Where to Look to Raise Cash For Your Business When local options fail, it's time to cast a wider net. Here are ways to expand your funding search.

A visit to the South rarely leaves you hungry. I'm a Southern girl, so I know of what I write. But on a recent trip to meet with companies at Venture Atlanta, Georgia's largest investor showcase, I found plenty of companies left hungry--for funding. And that's a hunger that a heap of barbecue, fried okra and collard greens--washed down with tea, swaaait or unswaaait--can't satisfy.

"As a region, we're in a great position when it comes to innovation. We have more intriguing companies than capital, however," says Alan Taetle, general partner at Noro-Moseley Partners, one of Atlanta's oldest venture capital firms. "While we're actively working to attract more capital to the region, companies developing a business outside those areas are currently faced with a choice: Grow organically, which generally means slower, or go beyond our region to raise capital."

The situation isn't unique to the South. In markets across the U.S., local funding biases dictate the types of companies most likely to find at-home financial support. So how can entrepreneurs branch out and capture the funding they need when local isn't a viable option?