Why should you support a small business?
Small businesses are crucial to our everyday lives, even if we don't realize it.
Without these businesses, we wouldn't have several options for the products and services we purchase. Instead, everything would be the same, with the same prices and fewer options. But why should you support small businesses?
They focus on customer experience
Small businesses typically have more involved owners who focus on the customer experience above all else. Since customers, sales, and reviews are crucial to the success of their business, local business owners will spend more time trying to find ways to improve the customer experience and offer a more personal touch.
In addition, unlike large corporations, small business owners typically hire individuals with more specialized knowledge of the products and services they offer and know everything there is to know about their own business, including how to serve customers. Employees can take the time to get to know regular customers to improve the experience.
Stimulate the local economy
Local businesses stimulate the local economy by paying taxes in the states and cities they operate in. When you shop locally or from a business, whether online shopping or walking through shops in your town square, you'll help these businesses grow, further stimulating the economy where you live.
Depending on where you live, you may pay sales tax on items you purchase, and this tax goes directly to supporting your city and state governments and their initiatives. Small businesses can receive tax breaks that reduce their liability, but they're more common for large corporations. Therefore, local businesses may pay more in taxes, contributing more to the local economy than big box retailers even though they have lower revenues.
When you buy products and services from companies in your city or state, you can support your local economy because your money stays in the community to support its development, even creating new jobs.
Sustainable products
If you're like many people, you care about the environment. Unfortunately, when most people shop, they don't consider how transportation affects a product's carbon footprint. The longer a product travels to reach you, the more pollution it causes.
Small and local businesses typically have more sustainable business practices and a shorter product journey, the time it takes for products to be manufactured and put in the hands of consumers. This shortened journey reduces how much time products spend in transportation. In addition, many small businesses manufacture, produce, or purchase goods locally, reducing their carbon footprint and yours.
Of course, this isn't true for every small business, so you should research their sustainability practices. For example, just because you shop at the local grocery store doesn't mean that the products there haven't traveled long distances or overseas to make it there. Still, in many cases, small businesses manufacture and produce products close to home, reducing their environmental impacts.
Job creation
Supporting small and local businesses enables job creation. While you might think big businesses supply the most jobs, that's not necessarily true. Even though those companies hire more employees than your local small business, there are more small businesses than large corporations, which is why small businesses are responsible for hiring much of the private workforce.
Consider how many small businesses operate in your area. These businesses range from advertising and marketing agencies to manufacturing plants, restaurants, shops, and more. They increase economic growth by hiring employees in their areas, and the more you purchase products and services from them, the more they can grow.
But, of course, small businesses can't always hire new employees if they're not performing well. Therefore, customers must make conscious efforts to support small businesses to enable job growth in various sectors and industries.
Small business owners pay taxes that go to local community initiatives. These businesses support local communities by paying local and state taxes and providing local jobs.
However, they're also more engaged in local charities and nonprofits than large big box chain stores in various locations. Local businesses can benefit from strong community ties, but communities also benefit from local businesses that are more willing to support them than big box retailers.