Your community is part of your marketing strategy

Amy Yaley
Ward Media

When business owners think about marketing, they often think about advertising first.

Digital ads. Social media. Print. Email. Google.

Those are all important pieces of a marketing strategy, but some of the most effective marketing a local business can do doesn't start with an ad.

It starts with showing up.

For a local business, your community is part of your marketing strategy. The relationships you build, the organizations you support and the events you participate in all shape how people see your business. And it matters because people don't just buy products and services. They choose businesses they recognize and trust.

You Don't Have to Write the Biggest Check

Businesses sometimes confuse community involvement with sponsorship dollars. They assume participating means spending thousands of dollars to put their logo on a banner.

It doesn't.

Sponsor a youth sports team. Donate to a nonprofit auction. Attend a chamber event. Volunteer your expertise. Partner with another local business.

The important part is to make it genuine. Choose organizations, events and causes that make sense for your business and your team. Then actually participate.

The visibility will come with it.

Community Creates Familiarity

We've talked a lot in this column about the importance of being remembered.

Community involvement is another way to build familiarity.

Someone may see your business at a local event. A few weeks later, they notice your ad in a local publication. Then they see one of your employees volunteering at a fundraiser.

None of those moments alone may result in a sale, but together they build recognition. When someone eventually needs the product or service you provide, your name is already familiar.

That's marketing momentum.

Tell the Story

One of the biggest missed opportunities I see is businesses doing great things in their communities and never talking about them.

We have to get better at telling our own stories.

Not every good deed needs a press release, but there is nothing wrong with telling people what your business cares about.

If your team volunteers, share the photos. If you sponsor an event, tell people why you chose to support it. If one of your employees serves on a nonprofit board, celebrate them.

Those stories tell people something about your company an advertisement alone can't.

They show who you are.

Local Businesses Have an Advantage

Local businesses spend a lot of time trying to compete with larger companies, but community connection gives us an advantage.

A national company can buy advertising in our market. It can target the same customers online. It can compete on price.

But it's much harder to replicate genuine local relationships.

We know the schools, nonprofits, events, businesses and people that make our community what it is. We can participate in ways a company looking at the market from hundreds or thousands of miles away simply can't.

Use that advantage.

Community and Advertising Work Together

Community involvement shouldn't replace advertising, and advertising shouldn't replace community involvement.

They work together. Advertising helps people recognize your name. Community involvement gives your name meaning.

When people see your business and see your investment in the place they call home, you're building something much more valuable than an impression or a click.

You're building a reputation.

The Bottom Line

The next time you sit down to plan your marketing, don't just ask where you're going to advertise.

Ask where you're going to show up. What organizations could you support? What events make sense for your business? What relationships could you strengthen?

You don't need to be everywhere, and you don't need the largest budget. You need to be present.

Because in a local market, being part of the community isn't separate from your marketing strategy.

It may be one of the most important parts of it.