If you own a small business or run an organization that’s dependent upon community involvement, you’ll understand how vital supporting a local company can be. Research has shown that 85% of a business’s customers live or work within a five-mile radius of your location, which is why it’s so important to reach those local customers.
But if your business needs a product or service, do you opt to support other companies in your community?
While e-commerce sites are all the rage, they can’t offer everything that a local business can. It may be tempting to make a few clicks to place an order, but if there’s a mistake on your order, it can be a real challenge to make it right. Your money will be going to a faceless online retailer rather than a local vendor, which ultimately won’t benefit you or your community. But when you work with a local print shop, you’ll get superior service and form mutually beneficial relationships while contributing to the local economy. Let’s look at three reasons why you should always choose a local print shop:
- When you shop small, you help yourself
Shopping locally actually helps your business and your community in several ways. First, you can feel good about helping another small or local business like yours. Secondly, supporting independently owned retailers will help the local economy. This economic impact will actually help your own business in the end; when your local economy is strong, more of that money is then used to support local businesses just like yours. Essentially, when you choose to spend money in your own community, that will circle back around to help out your organization. - You’ll get a more personal touch
While shopping online may be a breeze, you don’t get a chance to get to know the company behind the screen or site. It may be easy to order your products from an online printing service, but if you have an issue, the people who run that internet print shop may not be so easy to contact. E-commerce opportunities often allow for a more hands-off approach for retailers, which means you’re not going to get high-quality customer service. If you need assistance or want to make a connection, a local print shop is definitely the way to go. And because local businesses tend to give careful attention to other organizations within their community, your decision to shop local will likely pay off. - You can build ongoing relationships
Another perk of opting for local printing is the chance to forge new business relationships. Networking is an important part of any business, and you may be able to collaborate in ways you never even imagined. When you order from a print shop that exists only online, that will likely be the extent of your relationship. But when you get to know the owners of other local businesses, you get to learn more about their story and can come up with ideas for how you can continue to work together in mutually beneficial ways. This will serve to strengthen each business as well as the community-at-large.
