Episode 2: Building Communities of Rural Founders featuring Paula Jensen

In Start Dakota episode 2, "Building Communities of Rural Founders," Paula Jensen, Vice President of Program Development & Community Coach at Dakota Resources and Brienne Maner, Executive Director of Startup Sioux Falls, discuss empowering rural founders through their partnership, which is made possible by the SBA Community Navigator Pilot Program.

Show Notes:

• Learn more about Dakota Resources at https://www.dakotaresources.org/.
• Dakota Resources is partnering with regional economic development organizations in five rural South Dakota communities including Watertown, Yankton, Vermillion, Mitchell, and Brookings. We are hosting CO.STARTERS cohorts in 2022-2023. Here’s what we’re offering:
• Mitchell Area Chamber of Commerce and Development Corporation in Mitchell, SD

• Yankton Thrive in Yankton, SD
• Brookings Chamber of Commerce in Brookings, SD
• Watertown Development Company in Watertown, SD
• Vermillion Chamber and Development Company in Vermillion, SD
• CO.STARTERS Challenge: Know your customer.
  • Test, iterate and revise any assumptions you’ve made about your product or service to make sure your solution is what a customer wants. How do you do this? Through customer discovery—talking to people and getting their feedback.
  • Complete your “fieldwork” before the next episode: Conduct your own customer discovery. Talk to a future customer each week for the next month. 
  • This exercise will show you where you’re strong and where you’re stuck.
• Business Minute: Learn more about SD CEO at https://www.bhsu.edu/sdceo.