Identifying variables and policy prescriptions that contribute to female entrepreneurial success in rural South Dakota

The purpose of this study was to use econometric methods to identify variables that contribute to rural female entrepreneurial success in South Dakota. Once variables were identified, policy prescriptions were provided for educators and state policy makers in order that they may improve methods for knowledge transfer to future generations of rural female entrepreneurs. The main econometric methods used in this study was a multiple regression analysis. While the multiple regression analysis did not provide any significant results, there was some promise that marketing and education may have a positive correlation with gross annual sales. An additional finding was that educational services and marketing activities ranked low for rural female entrepreneurs. The policy prescriptions for this study focused primarily on the marketing process for entrepreneurs and emerging methods of teaching entrepreneurship education. In addition, state policy prescriptions were discussed in order to highlight ways to increase public program awareness. It was the conclusion of this study that a broader research effort should be undertaken to further examine variables that lead to success for rural female entrepreneurs in South Dakota.