Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels
As the coronavirus pandemic rages on and more and more businesses find themselves struggling to stay afloat, it’s more important than ever to find ways to support each other. This is especially true for small, local businesses.
There’s a big movement right now for citizens to support their local businesses during these trying times. While people are frequenting their local establishments, business owners can do things to help support each other, too. Below are several brilliant benefits of supporting other small businesses in your community.
1. You Receive Personalized Service
In a day and age where technology makes it easier than ever to connect with others all over the world, we sometimes lose sight of things like personalized service. With automated services, chatbots, email, and overseas call centers full of customer service reps with limited resources, there’s often no personal connection or actual help at the other end of the line.
By choosing small business IT support services near you, rather than some remote company offering bargain-bin pricing, you’re ensuring you receive personalized care from a team of technicians who understand the needs of local small businesses.
2. You May Find a Mentor (or Become One)
Operating a business is difficult at best, which is why you need all the help you can get. Other small business owners in the area likely have a lot of knowledge to contribute to running a business, so getting together to start a small business group mentoring program is a great idea. When you mentor one another, you not only enhance your leadership development, but you also foster a learning culture in the community.
Photo by Blake Wisz on Unsplash
3. Support Earns Support
When you choose to support the other small businesses in your community, they are more likely to offer support to you in return. By banning together and sharing resources, small businesses can grow and weather the hard times together. In many cases, teaming up with other small businesses in the community is easier and less costly than getting a loan or asking for assistance from the government.
4. Opportunities for Cross Promotion
Teaming up with other businesses in your community opens up new and exciting marketing opportunities. For example, a sporting goods store could run a promotion with a local yoga studio or gym to drive new business to both companies. Everyone wins in a situation like this as the residents save money and the business owners involved make money, and it all helps the local community.
5. Supporting Other Local Businesses Fosters a Supportive Community
By openly supporting other small businesses in your community, you encourage the community at large to do the same. For example, sharing pictures of you and your team enjoying lunch at a local café, not only actively supports that café, but also depicts you as someone who cares about your community and the people in it. This kind of support and caring attitude builds trust in you and your company as well. Over time, your actions will build you into a well-known local figure who’s appreciated throughout the community.
The COVID-19 crisis has made it more difficult than ever to be a business owner, but by supporting other small businesses in your community, you can weather the tough times together and come out stronger on the other side. Remember that other local businesses are owned by your neighbors. Together, you can build the local economy stronger again. From personalized care and mentoring to cross-promotion and encouraging a supportive community, there are many reasons to support other local businesses. Find a reason that motivates you, and get started today.
