Opportunity Fund Business Loans Campaign

According to a New York City’s comptroller report, more than 4,000 businesses in NYC closed between 2019 and 2021. In order to help small businesses that were affected by the pandemic, New York City launched a $75 million city loan fund (Opportunity Fund) program in late January 2023 to assist 1,500 businesses offering loans between $2,000 and $250,000. It was described as the city’s biggest public-private loan fund directed at small businesses. When the fund was announced, New York City Mayor Eric Adams stated “They (small businesses) were asking for help. They were asking for a lifeline, but we heard them.”

Miller has worked with New York City Small Business Services for many years bringing awareness to services SBS provides including getting permits/licenses, small business trainings, and getting New Yorkers to support local small businesses in their neighborhoods.

For the Opportunity Fund program, Miller was tasked with coming up with a multi-channel and multi-language advertising campaign approach using social media, community ethnic digital publications and radio, streaming radio, and out-of-home advertising including subway stations and convenience stores in order to bring awareness to NYC small businesses about the fund program and get them to apply for a loan.

Results: Three weeks after the Opportunity Fund launch, the program was paused due to the overwhelming number of applications from small businesses across NYC. More than 10,500 small businesses had applied. “What this is showing us is this huge demand for capital,” said Yanki Tschering, executive director of Accompany Capital which was one of the nonprofit financial institutions who helped small business owners with their applications.