Supporting Local… and Yourself
We’re all in this together. It’s a phrase we continue to hear over and over again. But what can you as small business owners do to help support other local businesses in your area, and how can that in return help you?
“We Love The Locals”
An idea we have seen surface among owners (an idea we love in fact) is a gift card giveaway for small businesses in your area. Whether it’s the coffee shop on the corner or the family-owned salon across the street, gift cards are a great way to support businesses while they are unable to operate normally. It’s as easy as purchasing a $20 gift card from the businesses of your choosing, and holding a social media-based giveaway. Ask your followers to follow both your page and the page of the business, tag two friends in the comments, and prompt them to answer a question that gets people talking in your comments. These questions could be “how are you staying busy while you’re at home?” or “what are you currently binge-watching on Netflix?”
You may be wondering, how does giving away gift cards to other businesses help me? Well with the push to support local stretching far and wide these days, it shows your customers you are a part of your community and want to see your fellow businesses succeed. Also, a little engagement never hurt nobody! By asking customers to tag their friends in the comments it opens up the opportunity to gain new followers and a new potential customer to shop your store once you open back up!
From those stores that have done a similar promotion, followers seemed excited about the chance to win and eager to enter!
“Show Us Some Love”
It's okay to ask your customers for support regardless of if you're selling online or not. Simple gestures like giving you a shoutout on social media, leaving a review on Facebook, or even sharing your posts are all ways that your current customers can help you find new customers. With so many people stuck at home and glued to social media, the potential eyeballs are out there, and if you can get by with a little help from your customers it could make a big impact.
You can help prompt engagement and shares by posting content that resonates with your customer base. Talking to moms? Offer fun ideas for keeping kids busy and entertained while they’re cooped up at home. Are teens more your style? Get them talking about what they’re doing at home, what they’re binge watching, who their style icons are, and other question prompts such as those.
“Your Cheerleaders”
In times like these, it’s important to keep in contact with the people that support you. They follow you for a reason, they shop you for a reason, so use their love of your store and their community to your benefit. Having a presence while your store is closed shows commitment to your customers and community that goes beyond selling goods and services. By keeping in touch now, new and returning customers will eagerly enter your store when your doors reopen.
