This an abridged version of the original article, entitled “Why Smaller Cities Can Be the Perfect Place for A Growing Company,” which first appeared in on Techstars.com.
5 Advantages For Entrepreneurs Of the Smaller City
01. Smaller cities allow innovators to develop and penetrate social and business networks quickly
The startup community in a smaller city is often better connected than in larger, more dispersed places. You can easily meet everyone you want to meet. People tend to know each other socially as well as professionally, and someone you know is likely to be connected to the next person you want to meet. Access to decision makers is also often much easier, in small, highly-connected places.
02. Smaller cities create more obvious centers of density
When a community is small to begin with, density is easier to achieve. Often, resources relevant for entrepreneurs concentrate within a few blocks, making meetings with multiple stakeholders possible in a single afternoon. This leads to efficiencies of time and connections that may take twice as long to navigate in a bigger place.
03. Smaller cities are more affordable
Both cost of living and cost of office space in smaller cities are often one-half to one-third the cost of equivalent amenities in larger markets. You can afford a bigger, nicer space. Or you can stretch your hard-earned resources: give yourself a longer runway between funding rounds or build a product that requires a certain level of sophistication before sales are possible. These lower fixed costs let you do more with less.
04. Smaller cities allow innovators to be more visible
Startups stand out in smaller places, precisely because what they do is different. The fresh approach and the guts that it takes to chart a new path often create curiosity in the larger community — and interest from local media. Word of mouth, along with a few well-placed media spots, can make it easier for startups in a smaller city to become known more quickly.
05. Smaller cities make it easier to focus
We all know how difficult it can be to weather “mentor whiplash” or “opportunity overload” as a growing company. Smaller communities allow founders to concentrate on the things that are real and tangible right in front of them, filter out the noise that crashes through flashier markets, and do the important work of making progress against milestones and developing traction with a concentrated set of customers.
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