If you want your business to succeed, being digitally savvy is no longer an option. New Ontario small business grants are providing funding for small businesses to upgrade their digital assets, modernize their operations and capitalize on the wealth of opportunities that user data can offer. Today, the global economy is an ever-evolving, hyper-competitive world, where consumers have 24/7 access to an infinite shopping mall in their pocket and anything they could ever want is just a click, swipe or tap away. Successful businesses must be resilient, resourceful and ready to adapt to the latest industry trends and shifting needs of consumers2. By taking advantage of Ontario small business grants, you’re empowering your business to keep up and thrive in the modern marketplace. As Canada’s most populated and, arguably, busiest province, small business grants in Ontario are plentiful compared to other regions. Here, we’ve compiled a guide highlighting some of the most exciting digitally-minded Ontario small business support grants available in 2022.
Full-Service Digital Solutions, From Grant Application to Project Execution
PaintedRobot is here to help you take advantage of these once-in-a-lifetime funding opportunities with our 360 digital services. First, we’ll give you all the tools you need to apply for small business grants in Canada through our program development and grant-writing services. Then, we’ll design custom, cutting-edge solutions to execute your digital adoption plan seamlessly. Interested? Keep reading for an overview of digital adoption small business grants available in your region. If your business could benefit from digital adoption, or if you have an innovative digital project in mind, contact PaintedRobot today. Let’s bring your vision to life!
Ontario Small Business Support Grants
Ontario Creates Industry Development Program
Deadline: August 11, 2022 by 5 pm
Ontario Creates Interactive Digital Media Fund
Deadline: August 29, 2022 by 5 pm
Tourism Relief Fund
Deadline: March 31, 2023
Ontario Small Business Grants
Ontario Creates Industry Development Program – Deadline: August 11, 2022 by 5 pm
The Ontario Creates Industry Development Program provides support to Ontario’s established trade and event organizations for initiatives, events and activities that enhance the growth and sustainability of the Ontario film, television, magazine, book and interactive digital media sectors.
Funding:
Typically, this Ontario small business grant provides funding valued between $5,000 and $35,000 for up to 75% of eligible costs.This innovative Ontario business grant opportunity includes two streams of funding.
Business Development – Supports organizations for business to business (B2B) industry activities and business to consumer (B2C) audience development activities that offer opportunities for new business leads, sales and relationships.
Capacity Building – Supports strategic activities that address challenges and opportunities or environmental changes that contribute to either the capacity of the applicant organization or its stakeholder group.
For both the streams, three priority areas have been identified for 2022-23:
- Skills development, mentorship and increased workforce capacity
- Diversity and inclusion
- Marketing and discoverability, including high impact B2B opportunities
Program Requirements:
- Successful applications must expand skills, business capacity, market share, sales, and innovation.
- Activities must demonstrate the potential for measurable results for Ontario companies that create and sell content in the book, magazine, film, television, and interactive digital media sectors, and/or any combination of these sectors.
Organizations must contact the program coordinator before submitting an application to confirm their eligibility.
Ontario Creates Interactive Digital Media Fund – Deadline: August 29, 2022 by 5 pm
The Ontario Creates Interactive Digital Media (IDM) Fund provides IDM content creators with funding for high quality, original interactive digital media content projects that contribute to the Ontario economy through encouraging cultural or educational interactive experiences. Funding is available in two program streams which support the Concept Definition and Production of market-ready digital content that will be released or sold to end users once production is complete.
Funding:
- Successful applicants will receive a non-refundable contribution of up to 50% of eligible Ontario expenses.
- Concept Definition projects can request grants valued at a minimum of $10,000 and maximum of $50,000.
- Production projects can request grants valued between $25,000 and $300,000.
Project Requirements:
Interactive Digital Media Fund proposals must meet the following eligibility criteria. The content must:
- Support cultural connections;
- Consist of a combination of at least two of text, sound, and images;
- Entertain, inform, or educate;
- Be unique and be released on interactive digital media platforms such as the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and Sony Playstation Store as the primary Canadian distribution channel;
- Target consumers, groups of consumers, or educational institutions; and
- Be revenue-generating.
Applicable projects include, but are not limited to, the development of mobile applications and custom websites. PaintedRobot excels at designing mobile applications with optimized UX, interactive websites and editing video content. Connect with us and let’s strategize about how you can make the most of this amazing Ontario small business support grant opportunity!
All applications must be submitted to the Ontario Creates Online Application Portal (OAP). As such, prior to submitting your application, your business’s corporate information must be registered with OAP. To create a user account on OAP, go to https://apply.ontariocreates.ca and click “Register”. Applicants are encouraged to begin the application process well in advance of the deadline in case technical support is required. For all technical questions regarding OAP, you can email applyhelp@ontariocreates.ca for assistance.
Tourism Relief Fund – Deadline: March 31, 2023
The Tourism Relief Fund supports tourism businesses and organizations by helping them meet public health requirements while investing in the development of products and services which facilitate their sustained growth.
Funding:
The Tourism Relief Fund has a budget of $500 million over two years, including $50 million dedicated to Indigenous tourism initiatives and $15 million for national initiatives. It will grant up to $100,000 for 50% of eligible project costs.
Project Requirements:
Eligible projects will:
- Empower tourism businesses to create new or enhance existing tourism experiences and products to attract more local and domestic visitors
- Help sector reposition itself to welcome international visitors by providing the best Canadian tourism experiences we have to offer the world
- Help tourism businesses modernize their operations, attractions and online sales services
- Support businesses with the local promotion of tourism products, including digital and virtual reality experiences
This new Ontario business grant is designed to fund an array of digital adoption projects, from interactive and accessible web design, mobile application development, digital marketing campaigns and more. Connect with us today to chat about how we can help you take advantage of this Ontario small business support grant opportunity, and learn more about our expertise by checking out case studies from our recent clients.
We can help with your Digital Adoption Plan:
From Grant Application to Technical Execution
If you’ve got a great digital project idea, connect with us at PaintedRobot! We’re happy to help you put together your application every step of the way, from program development to key messaging and grant writing. And of course, we have all the business solutions and digital production services you need to implement your vision, from UX web design, native mobile app development and integrated data-driven operating systems.
Our team of skilled writers and program developers can help you craft the best messaging strategy for your application, and help you outline a budget for your proposed project. If you believe that your business could benefit from these funds but don’t have a specific program in mind, connect with us to discuss what kinds of digital adoption projects would be the most effective for your business.
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