‘Shop Local’ is a new Community Chest card in Monopoly as part of the board game’s first major revamp in 85 years to better reflect what community means today. Fans can vote for it and other new cards but how else can you support small businesses without spending money?
Word of mouth
Small businesses will be relying on every single scrap of support and goodwill going in a post-Covid world and even though we’re all digital-doolally, one of the slickest ways to spread the good word about a small business without spending money is through word of mouth.
We don’t have to tell you that if someone we know is all a-glow following a positive experience we’re far more likely to use that business blah blah blah. Likewise, a bad word about a small business is the biggest turnoff ever.
Follow small businesses on social media
Take two wee minutes to follow the social media accounts of all the businesses you want to support. All ours come under the Heathhall Business Centre banner plus some have social media accounts of their own. They’re all easily Googleable and findable.
Like, comment, share and tag on social media
The next step is to like, comment, and share the posts so that they get in front of loads more eyeballs and slink their way into the news feeds of people that don’t follow the business so that it garners new followers that will benefit from knowing what a good job it’s doing.
All very simple and what a tremendous difference you can make to boosting the health of small businesses with such minimal effort and, again, without spending money.
And please be sure to use the mighty hashtag (you could always create one if the business doesn’t have one) because this will make your post easier to spot by others looking for reasons to use the business.
Tag friends and family in posts that relate to what they bent your ear about lately and if the service has been particularly first-class and for the ultimate thumbs-up, take a picture of the product or service and post it on your page with the company tagged in it.
Write a review
Everybody’s opinion has the power to go global. Good reviews can set the Internet alight in that little corner of it where the small business lives because it sends up a flare of trust to other potential customers. Even a neutral or, heaven forbid, a negative review can help that business make the necessary improvements to stop this from happening with future reviews.
Rather not do this in the public domain but you’re fuming internally at bad service and risk giving yourself a hernia? Then send them an email with your feedback.
Sign up for the newsletter on the small businesses website
Nobody wants a clogged-up email account and if you regret adding your email address to a newsletter subscription you can always unsubscribe by scrolling down the bottom of the emails but signing up to a newsletter has its compensations.
Keeping you up to date with offers, promotions and all manner of what have you aside, the more subscribers a small business has, the healthier it is and the more likely you are to get a slicker customer service and better deals. Forwarding it on to a friend if you think they’ll be interested costs nothing either.
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