Nowadays to don’t even have to finish that phrase, but I’ll say it anyway, shop local in the age of COVID-19. Or more specifically, getting customers to shop local in the age of COVID-19.

With the holidays just a few weeks over the horizon, this is the time when blogs and business networking sites light up with the topic of getting people to buy local. The trend toward online shopping has been flummoxing small businesses for years, and the challenge has grown exponentially with the advent of the novel coronavirus that has people looking for ways not to shop physically. 

But as the song goes, surrender, surrender, but don’t give yourself away. There are still some simple things you can do to give yourself a fighting chance, so let me share with you some ideas I posted to a local business networking site:

• Build a strong local search presence — This one is the most obvious and is kind of what we do here. This involves having an effective Google My Business listing, accurate listings in local directories, a mobile-friendly website that is optimized for local search, reviews, reviews and more Google reviews.
• Have some e-commerce capability. It’s so turnkey now that it’s easier to do than ever. Also, explore ways to leverage delivery service and options.
• Team up with other local businesses in y0ur area who are hopefully doing the above.
• Create some cross-synergy between the businesses in your group (related business types or nearby businesses could create offers for shopping at each others locations for example).
• Share customer bases for cross promotions, email marketing and direct mail.
• Build a simple loyalty or rewards program for shopping at businesses within the group.

Not all of this will necessarily move mountains, but it beats sitting behind the counter doing the crossword puzzle. If you have any questions call me 904-744-8877. I’m not going anywhere.