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Due to its low cost and targeted reach, digital advertising is invaluable for small businesses seeking to compete on level footing with other, larger businesses.

Today in Arizona, the state is home to more than 611,000 small business — including my own company, based in Glendale. Statewide, small businesses employ more than 1.1 million Arizonans, or about 4 out of 10 workers statewide.

Internet for Growth is a coalition of small businesses and online creators across the United States who depend on digital advertising and the ad-supported internet to succeed in the modern economy. Our members, who include artists, retailers, healthcare providers, marketing professionals and more, need a federal data privacy law that simplifies a growing patchwork of state laws making it more difficult to reach customers and conduct business on a national scale.

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Internet for Growth, a coalition of small businesses and creators who depend on digital advertising, have published an Open Letter to Congress supporting national data privacy legislation that promotes competition, jobs and growth, but warn federal lawmakers that bills to punish “Big Tech” could harm Americans already struggling in an inflationary economy.

As Congress debates new policies to regulate the internet, it’s essential that lawmakers understand the potential impact of those policies on small businesses. Bills like the Banning Surveillance Advertising Act and the Competition and Transparency in Digital Advertising Act (CTDA) might sound nice, but would cripple entrepreneurs and innovators competing with the largest companies in today’s economy, where data and information are crucial resources, and customers expect timely, tailored suggestions for goods and services.

Internet for Growth Coalition Advocates for Digital Advertising in Letter to House Energy & Commerce Leaders

Dear Chairs Pallone and Schakowsky and Ranking Members Rodgers and Bilirakis,

I write to you today on behalf of Internet for Growth (I4G), a rapidly growing, grassroots coalition of hundreds of small businesses and creators, who depend on data-driven digital advertising to succeed in today’s competitive market. The ad-supported internet helps entrepreneurs across all 50 states break down geographic barriers, reach more customers with products and services at lower cost, and create communities of shared values and interests.

As a recent economic study details the direct linkage between the internet ecosystem and economic growth across Arizona, a trio of Arizona-based business owners have joined a national coalition, Internet for Growth, to tell the stories of how their businesses have benefited from the internet’s unique ability to connect businesses and consumers.

The Internet for Growth Coalition, an IAB-led initiative, also said they’d coordinated a letter-writing campaign by 3,700 small businesses and creators that fear increased advertising costs as a result of the bill. Brendan Thomas, the group’s executive director, told MT that many members of Congress may not understand the importance of data-driven advertising to small businesses and creators.

Hear from small business owners Logan Niles, Andrew Whisler, Sydney Smarro, Brian Spears, and professor John Deighton on the impact of big tech regulations for small businesses.

The Competition and Transparency in Digital Advertising Act is one of the most important pieces of legislation in D.C., but you probably haven’t heard about it.

Check out what these small businesses had to say about the ad-supported internet helping their companies grow.

As a career Realtor and the owner and operator of one of Arizona’s 550,000 small businesses, I’m fearful Congress will hurt entrepreneurship and my bottom line by passing the so-called “Competition and Transparency in Digital Advertising Act.” This newly introduced legislation will further entrench the market advantage of mega-corporations at the expense of small businesses.

If you’re a small mom & pop, brick & mortar business, exploring the opportunities of digital marketing can mean the difference between success and failure. Our friends at Alliance Group introduced us to a project and asked if we would tell our story.

Congress wants to break up Google? There are 766,826 small businesses in Virginia — 99.5% of all businesses. I own two of those businesses, Texas Inn — Downtown and Cornerstone. These past two and half years have been hard on us with the pandemic, supply chain issues, labor shortages and inflation. Thankfully, we have been able to keep our 86-year-old business open, with the help of low-cost and effective ads on websites like Google and Facebook. These ads helped us bring in new customers and connect with current customers.