You know the posts on social media I mean here, the ones reminding people about the importance of shopping local. They often clumsily pressure people to shop local, as if that matters more than other factors.If you pitch shop local on social media, be ready to demonstrate your local credentials with locally sourced product.
If you do this, use social media to tell people to shop local, this is for you.
Do you source locally for your business every opportunity you have? I look at product source hone in a business that tells me to shop local. I did this recently in a clothing shop and not one of the 25 items I checked was sourced from within Australia. So, or their business, shop local looked particularly selfish in my view.
Now, local could be made in town, in your state or in your country depending on the type of product.
It is vital that everyone in the business knows where you source your products. Being able to share information about genuinely locally made products can help you win sales.
If you have products from several suppliers, location source could be a differentiating factor. Knowing the location and pitching this could win business.
When you do source locally, ensure everyone in the business knows, and that your shoppers know. Use signage to remind shoppers. Smart suppliers help you with this pitch.
In good economic times and bad, locally made has remained a constant. We know from research that this is especially true among younger shoppers.
So, be sure of the source of what you sell and leverage this when possible to reinforce the localness of your business.
Shop local has a place in local indie retail promotion if it is supported by sourcing decisions within the business. This is where you can be active in your decision making and supportive in-store with backing-up your shop local pitch with proof of your own actions.
It’s not enough to leverage a social responsibility without demonstration your engagement with it. It’s hard work, challenging, but worth it if you commit to walking the walk.