Any kind of small business can benefit from Small Business Saturday – think creatively about what services, items, coupons, or deals you could offer your client base this holiday season!

If you have a preset list of options that might work well for your clients as holiday gifts, make sure to share them with your network on social media, your website, or even with printed, in-person materials like flyers, banners, or by word of mouth.

Getting your client base to come to visit your storefront, shop, or even your website is a great opportunity to build your brand awareness and maybe even make some on-the-spot sales!

Holiday events are a great option to get people in your doors – host a meal-based event, a holiday appreciation happy hour, an exclusive preview of a new product or service, or a good-old-fashioned open house to welcome people into your business. Consider the virtual option of hosting a Zoom meeting or live-streamed event to reach an audience that may not be able to travel or visit in person.

Be sure that for any event, you have a big goal you’d like to reach – do you want people to buy products? Refer a friend? Book an appointment? Like or follow your social media? Once you’ve chosen a goal (or even two), think about how your event can make it happen.

Be sure to spread the word about your business across multiple platforms that fit your client base! Your customers are looking for a small business to support, but they are also looking for that perfect gift or service for their loved ones. Help them find you and your business by showing up on Instagram, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Event Calendars, Linkedin, or even on a printed flyer or poster.

Social Media Marketing:

Use those platforms you already have to promote your services, products, or holiday promotions. You can post images of your products, your business backstory, photos of your employees in action, or use some of the pre-made materials below!

Be sure to use the hashtag #ShopSmallDelaware in the comment of your post or in your caption. This allows everyone to see your posts that are part of the Shop Small holiday. You can also tag @de-sbdc on Instagram, tag our Facebook page, or use #ShopSmallDE #DEShopSmall #DEShopSmall

Search Engine Optimization:

Post a blog post about your Shop Small activities, share a short story in the news section of your website, or update your website with holiday shopping information.

The more times you say “Shop Small” or “Small Business Saturday” or “Delaware Small Business” on your site, the more likely Google or other search engines will find your material to show potential customers. Make it up to the top of the search results by optimizing your website!

Print Materials / Traditional Marketing:

Traditional print materials will NEVER go out of style – hang up a flyer, poster, or sign near your business to get people’s attention and bring them into your business!

Remember that all of the above items help you reach customers. Try conducting a Customer Journey Audit, a process where you put yourself in your shopper’s shoes and try to navigate your platforms and find your sales. What does that process look like? It is easy to find information about your business? You want to make sure finding your business and buying your products is easy!