It’s that time of the year when you might be starting to think about Teacher Presents. A chocolate box or bottle of wine and a homemade card. Someway to express your thanks to your child’s teacher for all their hard work over the last year. But how often do you say thank you or praise someone in your small business network? Or a service you have received? How often do you remember to say thank you? Or show your appreciation? Why are we so quick to make sure everyone knows about something we don’t like but less quick to shout good service from the rooftops?
It’s not rocket science. There are so many ways in which you can tell a Small Business Owner you appreciate them, the work they did, the service you received, a product you purchased and most of them are totally FREE.
6 Ways To Thank A Small Business :
- Leave a Review : Reviews play a big role in building a brand, developing credibility and loyalty, customer service but also for SEO (search engine optimisation). Reviews provide your customers with a voice and allowing them to express it increases customer engagement/interaction aswell as loyalty. Both Facebook and Google favour businesses with reviews, although Facebook calls their’s recommendations. Also, look out for whether a website has a review/testimonial page *cough* like mine as 93% of customers suggest their buying decisions are influenced by online reviews. According to MOZ’s Local Search Ranking Factors Survey (2018), online reviews could make up 10% of how Google (plus other search engines) rank search results.
- Word of Mouth : TELL people. When they ask; where did you get this cake? Or I like your hair. Suggest places to them, have you tried ….. It’s not a secret!
- Social Media : Invite your friends to like their Facebook Small Business Page, follow them on Twitter, suggest they connect on LinkedIn. You could share the small businesses Facebook posts onto your personal profile or on Instagram, “regram” a post with a lovely comment or do something similar with one of their Stories. Helping a small business to grow/share their social media and community is one of the biggest, easiest and let’s face it FREE but yet most effective ways to say thank you.
- Recommendations : Facebook Community groups can be a hive of potential customers asking for recommendations and most small business owners I spoke to said that hearing from a new customer that somebody suggested them is the nicest feeling in the world. You can’t buy that kind of love.
- Random Acts of Kindness : Sage UK always do this and it pretty much makes my day! From a gift voucher to a branded business card holder, these unexpected gifts make me feel like a valued member of their community. When in reality all I really did was share some content and maybe offer an opinion on something.
- Send a Card : I recently got the “Top Fan” feature on my Facebook Business Page and have been posting Thank You cards. I love having the chance to doodle and putting a smile on people’s faces. It’s a nice way to make your clients/customers/readers feel like valued members of your business community, being as I write for Small Business all of my “Top Fans” are other small business owners who can sometimes get neglected in the Thanks department.
Next time you experience a great product/service or a small business blogger helps you out take the time to say “Thank You” using my 6 ways to thank a small business. If you have experienced any of the above or have other ideas do let me know!
This post complies with my Disclosure Policy.
Found this useful wondering how you can show me your appreciation? Well, there are some ways you can say thanks and support my website: ➡
I’m really hot on making my children say thank you, but you’re right, it’s easy to forget to say thank you for the lovely things people do for you as an adult.
I’m off to say thank you to someone who sent some business my way last month! Now which method to choose! Hmmm.
These are such lovely ways to support small businesses – I’m off to do that now!
Leaving reviews is so important as I think way too many people will complain but not leave something positive x
I was so pleased to receive my card in the post Joanne thank you. Snail mail rules and it is so appreciated xx
Author
You are most welcome
Excellent blog and shared it on my own FB page!!
Andrew Miller recently posted..Wedding Photography, Camera Equipment and Reducing Risk
Author
Thank you. Much appreciated.
very thoughtful discussion! overall a great read other than some exceptions. kudos to the author.
Business Community recently posted..Best Online Business Community
Leaving audits is so significant as I might suspect an excessive number of individuals will whine yet not leave something positive x
Some excellent tips here, even simple things like a thank you card can make so much difference, both in life and digitally, Keeping in contact is a great tool with small business, I like to treat people the way I would be treated, business are the same.
I’m terrible at leaving feedback or reviewing an item I’ve bought although it’s the first thing I tend to read.
Thank you for very usefull information.
Yes, I totally agree with what you said. There’s always room for learning and improvement. You can achieve what you wish for when strive and work harder. Thanks for sharing this. I learned a lot from this article.
booba recently posted..Tips to Help You Become A Successful Affiliate Marketer
In my personal experience and opinion, I believe the review is the absolute best way to thank a small local business owner!
Also, if you have them leave a Google Review it can help them with SEO rankings!
Chris A recently posted..Idaho Select Insurance | FAQ About Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Out of all, sending a “thank you” card is a fantastic idea because after reading your article, I understood that It’s an excellent way to make my customers feel like valued members of my business community. Thanks for sharing this helpful post, as it is worth reading and admiration.
Creating a Facebook business page is a great way to get your business in front of more people and grow your reach. It’s also a great way to keep your customers and fans up to date on what you’re doing and connect with them on a more personal level.