Are you considering getting involved in your local community but not sure whether it’s a worthy move?
It’s understandable that you’re on the fence about community involvement. This can be an expensive strategy. For example, sponsoring local events and charities, which is the most popular way to get involved in the community as a small business, will eat into your budget substantially.
So, should you go ahead and be involved in your local community?
We think you should. Your small business stands to gain far more than you will invest in community projects.
Continue reading to learn more about these community involvement benefits.
1. Charity Success Begins at Home
A clearer way to look at the importance of community involvement is to consider the old saying, charity begins at home.
As a human being, your first responsibility is to your family and the people closest to you. You can’t go serving other people when you’ve neglected your loved ones. It just isn't right.
The same should apply in business. You shouldn't start serving other communities before you’ve met the needs of your own community. Your business is far more likely to succeed beyond your locality when it has invested in the locals.
As such, don’t pass up opportunities to be involved locally. If there’s a sporting event, sponsor it. If your community needs a certain public facility, join forces with other businesses and develop it.
2. Brand Awareness
How many people know about your small business?
If it’s fairly new, it’s yet to get popular. It’s also possible to have a business that has been around for a while but remains unknown to many of the locals.
If you’re in this position, you need to find ways to increase your brand’s awareness. There are a couple of ways to do this, but community involvement is one of the most effective.
Ever attended a local sports event? There’s no doubt you left the place thinking of the event’s sponsor. That’s the same way locals will think about your brand when you're involved in community events.
3. Get Free Publicity
To get some publicity in the local dailies, most of the time you’ll have to write a check – and the sum on it won’t be light.
What if we told you there’s a way to get free publicity? Just get involved in community events and projects. Frugal Philanthropy is an example of an entrepreneur who gets free publicity because of the community causes he supports.
You can get the same level of publicity too. And when this happens, your business will benefit. Consider free (positive) publicity, free marketing.
4. Build a Culture of Giving Back
Giving is a good virtue. As an employer, you might want to build a company that has a reputation for giving back to the community.
You aren’t going to achieve this if you’re the only one initiating community involvement from within your organization. You need most employees to join in and support. This way, it’s even easier to ask them to contribute to certain community causes.
But you have to lead from the front. When your company gets involved in the community, your employees will likely follow suit.
Active Community Involvement Will Benefit Your Business
You might be on the fence about active community involvement because of the associated costs, but it’s a smart thing to do. This is a good way to get free publicity, build brand awareness, and develop a strong reputation for your small business.
