Small Town Search Tips?

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November 06, 2024

by a searcher from Peru State College in Lincoln, NE, USA

I’m in Lincoln, NE, a smaller city of less than 300,000 people without any metros. Wanting to exhaust my options here before expanding.

Has anybody had success in a smaller town like this? Tips? Do the old school methods like hand written letters and door knocking work? How did you source your list of businesses?

I love the hunt, ready to get to work.

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commentor profile
Reply by a searcher
from The University of Chicago in Santa Cruz, CA, USA
I have done local networking (Santa Cruz CA- similar size) I found that at the chamber events, the audience was more the "hustling in their 20's" crowd - I assume more established owners get less value from those events. I did a proprietary letter campaign locally as well. I had some very interesting conversations out of it but not great prospects.

I would strongly recommend local networking in your first 6 months, to dramatically accelerate your understanding businesses and fit with your own interests. Your "No's" are just as valuable as your yes's at that point. At my current stage I am more focused on searching further afield, based on more specific criteria that are unlikely to be met here.
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Reply by an intermediary
from University of Wisconsin Oshkosh in Milwaukee, WI, USA
Thanks for the mention Luke. I have a couple of comments. Why limit the search to just Lincoln. Omaha is not that far away and might have opportunities. I find a lot of searchers that look in an area that is a 2 hour drive, I need to also mention that we have worked with businesses in much smaller towns that Lincoln. So do not give up but be willing to look beyond just the Lincoln market.
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