Computer-driven financing: these information-service technologies can help you find capital for your company - software packages that provide information on venture capital sources

Black Enterprise, June, 1994 by Carolyn M. Brown

These information-service technologies can help you find capital for your company.

When it comes to financing your business, half the battle is knowing where to go for "seed" money. The right source for capital can certainly help your business grow and even flourish.

As you know, the market is flooded with reference books that list venture capitalists and other lending sources. There are also a number of agencies that can provide the same information. To use either, however, means spending hours on the phone or in the library. So, to make your life easier, there are a number of computer-based services that will help you find funding sources.

Nearly a dozen business groups and universities, for instance, house computer networks that match entrepreneurs with private or institutional investors (see "Matchmaking For Venture Capital," Enterprise, this issue). What's ideal about this type of service is that you don't need a computer to get with the program. Your company's information is simply stored in the database for subscribing investors to peruse.

If you can't tolerate the notion of "Don't call us, we'll call you," consider getting CapitalBase from Applied Marketing Inc., Oklahoma City, Okla. (800-639-8841). This DOS-based program ($99) provides over 10,000 financing sources, listing not only angel (private investor) networks, but federal and state programs, microlenders, investment bankers and commercial finance companies as well. Capital-Base merely gives you the information. It's up to you to find the right source that meets your need for capital.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is also doing its part in helping entrepreneurs find start-up capital. As long as you have a computer, modem, phone line and communications software, you can tap into the SBA's computer-based electronic bulletin board service, SBA Online.

Available 23 hours a day, all year round, SBA Online provides funding contacts, a calendar of SBA-sponsored events and an electronic mail service. Through SBA E-mail, you can hook up with business interest groups, from home construction to mail-order to desktop publishing.

Better still, you can actually download files from other agencies, including the IRS and the U.S. Patent Office. Best of all, this service is free of charge.

What if you are having a hard time putting together that all-important business plan? Well, you can take advantage of the SBA's electronic training courses on everything from developing that plan to marketing your business or operating a franchise.

Another plus: You can access a variety of publications on starting and operating a business, programs for minorities, government procurement and laws and regulations for small businesses. There's also a hotline for technical support.

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