THERE is just one day left for young businesses to enter Local Business Accelerators to into a national competition.
BT has become the latest high profile organisation to add to the prize package for the overall winner.
BT has come on board to offer free business broadband and WiFi access for a year, including wireless router and free installation, and the design and management of a website, with ecommerce if required.
More than 1,100 businesses have already entered the competition in the hope of winning , free advertising in their local newspaper and mentoring from local business leaders.
Next year, one business will be crowned the overall LBA winner, scooping the grand prize of mentoring from Deborah Meaden, the campaign’s national ambassador, another free ad campaign in their local paper, and a host of other prizes including £10,000 from the Business Growth Fund.
Backed by business champion and Dragons Den star Deborah Meaden, Prime Minister David Cameron and John Cridland, director general of employers’ organisation the CBI, the LBA aims to support small firms all over the country as part of a drive by local newspapers through the Newspaper Society.
The competition is worth £15m in free advertising and mentoring for regional and national winners and is supported by more than 500 newspapers across the UK.
Businesses in existence for between one and five years are eligible to enter for the chance to win a free advertising campaign in their local paper, plus mentoring support from local business leaders.
The most promising businesses will go forward to the national stage of the competition to win a year’s mentoring from Deborah Meaden and a local advertising campaign devised by a top London creative ad agency.
For more information and to fill out the online entry form, visit the LBA hub, which is available at www.accelerateme.co.uk.
