aimed at assisting brick-and-mortar retail businesses with “Creating a Digital Presence” for their business.

Each small business owner will learn how to set-up an online profile through Google, will reach out to customers for a Google review and will learn how to create and send Facebook or Instagram posts. The program will highlight how to use paid and non-paid advertising to generate leads that turn into sales.

The program will culminate with business owners receiving their grant funds to put towards advertising that will generate customer traffic. The program will consist of two steps: Step 1 will focus on building a digital presence over four (4) weeks; and Step 2 will uncover the unique paid and non-paid advertising channels and what is the right path for each business owner.

All sessions will take place in a group format and will be coupled with individual one-on-one consulting with SBDC consultants. Step 1 : Building a Digital Presence Selected businesses will first complete three sessions on building a digital presence.

Understanding how customers find you in a digital world Creating your own Google profile Week 2: Reaching my Audience through Facebook and Instagram Capturing pictures and video Creating a successful: call to action Week 3: My First Facebook/Instagram Post How to post a video or picture to Facebook or Instagram Each business owner will post their video/picture Week 4: The Right Channel for My Business How to generate leads/customers to your business Creating KPI’s that Matter Understanding why a website is important Step 2 : Understanding How to Drive Traffic through Paid/Non-Paid Advertising Different types of advertising campaigns on Facebook (FB) and Instagram (IG) What is the cost to run an ad campaign?

How much should you spend? What should you be measuring? What goes in a FB/IG ad campaign Are Twitter and TikTok a good option for your business?

Week 6 – Setting up the FB/IG Campaign Let’s put together and launch your FB/IG Campaign What are you offering (Call to action and image/video)? Which Keywords are you using? How much are you spending?

Wrap-up : Utilizing Grant for Paid Advertising – Measuring and Tracking Each business owner will be assigned a SBDC business consultant to assist them with their paid advertising platform. The SBDC consultant will provide one-on-one assistance, customized to each business owner’s needs. The SBDC will continue to work with each client through the program and beyond.

Every quarter, the SBDC will track and measure the success of each business owner as they deploy their marketing campaigns. The SBDC will track change in sales, jobs created and increase in customer traffic.

To be eligible to apply for the Main Street Digital Grant Program, a business must meet certain criteria that has been established by the County of Riverside and the guidelines set forth by the U.S. Department of Treasury for utilizing ARPA funds.

General Terms and Conditions* The applicant must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered for grant funding: The applicant must be a for-profit commercially zoned brick and mortar retail business physically located in the County of Riverside; Cannabis-related businesses, gambling facilities, adult entertainment businesses, massage parlors, largely cash-based businesses and home-based businesses are not eligible; Residential or real estate projects including short-term rental operators are also not eligible; The applicant must be in compliance with any applicable permits and licensing requirements for business; The applicant must be in good standing with the County and/or City where their business is located (current on bills, no liens or judgements, etc.); The business must submit the application and all required supporting documentation; and The applicant must attest that it experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19.

Must attend a “Financial Literacy” webinar through AmPac (After completing the training program and has begun one-on-one consulting) Complete and submit Grant application (will receive link from OCIE SBDC, when all above items completed) Must agree to complete required surveys Must not be a current or former (within the last 18 months) staff or immediate family of an OCIE SBDC Network staff or consultant Must not have received a grant from the Riverside County Thrive Program or the California Dream Fund – only one grant per entity and person is allowed.

The funds must be used to develop a paid advertising campaign for the purpose of increasing revenue to offset lost revenue due to COVID-19 impacts. Each applicant will need to sign and self-attest, under penalty of perjury that the use of funds will be spent on a paid advertising campaign, such as expressed above. Any use of funding other than for paid advertising is strictly prohibited.

For additional information regarding the Main Street Digital Grant Program, please contact: Office of Economic Development For questions about the guidelines and application or assistance in completing the application and to set up a one-on-one consultation (at no cost), please contact the SBDC at: Maria Cruz Lascano, Program Coordinator 44-199 Monroe Street, Suite B (760) 863-7867 office Mlascano@rivco.

org Riverside County Main Street Digital Mike Daniel is the network director of the Orange County Inland Empire SBDC Network, which assists aspiring entrepreneurs and current business owners throughout Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Mike was formerly the director of the SBDC office at Long Beach City College.

As business owner and entrepreneur himself, he started his career as the owner of a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory location in Manhattan Beach and went on to open a second location in Long Beach in 2001. In 2007, Mike sold the Manhattan Beach store for an above-market offer then invested in several additional locations as a minority shareholder.

Mike further expanded his candy empire with venture located in Shoreline Village in Long Beach called Sugar Daddies Sweet Shoppe, based on fill-it yourself candy options. Mike has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from California State University, Fullerton.