The past two years have been incredibly tough for all businesses, especially small, local businesses. These businesses often add interest, diversity, and a unique element to our local high streets, but did you know you can support small businesses using social media?
These independent shops are owned by individuals who followed their dreams: without them, our high streets simply wouldn’t be the same. They add personality and allow us to differentiate between one town and another.
In these unstable and ever-changing times, it’s essential that we all come together to support these businesses that contribute to our local economy.
With the cost of living rising at a shocking rate, it’s becoming harder to help small businesses through purchases. That’s where social media comes in.
Here are our top 5 ways you can support small businesses on socials:
Liking and Following
Remember to like their social media feeds. You may search them out to keep up to date with their news, but have you ticked the all-important follow or thumbs up icon?
You may think you already follow them but it’s best to check for a simple but effective way of supporting them, make a small business owner’s day today and be a new follower.
Comments
All businesses strive for engagement with their audience and chase the elusive content that sparks comments and a buzz about their services or products that ultimately drives their audience to their door or website.
So, engage with the pages that you follow. Even a short comment to show your support will help. It shows the owner of the page that someone out there is listening!
Tagging
If the business that you follow is announcing a new product or event, then tag a friend that you might want to experience their offering with.
Once you tag that friend in a comment then their friends call also see the post, so you are increasing the reach of the post.
Alternatively, you can share the small business post to your feed and tag lots of friends who you think might be interested in them. Don’t forget to like the post before sharing.
‘Support Small’ sticker on Instagram
Instagram has a ‘Support Small’ business sticker for stories, which allows you to tag your favourite businesses with a clickable link.
Your audience can then click onto the small business page and discover what they have to offer. This a simple but effective way of showing some love to the small businesses that you support.
Testimonials
Never underestimate the power of a positive testimonial. You can do this by using Google or Facebook and it goes a long way to help the business that you follow.
If you had a great experience with their customer service or want to rave about one of their products or services, then take a few minutes out of your day to do a good thing and post a glowing review.
It will always be appreciated and may even help the credibility of the business in terms of their online presence.
Being proactive on social media is a simple win to support the businesses that you love and goes some way to ensure their survival. Share some love for your local community today and be an advocate for small businesses on social media.
Did we miss anything? If you have any tips on supporting indie businesses online, let us know in the comments below!
If you’re a small business looking to improve your social presence, get in touch with our team of experts who can deliver bespoke training sessions focused on your goals.
For more information, get in touch with us on 01904 863511 or email info@pickandmixms.co.uk.