How to Promote Your Small Business Within Your Community

If you are operating a small business, it is generally beneficial to have a strong connection to the community where your business is located. Small local businesses don’t necessarily have to target very large audiences. Instead, you want to focus on your local community and the people in nearby surrounding areas and approach your marketing and advertising strategies from that perspective. Whether you are running an online business or a brick and mortar shop, here are five helpful ways to promote your business within your local community.

1. Emphasize Your Local Origins

When you launch a small business, sharing your local origins is hugely important for developing rapport with the local community. When customers learn that you share their origins, it tends to encourage them to trust you and give your business a chance. So do not be shy about tying your business to your community by sharing that your business is owned and operated by local people. By strongly identifying your business with the local area in your marketing campaigns, whether these are undertaken via traditional paper methods, social media, or even on the radio (to discover the differences between AM vs FM radio marketing, follow the aforementioned link), you are more likely to build and sustain a long term, local, loyal customer base.

2. Make Use of Social Media Marketing

Whether you love it or hate it, social media is a necessary tool when it comes to marketing and promoting your small business. Social media helps to build connections and offers a variety of platforms for advertising in the most sustainable way possible. The days of paper-based marketing are long gone in favor of a more environmentally conscious paperless approach. When you set up your business social media accounts, look for platforms that offer a localized focus so you can more effectively target your desired audience. There are many different options available such as Google My Business and Facebook or Instagram.

3. Support Local Causes

Part of developing a strong business rapport within your community is supporting its local causes. By showing signs of solidarity with the people in your area and the causes that are important to them you will become more strongly rooted in the area and people in the community will want to support you in return. It shows that you and your business share an interest in the well being of your community. And communities that support their members are the strongest and most successful communities.

4. Use Promotional Tote Bags and Shirts

People love to receive free stuff. But more importantly they love to receive free stuff that is actually useful. While there are all sorts of items that can be used for promoting your business, consider promotional items that people will use in public spaces so that your business logo is seen. For example, shirts or tote bags with your business brand or logo are very popular and people will actually use them. The more your promotional items are used, the more they are seen by others, and the quicker the word will spread about your local small business.

5. Offer Referral Rewards

Giving people an incentive to promote your business to their friends and family is a really great way of spreading the word about your business in the local community. People trust the opinions of their friends and families more than they will an expensive impersonal marketing campaign. Word of mouth has always been the most effective way for marketing any business. If one local customer recommends your business to a few more people and they in turn suggest your business to a few more people, you will quickly see your customer base begin to grow and maintain momentum.

There are many different approaches you can take for promoting your small business in your local area. Explore the different options to find what works best for your targeted audience but also keep in mind that consumers what to be feel seen and heard. If you pay attention and listen to your customers and tailor your business in a way that meets their needs, you will quickly grow a loyal customer base that will sustain for years to come.

Do you run a small business? What are your favorite marketing techniques?

Keeping it on the edge,

Shelbee

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