Now more than ever, customers are looking to buy local.
The idea of the all-powerful corporation that has it all has slowly eroded away at the trust of customers, and businesses like yours propose something really exciting to shoppers today!
Local businesses have the most impact in their communities when they foster communities of their own—grown naturally through the efforts of their owners.
So how are you engaging with your customers this year? Do you have events planned, or are you too busy juggling spreadsheets and sorting out pay scales?
Let’s walk through a few ways you can engage with your customers and spend less time on the books, and more time in the store!
Stop Doing It All
Your business is your pride and joy. You’ve probably had to make considerable sacrifices in your personal life to make sure it was even possible to open your doors in the first place. It’s no wonder you may be apprehensive about entrusting others with your operations.
Of course, at the end of the day, you can be the boss, the manager, the employee, and the accountant all at once. You’ll have to hire entrusted team members and partners who believe in your vision so you can focus on growing a community.
But you may also need to find help outside of the resumes and job boards. Because running time clocks and constantly figuring out inventory needs eats away at your job just as much as everything else.
We’d urge you to stop doing it all. Find vendors you trust and take as much off of your plate as possible. Find a comprehensive commerce solution to make sure you’re growing your business!
Then, you’re ready for step two.
Building Community Organically
Community building is a grassroots operation. That means that you can’t expect to see the fruits of your labor without weeks or months of work to lay out the foundation of the future community.
As with all communities, the most important element are the most active members. These ‘activists’ are typically younger, more interested in community engagement, and willing to go the extra mile to realize their visions.
Think about what you sell—whether that be beauty products, pet products, food, or anything else. Next, think about what kinds of people are truly engaged with your product.
Once you’ve sorted it out, get talking! Talk to customers at the point of sale while finalizing their purchases. Ask them how they honestly feel about your store, and what they’d love to see you do.
You don’t need to pay a marketing agency to figure out what your community wants. Sometimes all you need to do is ask!
Get Started!
Once you have all of the info you need, the path forward should be clear! Maybe you sell pet products and your customers want more mixers or pet competition events. Or you sell food and the local high school would love it if you sold during their football games.
The possibilities are endless, and the answers are out there! Just make sure you’ve freed yourself up from the shackles of administration, so you have the time to really see it done.
At Franpos, we’re experts in freeing you from your computer screens. We’ll handle marketing, point of sale, eCommerce, and more for you. Reach out today to see how we can help you get back to what you love most about running a business!
