On Wednesday, Richmond County was declared an "Entrepreneur Friendly" community.

The Georgia Department of Economic Development named the county the 103rd in Georgia to earn the designation, which indicates it fosters and supports small-business development.

Eighty-eight percent, or 6,800 out of 7,463 businesses in Richmond County, are small businesses, said Adela Kelley, a regional project manager for the department, who assisted Richmond County during the 18-month process.

The county earned the designation through the work of Chamber volunteers and small-business development agencies who conducted interviews with 51 small businesses. They also identified existing resources and promoted community awareness on entrepreneurship.

"We just have to strategically look at what we're doing well and make sure we continue to do that," said Sue Parr, the president of the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce.

The Chamber has launched the Business Innovation Group, an outreach organization known as BIG, which will target small businesses and "inspire others to open a new business," Ms. Parr said.

The designation gives entrepreneurs access to customized market data, such as demographics and business information.

The state's Entrepreneur Friendly initiative was created in 2004 by Gov. Sonny Perdue. The program requires counties to develop educational materials and seminars to address the needs of existing small businesses.