Small Business Owners Still Skeptical of Stimulus

Will the $787 billion federal stimulus package really create more opportunities for your business? Small business owners hope so, but many remain skeptical, according to a Fortune Small Business/Zogby poll conducted in March and published on CNN.com. Of the small business owners surveyed, 33 percent said the stimulus package wouldn't impact their business at all, and 31 percent said it would impact their business negatively. While 22 percent weren't sure how the stimulus would affect their business, 14 percent predicted a positive affect.
Though the billion-dollar package doesn't require government agencies to spend a penny with small business, one small business owner, Geoff Chapin, who runs the green remodeling company Next Step Living, is confident that he'll get his piece of government pie. "We plan to hire up to 120 people in the next 18 months," he was quoted as saying. The key, he says, is not only having the capacity to handle many different types of projects, but also capitalizing on your relationship with government agencies and documenting ways that you can save them money and time