Ohio University’s Small Business Development Center experienced a banner year in 2024, significantly exceeding the goals set by the Ohio Department of Development and the Small Business Administration.
Melissa Jollick, director of the Ohio University SBDC since 2013, says the center surpassed its initial goal of $9 million in capital infusion, infusing over $20 million into businesses located in its 13-county area. It also assisted in a record number of new business startups and assisted over 1,000 clients in achieving their goals.
Jollick says that while the Ohio University SBDC has had successful years in the past, they were not as significant in her mind as 2024 was, because they were reliant on government programs passed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We had a really strong year (in 2020). But in my mind, it wasn’t organic. It was all these federal programs (like PPP and EIDL) being pushed down the pipeline,” Jollick explains.
The Ohio University SBDC offers services to help businesses with expansion, funding, marketing plans, and to help entrepreneurs start new businesses. The Ohio University SBDC’s services are provided at no cost, funded by the SBA, the Ohio Department of Development and Ohio University.
Some of the challenges of setting up a small business in southeastern Ohio include infrastructure issues and the time it takes to travel between counties. It takes an hour and a half to get from Athens to the furthest point in the Ohio University SBDC’s 13-county area.
Other issues include securing financing, which is crucial for many would-be entrepreneurs in southeast Ohio, where challenges related to credit scores and bankability are common.
The Ohio University SBDC also provides other resources, including databases and GIS software, to help clients identify target markets and locations for expansion. Jollick says providing high-quality assistance through the various tools and resources available to the Ohio University SBDC is one of the most important services it provides.
“I think one of the things that one of the reasons why we are so successful is we have a lot of tools that are in our toolbox that enable us to provide very high quality assistance to clients,” Jollick explains. “If we have a client that wants to expand and they want to get a different storefront or a different facility, we can help work with them to identify their target market on both a geographic, psychographic and demographic level.
While the Ohio University SBDC enjoyed a record year in small business creation, over half of its clients are existing businesses in the region who want to grow or who have a history of turning to the Ohio University SBDC. Jollick says the Ohio University SBDC doesn’t just assist startups and that she has worked with some clients for over a decade.
“Long term clients are really important to us. We look at retaining jobs within our region,” Jollick said. “It’s way easier to retain a job and to find ways to keep that business going than starting a new business and creating jobs. So retaining jobs in our region is incredible.”
The crowning achievement of the Ohio University SBDC was receiving a Best Customer Satisfaction award at the Ohio SBDC statewide convention in November 2024. The Ohio University SBDC also received a 100% net promoter score, which measures the percentage of clients surveyed who would refer the Ohio University SBDC to others.
“It’s very rare that an organization receives a score of 100% which we did, plus we received a very high overall customer satisfaction award,” Jollick said. So that was an exciting thing at the end of the year to be awarded with that designation.”
Jollick says the Ohio University SBDC’s responsiveness and urgency in its approach to working with clients quickly and effectively is what sets it apart from other SBDCs across the state. Advisors at the Ohio University SBDC will often go the extra mile, such as responding to text messages from clients on weekends or setting up meetings within the hour.
“Myself and all of my staff, we have a sense of urgency. We truly have a sense of urgency to reach out and to connect with clients and answer and to figure out how we can assist them more,” Jollick explains. “In today’s world, I think having that sense of urgency is so critical.”