It went by in a blur but here we are in the last week of the year. If you’re breathing a sigh of relief and hoping that all your small businesses did well … it’s not over yet. There are 6 business types that can benefit from a final Small Business Season push.
We’ll get to what business types in a moment, but here’s why they are best suited. This week is one of the biggest for returns and buying with gift cards. Some people have delayed Christmas celebrations and parties that they’ll wait to shop for hoping to grab some great deals. Finally, some industries do best at the beginning of the year thanks to it being the time most people decide to make changes in their lives.
Here are a few things you can do to help specific types of members:
The Restaurant & Bar Industry
Guests are still in town. New Year’s Eve parties are gearing up. And many people, having cooked big meals for days and eaten leftovers, now want to take a little break and dine out. The restaurant industry can’t take a holiday yet. But there are several ways you can support them:
- Remind people of the places that offer gift card specials going into the new year. They can be a great way to get extra value. Some restaurants provide smaller cards when you spend $100. Help your restaurants get the word out about these offers.
- Talk about your favorite meals and invite others to do the same.
- Consider your catering needs for 2023. Line them up now, or if you already have, share who will be catering what events and get people excited about your upcoming calendar or events.
- Encourage people to write reviews on their favorites.
- Ask people to give a shout-out to the staff at their favorite restaurant.
- Publicize end-of-year events or specials.
- Throw together an evening pub crawl. Entitle it something cheeky like “The Family’s Finally Gone Home” Celebratory Pub Crawl.
Wellness/Fitness Professionals
While the rest of us feel like we’re almost out of the hectic season, this hardworking group is just getting ready for their busy time. With health resolutions on the horizon, wellness and fitness professionals have a very busy January. What do they need from you?
- Remind people that reviews and ratings are essential to all businesses, especially solopreneurs like a lot of what’s in the fitness and wellness industry.
- Help these professionals by providing social media tips or a webinar designed around they can help their audience make the most of their healthy resolutions. People really need this. According to CNN, 80% of people abandon their resolutions by February. Showing wellness and fitness people how a marketing campaign can keep people on track can do a lot of good for their businesses.
- If you have a meet and greet scheduled for January, consider approaching a fitness or wellness member to host it.
- Consider asking a wellness professional to offer advice to members/the community on troubles that are common this time of year like managing stress or getting help for depression.
- If you have health resolutions yourself, share them. Together you can keep each other accountable. It also helps build comradery.
Retail
Again, this is still a busy time for retail. Don’t give up on your shop small message. If you sell local currency or have a gift card program, encourage people to purchase from your participating merchants.
- Tell your retail members’ stories. It’s difficult for retail to compete against large stores but helping your audience understand who they are buying from can give small stores a real advantage.
- Highlight end-of-year sales.
- Schedule some time to talk to local businesses about what worked and what fell short. Begin planning for next year’s Small Business Season to make it bigger and better than this one.
Accounting Professionals
Accounting professionals are just starting to gear up for their busy season as well. See if one of them is willing to provide a couple of quick tips on end-of-year best practices or visit their websites to see if they have any timely advice on taxes and deductions. Share their content because it likely is very important to your small business community.
Speaking of taxes (and possible donations)…
Nonprofits
This is a very busy time for your nonprofits. Whether they are coordinating holiday help or simply trying to maximize Q4 giving, they would appreciate any attention you can bring to their efforts.
- Tell the story behind what they do.
- Provide a list of what your nonprofits need most. From funds to items, people are generally in a giving mood this time of year. Plus, they may have received new things and be willing to part with older items.
- Share their posts and calls to action. Just make sure to balance this out. You don’t want every post to be an ask for one of your nonprofits.
The Chamber
As if you didn’t have enough to keep you busy, we also have some suggestions of things that can be helpful as you wrap up your year.
As 2022 draws to a close:
- Examine your strategic plan. What did you accomplish and what do you still have left to do?
- Pull data from your Small Business Season or shop local campaign. Was it successful?
- Think about possible business trends in 2023 and whether you have the staff and technology you need to get out in front of those things as well as help your members prepare for change.
Yes, this last week of the year is a big one but look at what we’ve all weathered together over the past few years. You can do this!
We wish you a happy and healthy 2023.
