4 Ideas To Grow Small Local Businesses
Small local ventures, such as a local store, can appear limited in their growth potential. Stores are anchored in their communities. When they move to a new location to gain square footage, they are at risk of losing their community bond.
Yet, staying in the same location can also affect growth. It’s hard to remain relevant to your community when buildings and houses are growing and changing around you. So, how can local stores maximize their integration into the local economy and expand their revenues while remaining loyal to their history? Here are 4 valuable tips that can bring your store to the next level.
#1. Start an eCommerce site
You don’t need to leave your community to serve a broader geographic radius, and you can sell your inventory online too. Understandably, you may not be able to compete against national and international online retailers. But you can establish your brand within the region or the state, growing your clientele steadily while managing delivery costs.
The priority when you sell online is to ensure eCommerce shoppers can be just as satisfied as your local buyers. Therefore, you must ensure you always deliver on what you promise and advertise. Thankfully, when selling long-established products, you can rely on your knowledge to produce an accurate description of their functions and features.
#2. Expand your range of products
Take a look at Granite Falls Hardware, a small hardware shop that has been part of the Granite Falls community for over a century. Originally, the store focused on a variety of hardware items, ranging from wallpaper to nails. But thanks to owners’ commercial sense, the business gradually redefined its offering, building the Ace Hardware Granite Falls partnership that enables the store to provide quality and specialized hardware tools.
Expanding the product range presents many advantages for small business growth:
- It increases brand awareness
- It drives new customers to the store
- It boosts the business reputation
#3. Be social
It is a no-brainer. Small businesses can benefit from building a social media presence. Local businesses can use their social media platforms to share their latest news, show behind the scene photos, and even build stronger customer relationships. Potential customers can reach out online with queries or requests, creating a direct line of communication with the business.
It’s also a great way to gather feedback and promote future products and activities! Besides, you can also use targeted advertising to reach out to your local audience on social media.
#4. Open a secondary location
When moving is not a good idea, you can instead open a second business in a new community. The process can be more expensive than relocating, but you could recoup your costs more rapidly. Indeed, you can promote your second location to your social media followers and existing customers, and this could ensure their support.
New customers are more likely to trust businesses that have retained their bond with their local community.
Growing a small business when you can’t leave your community means you must work within your geographic radius. Yet, a secondary location and eCommerce activities can help you break into a broader market and reach a new audience.
Finally, you can also grow your brand through strategic partnerships and an engaging social media presence.
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