3 Tips When Shopping Small Businesses
It can be hard not to put your money into a big-name brand; it’s something that a lot of us have been socially conditioned to do from an early age.Whether it’s because your parents bought into it, you were peer pressured from friends or the company’s massive advertising budget converted you, these brands are hard to steer away from – especially as they’re available on every supermarket shelf across the country.
It can make those who are trying to work up and make a name for themselves quite despondent about the whole process. Those who are working from home, hand making their items, have put their all in terms of time and finances into their small business or/and are barely getting by on sales alone are losing out every time you go for a branded product over theirs. But what can we be doing to support these small businesses when they’re hard to come by?
They’re not – search!
The internet is our friend in this case, and it’s certainly the best friend of independent traders. It is the biggest platform for those who are trying to sell their wares, and will attract a good footfall each day (provided that they advertise and market themselves correctly) which surpasses that of any real-life shop. It’s why all of the bigger brands have websites – they’d be absolutely mad not to. There are online clothing boutiques, sites dedicated to health and beauty products such as makeup and bath bombs, and even crafts that you can indulge yourself in on sites like Etsy.
What else can I do?
Don’t just think about buying an actual thing when you’re considering swapping over your buying habits. You can buy experiences as well, and there are a lot of people counting on your trade with this too. Just because a small company doesn’t have the same amount of reviews, recommendations and hits as a bigger one does, doesn’t mean that it can’t provide the same service for you. It may be even more of a personal service; those who are wanting your custom to help their business survive and grow rather than sustain at a constant are more willing to go above and beyond to get you to use them again or pass on recommendations to your friends about them.
What does this mean for the bigger brands?
Not much. There will always be people willing to buy into brands, it’s something that will never grow out of fashion. We did it, our children will do it, and their children will do it too. Big brands won’t miss your money, but the smaller independent businesses will surely appreciate it coming their way. You are giving life to those who have a dream and a vision rather than lining the pockets of those who made their millions a long time ago. Choosing where to spend your money shouldn’t have to be a decision of morality, but it sure does help the thinking process and deciding where to spend your hard-earned cash.
