How to support small businesses (without spending money)

Here at oh-hello! we’re the biggest fans of small businesses. Having started small ourselves, we know what it means to take that leap of faith and put your precious idea into practice.

That’s why we love working with small suppliers who are passionate about what they do and offer something unique with every product we use for our customised gift boxes.

We know you believe in small is beautiful too — so check out our simple ideas for how you can support small businesses without having to spend a single cent!

Get social

Harness the power of social media and like, share and comment on posts by your favourite small businesses.

Tag people who you know would love their products and enjoy their promotions and competitions.

If you’ve got a birthday coming up, you can even leave a cheeky hint that you would love to receive some of your chosen business’s products if they’re struggling for ideas!

Leave a review

When researching new products or services, it’s a given that consumers scroll through reviews to find out whether investing their cash is worthwhile.

So if you’ve received excellent service from a small business, be sure to give them a glowing review.

Positive reviews lead to greater sales and can also push up rankings in search results. This support can be invaluable to a growing business.

Make a personal recommendation

What would we do without personal recommendations? They’re the way to go when trying out new goods and services.

Make sure you pass on word-of-mouth recommendations for tried-and-tested small businesses.

After all, they’re something that no amount of slick marketing or advertising can buy!

Sign up for newsletters and promotions

Get yourself signed up to your favourite small businesses’ newsletters and promotions.

Being on the pulse with their latest news and offers means you can share information with friends and family or be prepared to buy from the business when a special occasion or need comes along.

And having ideas percolating away in the back of your mind takes the stress out of buying gifts last minute!

Offer mentoring

Next time you hear about a small business that’s just starting out in a field you know, why not offer your mentoring and expertise?

It’s a way of paying forward the support and advice you received when you were starting out yourself.

And you’ll be rewarded by seeing a small business grow and thrive, thanks to your invaluable input!

Include small businesses in discount schemes

If you head up a business yourself, you may already have an employee discount scheme that enables your staff to enjoy goods and services at a reduced price.

Look around for local small businesses that you think your employees would love and talk to them about including their offers on your scheme.

A discount, however modest, will be attractive to employees and will help promote your chosen business’s services and secure regular orders.

It’s all about paying it forward

It just goes to show that you don’t need to spend money to pay it forward.

Just a few well-chosen likes, follows or reviews will give invaluable support to your favourite businesses.

So start spreading the word and lend your support — for free — to growing businesses that you know and love.