Women-led businesses are flourishing and contributing to economic growth around the world, according to a new survey.
Ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8, Facebook has released research revealing that 39 percent of people identifying as owners or managers of small businesses on the social platform are women across. The survey includes information from millions of women on Facebook across 95 countries.
One insight from the report shows the importance of women mentoring other women, with more than two in three female business owners saying they have a role model and 70 percent serving as mentors to other women.
Women-run businesses benefit from technology, the research states. The majority of survey participants – 81 percent – say social media is beneficial to their business. However, women-led companies are still facing financial obstacles, with only one in five survey respondents saying they currently have a bank loan or line of credit.
Facebook also discovered that International Women’s Day events increased 30 percent from 2017 to 2018 and the top countries that celebrated the holiday last year include: the U.S., Brazil, Mexico, India and Argentina.
Throughout the month of March, Facebook will host eight #SheMeansBusiness “Female Founders” events in the U.S., starting on International Women’s Day in Austin, Texas.
The social network plans on sharing stories about some of its female community leaders, such as Nadia Martinez, founder and owner of Kallie & Co, who launched a sustainable, socially conscious business on Facebook and Instagram that supports local artisans across the U.S. and Mexico.
If women business leaders can’t attend one of the events in person, they can host their own “Female Founders” activities by downloading Facebook’s online template, which includes an agenda, questions, planning materials and more.
Facebook also teamed up with artist Kenesha Sneed to design stickers and frames for the platform’s new Stories feature launch. Sneed, who is a small business owner herself, used inspirations from fellow female artists and mentors to create the art for Facebook.
Source
https://www.campaignlive.com/article/nearly-4-10-small-business-leaders-facebook-women/1577655
