Although PLANOLY is a global brand with team members throughout the US and users on every continent, Austin is the city we call home. It's where many of us live and work, and embed ourselves into the fabric of the community.Austin has long been championed as "the live music capital of the world." But in more recent times, the city has grown into a budding tech hub and an emerging leader in the service and hospitality industries – among others. Local small businesses are the very backbone of our city. Unfortunately, because of this, Austin is struggling.Our hometown is grappling with shutdowns and closures. The community of local small businesses that we've grown to know and love is one hit the hardest.To lend relief to the city we call home and its small business community that we hold dear, today we're honored to announce Designing Change, PLANOLY's philanthropic initiative. We are launching it with the Local Love Grant – awarding two Austin-based small businesses $5,000 each to help relieve financial hardships due to COVID-19. The winners of the Local Love Grant will also receive a year's worth of free PLANOLY and one-on-one mentoring sessions with a social marketing expert.As a part of the small business community, it's our responsibility to help our peers and fellow entrepreneurs. PLANOLY has made it its mission to empower businesses of all sizes to share their unique story and carry out their digital marketing strategies seamlessly. Moreover, given the time-sensitivity that these citywide closures place on small businesses, we have accelerated the Local Love Grant application and review process to reflect the urgency businesses are facing today.

Local Love Grant Selection Process

Mar. 31- Apr. 7: Applications will be open to small businesses for one week.The deadline to apply is Tuesday, April 7, 11:59 PM CST. Apr. 16, 2020: Winners will be notified to redeem grants.Apr. 20, 2020: PLANOLY will publicly announce grant winners on social media andfeature businesses on our blog.

Local Love Grant Qualifications

If you meet the following, you're qualified to apply.

• Must be a small business based in Austin/ Travis County or Williamson County
• Business must be a brick and mortar/physical establishment
• Business owner(s) must be US residents
• Must have a business that was forced to pivot, temporarily close, or shut down due to COVID-19 crisis
• Must have no more than 20 full time or part-time employees
• Business owner(s) must be 18 or older to apply

The small business community is one we're humbled to be part of. We recognize and understand that being in a position to offer these grants represents a certain degree of privilege. A privilege that means absolutely nothing unless we use it to help others.To apply, visit the Local Love Grant and simply fill out the application by Tuesday, April 7.Once you're done, encourage your followers to share their support and spread #locallove using our new "Show Your Support" StoriesEdit templates on social media. The template collection is in honor of the many small businesses that keep us going, keep us inspired, and keep us motivated to pursue what we love.