Small businesses are the core of our country’s economy. Between locally owned cafes and supermarkets, boutiques and jewelry shops, and family-owned and operated auto shops and HVAC companies, there are plenty of small businesses in every town and city across the United States. With the coronavirus pandemic changing lives by causing sickness, unemployment, and business shutdowns, more and more people are struggling to make ends meet — and that includes small and locally-owned businesses in your own area.
Why shop small? Here are three reasons you should consider it, especially during the holiday season.
1. Small Businesses Rely On Local Clientele
Up to 64% of small businesses are struggling financially. Why is this?
The coronavirus pandemic has definitely impacted the operations of small businesses. With government-mandated shutdowns of businesses in areas that have higher numbers of outbreaks, small businesses are taking a hit. Restaurants, salons, cafes, and more are forced to either offer limited options or shut down completely. This significantly hurts the business itself as well as the incomes that owners and employees alike expected to receive and live off of.
Even if small businesses in your area are offering limited options, such as take-out services or only offering online gift card purchases due to an inability to be physically open to the public, be sure to try and make purchases to help them stay in business. Purchase a coffee and bagel from a local cafe for breakfast and take it home with you to enjoy. Purchase an online gift card to a small salon as a holiday gift for a family member or friend. These purchases make a world of difference to small businesses that rely on local clientele to stay in business.
2. Small Businesses Care About Their Customers
Small businesses may rely on their local clientele to stay afloat, but it doesn’t mean they haven’t earned your business. Small, locally-owned businesses tend to care more about their customers. This is because small business is often conducted face-to-face or in another personable form. This means that customer service is extremely important, and it’s more often than not a significant value of a small business.
For example, a small construction business in your town or city will listen to and understand your financial limits. In 2016, 46% of homeowners who had set a budget for a project later exceeded it. However, you can depend on a small business to truly take your own limits and ideas into consideration and to understand where you’re coming from. Small businesses want to earn your business, and they will provide you with excellent customer service in order to keep it, too.
3. Small Businesses Contribute to Their Community
Not only do small businesses rely on local clientele, but they also provide to the same community in many ways.
Some small businesses hold events for their customers in order to build community as well as to earn some new customers and get their brand recognized by the public. A karaoke night at a local cafe, a fashion show produced by a beauty salon, or a lunch meet-and-greet event for a small startup are some examples of ways that small businesses may contribute to their communities. Not only do events like these help small businesses, but they allow people in a community to come together, too.
Small businesses also significantly contribute to their community’s economy. Positions in small businesses make up more than half of the jobs across the United States. Therefore, shopping small impacts the contributions that small businesses can make in your very own community by allowing them to expand, grow, and hire more employees locally. Adults and teens alike can benefit from the expansion of small businesses, particularly in smaller communities that may have a limited amount of jobs available.
How You Can Help Small Businesses Without Spending a Dime
While making purchases as often as possible is the best way to help small businesses stay afloat, there are also some ways you can help them without spending any money.
Did you know that 90% of searchers online havenāt made their mind up about a brand before starting their search? You can significantly help and improve the online presence of small businesses through liking and sharing their content on social media as well as through creating your own posts that highlight a business’ products and services. Utilizing a small business’ hashtags is a great way to get the name of the business out there, too.
Small businesses both rely on and care about the communities they’re located in. The local grocery store may hire your kid to be a cashier when they’re a teenager. The family-owned HVAC company may install central air in your home to help keep your family cool in the summer. Small businesses contribute to your community’s economy and want to provide exceptional products and services to you and your neighbors. Take into consideration just how important small businesses are in your community. Make purchases as often as you can and use social media to help small businesses in your area earn new customers and stay in business today.
