CHARLESTON AREA ALLIANCE UNVEILS NEW SMALL BUSINESS TOOL

SizeUp Provides Free Market Research to Regional Business Owners and Entrepreneurs

Charleston, West Virginia (February 23, 2023) – The Charleston Area Alliance today launched SizeUp Charleston Area Alliance, a free interactive tool that provides custom market research and data to empower companies to make strategic and data-driven decisions. The SizeUp platform is sponsored by Fifth Third Bank, with support from the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation.

SizeUp Charleston Area Alliance is a web-based tool that incorporates large numbers of timely data sets that help businesses analyze the market and business costs. This data has historically been inaccessible to small businesses because of the cost and expertise required to analyze data. The Charleston Area Alliance is providing it at no cost to the Charleston MSA and it is available 24/7/365.

The service found at CharlestonAreaAlliance.org/SizeUp empowers companies and entrepreneurs to:

• Estimate the viability of their future or current business
• View information on how they compare to their competition
• Test assumptions of their business plan.
• Gather data to find targeted customers, suppliers and competitors
• Find guidance on how to introduce products and services at strategic moments in a business’ lifecycle
• Identify the best places to advertise
• Analyze wage and salary information

“Small businesses and entrepreneurs are the cornerstones of our economy,” said Nicole Christian, President & CEO of the Charleston Area Alliance. “We are committed to supporting them with the information they need to be successful. We are helping to level the playing field by providing our local businesses with market research and business insights that have typically only been available to well-funded and large corporations.”

“Fifth Third Bank wants the businesses that open in our area to succeed and grow. An important way to support our entrepreneurs is by starting them off with a solid foundation in their planning. SizeUp Charleston Area Alliance gives our entrepreneurs information they need to realistically assess their assumptions using data relevant to their industry and to discover business opportunities,” said Bob Welty, President, Fifth Third Bank.  “We know businesses require custom solutions to meet the moments they are navigating, so that is why Fifth Third Bank is committed to helping our entrepreneurs start, operate, and grow through the support of programs and services like SizeUp Charleston Area Alliance.”

The Charleston Area Alliance has created an online tutorial to explain the benefits of this tool and walk new users through a demonstration of its uses. This tutorial can also be found at CharlestonAreaAlliance.org/SizeUp. The Alliance encourages local governments, business support services, economic development professionals, professional services, and educators across the region to use this tool as a way to support local businesses and their clients.

“We know that small business owners and entrepreneurs work on their business at all hours and they need have access to this information when it’s convenient for them. That’s why we wanted to provide a tool and a resource that would be available whenever it is needed,” said Christian. “Thanks to Fifth Third Bank and the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation, we are able to offer access, free of charge, to a unique platform that will be a game-changer for the businesses in our community. We believe that SizeUp Charleston Area Alliance will be an instrument for business success.”

The Charleston Area Alliance is a multi-faceted economic, business and community development organization as well as the largest regional Chamber of Commerce in West Virginia. The Alliance attracts and retains innovative industries and workforce, revitalizes urban spaces and improves Charleston, West Virginia and the Kanawha Valley through a unified mission and strategic goals. Learn more about Alliance programs and events at www.charlestonareaalliance.org.

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