As a small business owner, you must turn your attention to things outside of your company. Giving back to your community is a brilliant way to do just that. After all, chances are that your community helped shape your business and made it what it is today. You wouldn’t be where you are without the help of the people around you.
In that regard, it’s good to give back to them. However, it can also be excellent for your reputation. Earn a better public image by giving back to local communities however you can. Make sure you’re passionate and sincere about this – don’t just do it as a publicity stunt!
How can you contribute to the community? Unsurprisingly, there are many things to do. Here are the most common – and the most effective – ways of supporting local people:
Contribute to a charity/foundation
Give money to a local charity or foundation that will help people in your area. Donate some of your business profits, and you will contribute to an excellent cause. There are plenty of foundations out there, but my advice is to look for something that tackles a significant issue. For many people in this country, healthcare is a big problem. You can learn more from lifesaversfoundation.org, but the gist is that many people can’t afford basic healthcare for their kids. By contributing to a foundation like this, you help people get the vital medical assistance they need. Another key issue could be to do with schools. Some communities struggle to provide good schools for local children. As such, foundations are set up to provide funding. Pick a cause, and then make regular contributions to improve people’s lives.
Help build something
Another way of giving back is the idea of building something that the community needs. Going back to the previous topic, this could include a new school or a new doctor’s surgery. Nevertheless, it could also be something like a park for kids, a community center, etc. You could work with the council to help fund this task and directly contribute to building something impactful in your local area. In some cases, you and your employees may even be able to physically help build something – it’s a good way of showing you genuinely care.
Raise awareness for local issues
Finally, there’s nothing wrong with just raising awareness. Attend community meetings and listen to any problems that people are having. For example, maybe there’s been an increase in burglaries over the last few months. Your business can use its audience and reach to raise awareness on this issue and make people take notice of it. It’s a smart way of giving back as you can bring certain topics to light, and this could really help to improve the community.
As I said, giving back to the community is excellent as you can improve your public image while also making a positive difference in people’s lives. Too many business owners forget where they came from and how they got successful. Your small business probably wouldn’t exist without the community supporting you. So, give back to them however you can.