Is it Time to Rethink Your Chamber Shop Local Strategy?

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Shop Local Saturday is a great program for one out of 365 days but that push alone is not a permanent solution for jump starting your local campaign. If your chamber’s entire strategy is tied to one day, it’s time to see what else is out there.

You need a solution that will support local businesses and invite customers to get excited about exploring your town. Most chambers market shop local as a way to promote local businesses and while this is true, there are many other reasons shoppers should consider purchases from the community. Here are a couple of reasons you can add to your shop local strategy:

Talk to Experts
If you’ve ever walked into a large store and had a specific question on a product or service, only to be met with a vague look of disinterest, you know how important it is to deal with a knowledgeable sales person. Local business owners are experts in their fields and love the industry in which they work. You don’t always get that expertise at larger stores.

Stand Out
If you love blending in, shop chain. If you want something personalized and unique to your area, shop local.

Preserve the American Dream
Empty storefronts turn any beautiful community into a depressing story. Not only does shopping local give back to the community financially, but it fuels the American Dream. When young people see independent stores and establishments flourishing, it feeds their desire to open their own business. If your community, on the other hand, welcomes new businesses only to watch them soap their windows within a few months, it sends a discouraging message to the upcoming generation.

Help the Environment
Supporting a downtown of thriving businesses means a more pedestrian and bike friendly shopping experience and less gas spent on driving to malls. For local shops who buy and sell local products, you also cut down on transportation expenses and tolls on the environment.

Enjoy the Savings
Many people shop big because they think it’s less expensive. Help local stores that are price competitive advertise it and get the word out to the community.
If your shop local campaign mentions only the benefit of placing money in local shop owners’ hands, you’re missing many other reasons to shop local. A strong shop local campaign employs an educational component. If you want to get people to shop local, they must understand what’s in it for them.

Is your chamber’s shop local campaign as successful as you’d like?