There has never been a better time for you to take advantage of running a small business within your community. So many more people are now looking to source their products locally, support their community and local businesses, as well as being aware of the service and items they can receive from independent small business ventures. Of course, there is a lot to be said for having your business online, but maybe now is the time to step away from that and develop your small business on a face to face level. So I thought I would share with you some of the top tips to help your small business venture move forward.

Start networking at local community events

One of the easiest ways to start being involved within the local community is to reach out at networking and local events. This might be something like an artisan market or a school fete. However, always make sure that the event matches your niche and business, otherwise it would be pointless. You could set up shop at these events and even let people buy or sample your products. Thanks to mobile merchant services you can now take payments easily by card or over the phone. Maybe this could be the natural step away from being a solely online business. You could always ensure that your website and e-commerce is your main business but actually attending events could open up a new set of customers or clients for you.

Consider getting office premises or a shop

Having an online business is great, but as you expand you may be struggling for space for things like stock or even having a place for you to work. This means it could be a great step for you to obtain office premises or even a local shop. Again it enables you to be part of the local community and reach a new set of customers and clients in the process. While also giving you the chance of expansion with a place to work as well as store anything you need to.

Be the expert locally

One of the best pieces of advice would be to become the local expert. Make your business the place to go and purchase from for specific items or services. Being the expert means that you develop a whole new level of advertisement, word of mouth. Within your local community, people will talk about where to get things or make comments about how or where they purchased items or services. You need to be the business the recommend.

Join forces with a local charity

Finally, why not consider joining forces with a local charity. You will be doing each other a favor by being involved in campaigns. There will be advertising for you as well as necessary funds raised for sponsorship for them. It could be a great match and also could work well from a marketing strategy point of view.

I hope this helps you with your small business venture.