Hello, this is attorney Hunter Cavell coming to you from Solon, Ohio, and today I want to talk about small businesses.
Now, many of your friends or colleagues may have a startup business that they either run on the side or are doing full time. And a lot of people want to know how they can support them, even if they might not be able to financially contribute, such as buying their product or services.
Well, it’s very easy and takes little time from you, but it’ll definitely get noticed by your friends and colleagues. The first thing you can do is promote them, whether that’s following their pages on Facebook like you can do for Cavell Law. Thank you for that, by the way. But also liking their content, commenting on their content, posting comments on blogs, because this engages with the audience and it allows more people to see their pages.
Another thing you can do is recommend their services and products to friends. A
nd one thing to avoid, even if they’re your friend, don’t ask for a friends and family discount.
A lot of these companies are just starting up and they’re below market rate to help out and get ahead of their competitors, and they may even be taking a loss. And if you ask for that, your friends may feel obligated to give you a discount and it could really hurt them. Where if you can support them, please pay full price.
But the biggest, most important thing you could easily do is leave a five-star Google review. Now, I’m not saying to leave fake reviews, but if your friend is helping you out or you see the value, go ahead and give them a review on Google. That has made my phones ring more than anything else. Recently I’ve gone from 66 to over 100 five-star reviews, and I thank my clients for that. It’s not expected, but it’s appreciative. And because of that, I’ve gotten more Internet traffic.
So those are the ways you can support your friend, even if you might not necessarily be buying their goods or services. But get out there, support your local businesses. And if I can be of any help, email [email protected] or call 440-940-6441.
Thanks and good luck with your business.