For many local businesses after the Christmas/winter holiday season passes, the business doldrums of January set in. People have large bills coming in from December spends, the weather keeps people inside, and everyone hunkers down. This makes it difficult to sustain business during this time, particularly in parts of the Read more
Merchants love being a part of local gift certificate programs. Many of them know the work behind offering a gift card program and are unable to invest the time to research setting one up for their own business. If your chamber, or local business association, offers one that’s something members can’t Read more
You already have too much on your plate. You’re stretched thin. Your to-do list is longer than your Facebook stream. But how do you get it all back under control? Cancel all meetings? Lock your door and turn off the lights? Unplug your computer? These are all temporary solutions that Read more
If you’re running a shop local campaign without a blog you’re missing an opportunity to reach more people. Here are a number of other benefits blogging can do for your buy local program. Isn’t it time you start one? What a Blog Can Do Good blogs generally improve SEO and Read more
If you’re starting a shop local campaign, or just want to increase the attention yours is getting, there are a few people you’ll want to bring on board. Here’s who they are and why you need them. Key Stakeholders for Your Shop Local Campaign Your chamber of commerce or your Read more
If you own a local business, or you advise local businesses, you may wonder what the average customer wants and how to make the business more profitable. After all, there’s a lot of competition locally from the big box stores as well as online. How Your Business Can Attract More Read more
In Hollywood, a movie franchise that realizes it needs a stronger foundation to the story can create a prequel. Being able to go back and forward in time gives them more story-telling flexibility and money-making potential. A local gift certificate program does not have that flexibility. You have to build a strong Read more
With Independents Week (honoring indy businesses) coming up in the first week of July, changing up your marketing implementation to reflect the more carefree days of summer is a good idea. While your overall marketing strategy shouldn’t change, how you get the job done should. The goal remains to reach and Read more
While it doesn’t have to be an either/or argument between adopting a local currency program and using Groupon, or other savings site, there are a number of reasons why a currency or gift certificate program brings in more of the business merchants want. More Money for Merchants One of the complaints Read more
No, the title to this blog post isn’t a typo. It’s a new way of viewing your local shops. Often we talk about “shopping local” or buying from “small business” but your town’s merchants aren’t all small and some franchise owners are every bit a part of the local scene Read more
