- Facebook announces it’s putting $100 million toward a new grants program to financially support as many as 30,000 small businesses spread across 30 countries.
- “We know that your business may be experiencing disruptions from the global outbreak of COVID-19, so we are offering $100 million in cash grants and ad credits to help during this challenging time,” said Facebook.
- The grant money will be available for personnel costs, business location rental fees, operational costs, and Facebook ads.
- The application process hasn’t started yet but should be up in the next few weeks.
- Businesses are encouraged to sign-up for updates about the program on the Facebook Small Business Grants site.
- During Facebook’s earning call, Mark Zuckerberg stated the role SMBs play on the platform.
- “There are now more than 140 million small businesses that use our services to grow – the vast majority of which use our services for free, said Zuckerberg, having small businesses succeed is not only key to creating broad economic growth where everyone can support themselves; it’s also important to maintaining healthy communities.”
- Mark Zuckerberg also said a top priority, “was to keep building its business by, supporting the millions of businesses – mostly small businesses – that rely on our service to grow.”
- Last year, Facebook earned nearly $70 billion in ad revenue – a number that could take a significant hit if Facebook’s SMB advertisers are unable to survive the pandemic.
- Facebook has made its Business Hub available to all businesses and plans to create virtual training programs to help SMBs navigate the uncertainty of today’s economic environment.
SCOOTER NOTE: If you’re a small business facing possible shut-down make sure to sign up now for the Facebook Small Business Grants Program. You will be notified when the application process has opened.