Want to Give Back This Year? Support Small Businesses in Your Community.

Local small businesses everywhere have seen a significant reduction in their customer traffic due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With things expected to worsen in the coming days, small businesses are struggling to stay afloat and keep their employees. 

Small businesses are the lifeblood of the small-town economy. They provide us with the things we need and employ us so we can prosper. As members of those communities, it's our duty to help, however we can. Unfortunately, the virus is making that more challenging.

There are options:

• Take advantage of online and virtual shopping.
• Check to see if they offer curbside pickup.
• Order takeout or curbside pickup from local restaurants; they are hurting more than most.
• Buy hand sanitizer from local distilleries. Many of them offer this service to help fill the demand. Call around to see what you can find and let others know on social media. Buy a bunch and give them as gifts. It helps the distillery and shows clients you care for their health.
• Sign up for CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture) and have your produce delivered by a local farmer. You can also give these as gifts! (Find a local CSA provider)
• Be a brand ambassador for local businesses by sharing their products and services, upcoming events and promotions.

Get online and check local small businesses' Facebook pages. Many of them offer additional and quite creative solutions to the current situation, and again, be sure to share what you find. 

Help Local Business And Give a Gift They Love

One of the best ways to help right now is to purchase gift cards and certificates from local shops, boutiques, artisanal vendors, salons, restaurants and more. Whether they sell products or offer services, chances are they have a gift card program.

Gift Cards give a small business a cash infusion now to help make it through hard times. It is essentially a no-interest microloan from you (which is even better when roughly 40% of people forget about the gift cards they have.) 

Gift Cards also present a unique opportunity for local business owners looking to develop their personal or professional brand by helping out their community and giving clients a great gift for the holidays. 

• Make a list of unique local shops and restaurants that sell gift cards. (The beautiful thing about small town, local business is how they are all unique in their own way. They sell products no one else does and provide personal service that is genuinely inspiring.)
• Call them and see if they offer a bulk discount (or not and just buy them at face value).
• Pick up holiday cards at a local shop.
• Personalize each card and give them a gift card or certificate that means something to them. Give the dog lover a gift card for grooming or a bath. Give the Foodie a gift card to a local restaurant you love. Give the hobbyist a gift card to a local hobby shop. You get the point. Make it personal, and they won't forget. 

For the most part, sales of gift cards go straight to a business' bottom line, which is invaluable in a time of turmoil. Gift Cards help the business your buying from, the employees they employ, the community, and you come out looking better than ever. It's a win-win-win-win!

If you have any additional ideas or own a small local business in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area selling gift cards, let us know in the comments below. Give some details on what you sell and how people can reach you. I'll be sharing this on LinkedIn and Facebook and should reach roughly 10,000 people.

Note: Due to the current situation, there is a chance some local businesses don't make it. I would be doing you a disservice by not stating this fact. Buy within your limits and encourage the person receiving the gift to use the card soon. It's a mess out there, and we don't know what the future holds. Another shutdown would spell disaster for many. When buying the cards, ask the vendor if they do shut down and open back up, will the card still be valid. That said, you're still helping them now and the employees they pay. 

If your company does not sell gift cards, let me know. I can help. Email [email protected].