How to Promote Small Businesses Year-Round

Promoting a small business in your community is not just for Shop Small Saturday. The local businesses need your help year-round. The biggest challenge small businesses face is keeping their momentum throughout the year.

Scout local businesses in your area. When you need something, check local businesses first and incorporate buying from them into your normal routine.

Become a tourist in your own city and check out local festivals, galleries, concerts, and recreational facilities. This helps ensure that attractions that make your community unique will continue. Spread the word about these.

Use social media to promote your favorite businesses. Review, comment, post, share, like, subscribe, tweet, pin, and remember the hashtags.

The best way to beat seasonal depression is to get out of the house, so go outside and explore your downtowns and small businesses in the area. It will make a merchant’s day when someone comes in when the weather is rainy, miserably hot, or snowing.

Have your taxes done by a local accountant instead of a national chain.

Provide feedback to the local business owners in person or via email if there is a problem. Don’t blast them on Facebook. Give them the opportunity to make it right.

Buy food, groceries, and other items at local farmers markets, or at a corner grocery instead of national chains.

Buys gifts from small, local boutiques. Pay with cash when you can to defer the credit card fees that they have to pay.

If you are in a club, hold meetings at different local venues if you can. For special events, use local caterers, entertainers, florists, and other local vendors. Make sure they have their business cards for guests to take.

Keeping our small businesses in our communities falls on all of us! Without support from us, they can’t survive.

For more information, please contact:

Oswego Area Chamber of Commerce : 25 E Jackson Street : Oswego, IL 60543 : 630.554.3505 : http://www.oswegochamber.org/