New Course Offers Hands-On Training to Local Small Businesses

Local First Arizona’s Rural Business Academy features a
six-week course covering digital marketing. 

PHOENIX (January 31, 2022) — In February 2022, Local First Arizona and South32 will launch a first-of-its-kind intensive Rural Business Academy in Santa Cruz County, with a digital marketing course to focus on unique challenges faced by rural entrepreneurs. This course is facilitated for six weeks with up to 12 participants and led by an expert in the field. The course offers opportunities to collaborate with peers and one-on-one with mentors. The goal is to provide hands-on learning, real-world exercises and take-home tools that strengthen each business where it’s needed most. Applications for this course are now open and can be found at localfirstaz.com/scc-business-academy.

Stepping into entrepreneurship is not easy, especially in rural Arizona. The success of entrepreneurship in a community directly correlates to its strength and resilience. Additionally, independent businesses contribute to the character of a community and raise the standard of living by circulating their profits through other local businesses and employing local residents. Currently, there are approximately 28.8M small businesses in the United States, which employ 48% of all private sector employees, generate 63% of all new jobs and 46% of the GDP. 

Digital Marketing Course

Participants will receive hands-on training on social media and digital marketing strategies that are key for rural businesses. The training covers SEO, Facebook, Google My Business, Yelp, TripAdvisor and Instagram. Participants will walk away from this course armed with a social media planning calendar that will guide content strategies across all platforms, which will align with the goals of their business. 

Only 12 participants will be accepted into the course, at a reduced cost of $99/participant thanks to the support of South32. Ideal candidates are those with businesses established for at least three years located in a rural community in Santa Cruz County. 

For more information or to subscribe for the latest updates on the Rural Business Academy, please visit localfirstaz.com/scc-business-academy or email Katie Boddy at katie@localfirstaz.com. 

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About Local First Arizona

Founded in 2003, Local First Arizona (LFA) is a community and economic development organization working to strengthen local economies. LFA’s areas of focus include developing entrepreneurship, rural and urban community development, racial equity, environmental action and food access. LFA is the largest local business coalition in the U.S. and advocates for independently-owned businesses of all sizes by assisting local owners with technical assistance designed to help them compete and collaborate, which ultimately strengthens Arizona's economy and builds hometown pride. Visit www.localfirstaz.com for more information and a directory of more than 3,000 locally-owned businesses.