Empowering women entrepreneurs to start successful businesses

For women, starting a business might feel like you’re stepping into a world dominated by men. And you’d be right. According to the U.S. Census, “women entrepreneurs own approximately 20 percent of all employer businesses nationwide.” But for those women who do start businesses, the First Round 10 Year Project found companies with female founders performed 63 percent better than those with all-male founding teams, in terms of return on investment.

Women entrepreneurs also tend to generate higher revenues, create more jobs, provide more effective leadership and have more interest in expansion than male entrepreneurs, according to FitSmallBusiness.com. And even though we’ve come a long way, for women, starting a business still comes with its fair share of difficulties.

Let’s take a look at some important challenges women entrepreneurs face and some tips for overcoming them.

Challenge: Funding

Every organization needs funding. But for women entrepreneurs, getting that funding is almost always more difficult. According to Inc., just 13 percent of the angel funding available is awarded to female-founded businesses, and female CEOs receive just 2.7 percent of all venture funding.

Tip: Look beyond angel and venture funding

Many organizations recognize the challenges faced by small, women-owned businesses and have programs in place designed specifically for them. So, take advantage of what’s available and seek help, resources and funding from companies that work to empower women in business. To help you get started, here are five organizations worth exploring.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) offers training and funding opportunities designed specifically to help women start and grow their businesses. Their Office of Women’s Business Ownership offers information on federal contracting, loan sourcing and more resources.
Connect with the Astia Advisor network. This non-profit organization provides investment capital for businesses with at least one female in a business decision-making position. Astia also works to help women build connections and provides guidance to help women entrepreneurs thrive.
The National Women’s Business Council (NWBC) is a non-partisan federal advisory committee that provides advice and policy recommendations to the President, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business Administration on economic issues of importance to women business owners. The NWBC can help you understand important issues that may impact your business.
The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) is a dues-based organization that supports women entrepreneurs with funding information, educational opportunities, resources, national, regional and local events, news, information and advocacy.

Challenge: Societal expectations

With women owning just 20 percent of all businesses nationwide, women starting a business might feel less than, rather than equal to. Or they might feel compelled to adopt what much of society has deemed more stereotypical “male” behaviors, like a more cutthroat, competitive attitude and an aggressive or harder demeanor, just to be seen as an equal or as a leader.

Tip: Be yourself and lead by example

You deserve a place at the table whether you’re naturally more competitive or inclusive, easy-going or hard-driving, friendly, straightforward, or even blunt. You’ve worked hard, you know your business and you’re smart. Just because you may not look, dress, talk or act like anyone else in the room, that doesn’t mean you’re not capable.

Instead, show your strength by being confident in who you are and what you do. When you’re authentic, people see it. It puts you and others at ease. It allows people to trust you and it allows you to relax, learn more, grow more and share your knowledge and enthusiasm for your business without the stress of maintaining a façade that others can probably see, too.

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Challenge: Not being taken seriously

Many women entrepreneurs have said they’re not taken as seriously as their male counterparts. So, whether you’re starting a tech company or a cosmetics company, a retail store or a consulting firm, at some point you’ll probably find yourself in a room with people who think you got to your position more by luck or nepotism than hard work, skill or knowledge.

Tip: Own your successes, your strengths & your knowledge

Confidence and knowledge can help you overcome others’ negative perceptions. By talking about your successes, strengths, knowledge and experiences in the “I” rather than the “we,” you can “own” your business even when others in the room may not be ready or able to hear it. In addition, being prepared and anticipating questions about who you are and what you do can help you open others’ eyes to your knowledge and professionalism, which can also go a long way toward helping them see you as the expert you are.

Three more tips for all women entrepreneurs

For women entrepreneurs, there will always be challenges, but there are three things that can help mitigate the stress of those challenges and set you up for success.

Start a business you’re truly passionate about. By doing what you love, you’ll be inspired to learn, grow and stay at the forefront of your field. This, in turn, will help you develop more confidence, so that when you do speak about your business, it will seem like a natural extension of yourself.
Find a mentor. For female entrepreneurs, especially, mentors can help you gain confidence. But they can also share their experiences with you, help you find resources, learn new skills, understand the business landscape, prepare for investment meetings, make contacts and help you know that no matter what may come, you can face it.
Angel investors can be used for investment capital and mentorship but given that women starting a business generally receive so little of the angel investment funding available, you may have to go outside your investment pool to find a mentor. Which is where organizations like the SBA, Astia Advisor and NAWBO can help.

If you’d rather work with a local mentor, try contacting your city’s chamber of commerce, a local business association or reaching out to a nearby SCORE office. They should be able to point you in the right direction or even facilitate a mentor match. If there’s a local business person you admire and would love to be your mentor, take the bold step of inviting them out for coffee and asking to be mentored.

They may say “no” or refer you to someone else, but it’s always worth asking. Find the right investor. Working with an investor that will nurture you, believes in your vision, understands the challenges you may face and has a similar philosophy (and personality) can go a long way toward helping you succeed. So be sure to really get to know the people you’ll be working with.

And don’t forget to include your mentor in the conversations. This way, they can give you their professional opinion, help you weigh your options and ultimately make a more informed decision.

The Microsoft 365 team is focused on sharing resources to help you start, run, and grow your business.

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