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For many small businesses opening their doors this morning is a challenge in so many more ways than before. With the reality that there are going to be ongoing restrictions controlling how people eat, exercise, relax and socialise are making many small business owners concerned about what to do next.
With a growing number of people choosing to spend more time at home, it’s not surprising that many small businesses are really looking within their own community to help grow and drive business awareness.
For many years, local marketing and gaining customers from your local community has been a part of most business strategies but a number were also relying on filling the bucket with people outside of that, knowing that some growth opportunity existed beyond your own backyard. What we are certainly seeing now is a resurgence to local, local marketing, local manufacturing, local community support. Now is a critical time for small businesses to re-adjust their focus and re-see the value that their local community can provide.
Consumers shopping behaviours have been impacted and the drive to shop locally is now not only about convenience but a core value of personal safety. It’s important that local businesses realise the needs of their local community and support them, rather than trying to drive people to them from outside of their area. Continuing to do this poses long term resentment with the local community which potentially risks the future value of the business, and the future support. It’s not to say that you can’t support “out of towners”, in hospitality and key tourist hot spots these are still customers that will attend but putting your focus on driving them their is a risk that you don’t necessarily want to take.
I appreciate that the local community is certainly a lot smaller and, by focusing on them, you are potentially limiting your exposure for a short time however, is it better to focus on long term viability versus short term gains. Local customers have proven in the past to create a core foundation on which many businesses can rely upon for loyalty and repeat purchase (which aren’t necessarily the same thing). The basic principal of it being cheaper to retain customers than to grow them would help support the importance of building on your local base now. Not only will this help your local community but it will create a positive relationship between you and that community. Those relationships and ties are potentially going to help you remain afloat and re-open well, when it’s safe to do so.
So remember your local community and work on reaching out to them via all of your channels. Look at what you can do to engage them even more – free local delivery for local residents, special offers / promotions / shopping days just for the local community. Really look in to who your customers are and see what drives them to engage with you even more and this maybe the difference with staying open versus closing during these difficult times. We all want businesses to succeed and most communities want to see their local businesses survive rather than a row of empty shops.
So give it a go – keeping local, staying local, thriving locally.
Who knows, you might find some amazing local insight that might just get you through.
Stay safe everyone!
The Marketing Elf
©July 2020
The Marketing Elf 