13 Ways to Support Small Creative Businesses
I’m usually not one for small talk but today, let’s talk SMALL…
With some BIG statistics.
Did you know that?
•Small businesses account for 99.7% of all businesses in the US.
•More than 100,000 businesses have shut down during the pandemic.
•For every $100 you spend at locally owned businesses, $68 stays in the community. Only $43 stays in the community if you spend that same $100 at a national chain.
It’s awesome to support small businesses on Small Business Saturday BUT, we should be thinking BIG about supporting SMALL businesses with every purchase, every day of the year.
We’re always thinking about how we support this community aside from our big events Patchwork Show: Makers Festival and Craftcation: Business & Makers Conference and our online education like this blog and our podcast. So, we came up with 13 ways you can support small creative businesses all year long (AND eight of them are totally FREE!)
Don’t let this list overwhelm you, smart with just one thing because big changes start with small actions.
8 FREE WAYS TO SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES:⠀⠀⠀⠀
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– Share a positive review of products or services⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Send a thoughtful and encouraging note ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Attend (safely) a virtual or in-person event that they’re participating in⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Tell a friend about their work⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Follow them on social media⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Engage with them on social media (engagement tells the algorithm that people like the content and this helps more people see their their posts)
– Join their email list⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Share about them on your social media (use their hashtag if they have one)⠀
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5 WAYS TO SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES WITH YOUR $$:⠀⠀⠀⠀
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– Treat Yo’ self!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Buy something for a friend⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Stock up on gifts for future occasions⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Purchase a gift certificate⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– Switch up your go-to products and search for an alternative from a small business (consider regular purchases like deodorant, soap, spices, etc.)⠀⠀
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Thank you, thank you, and thank you again! What a great article. I have been preaching the same to family and friends for years. Some will never get it, but many have. When meeting a friend for coffee or dinner, I always suggest a small, local business. When looking for a gift, the same. It can make an especially huge impact on small towns that rely on tourism. I haven’t used that giant website that sells everything from anywhere for about 5 years and it feels great!