Prepare Your Business

Research the market

MorningStar Investment Research Center – Market data, analysis, and education. Look up stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, market analysis, and portfolios. Finance courses on stocks, funds, and portfolio building; regular market outlook reports; and analyses of over 2000 companies, funds, and ETFs.
Value Line – Investment information including ratings for stock/fund safety and timeliness, daily expert market analysis, and targeted investment recommendations in the “Special Situations” publication.
AtoZdatabases – Find sales leads, create mailing lists, conduct market research, and find employment opportunities.
Gale OneFile (subject databases)
- Business – Full-text coverage of all business disciplines through nearly 4,000 leading business and trade publications, updated daily.
- Communications and Mass Media – Academic journals and magazines focusing on all aspects of the communications field including advertising and public relations, literature and writing, linguistics, and more.
- Economics and Theory – Academic journals and magazines focusing on topics in economics and related fields.
- Entrepreneurship – Academic journals and magazines perfect for both business school students and entrepreneurs including insights, tips, strategies and success stories.
US Small Business Administration – Complete market research and competitive analysis.

Write a plan

Find the funding

Foundation Directory Online – Research 92,000 nonprofit funders and more than 1.3 million recent grants made to institutions. (Temporary at-home access available during HCLS’s closure due to COVID-19. Our thanks to Candid!)

Local (Howard County)

Howard County Economic Development Authority – Funding Options
Howard County Government – Business Support – Assistance, Loans, Grants, and Programs.
Maryland Financial Incentives for Business
The Catalyst Fund – by the Howard County Economic Development Authority is part of Maryland’s Video Lottery Terminal Small, Minority and Woman-Owned Business Account Initiative.

State

Maryland Small Business Development Financing Authority
TEDCO (Technology Development Corporation) – Builder, Seed, Venture funds and Tech Transfer
MARBIDCO – Small grants for specific agricultural and rural-based industry business ventures.
Micro Loans for Business Owners
Maryland Department of Commerce – Provides state funding and incentive programs offering business assistance.
Financial Incentives – Tax credits, loans, grants, and more.

Federal

US Grants – Find, Apply, Succeed
Small Business Administration Lender Match – Free online referral tool that connects small businesses with participating SBA-approved lenders.
USA.gov – The U.S. government’s official web site.
- Benefits, Grants & Loans – Learn about government programs that provide financial help for individuals and organizations (includes CARES Act assistance for individuals & businesses during emergencies like the Coronavirus Pandemic and more).
- Money & Taxes – Learn about taxes, money the government may owe you, investing, credit help, and more.
- FEMA Resilience Grants – contains information on preparedness grants funding provided by FEMA to state, local, tribal and territorial governments in the form of non-disaster grants.

Pick a location

Choose a business structure

Maryland Business Express – choose a structure
Small Business Administration – review, combine and compare business structures.
IRS.gov – decide what form of business entity to establish.

Select a name

Maryland Business Express Business Name Search