In just days life as we knew it changed. Dining in
restaurants, shopping for groceries, planning our spring break trip while the
kids were eating breakfast before school. Now many of us are working from home,
others are keeping the community safe and supplied with needed goods and
services. Thanks to everyone who is on the front lines while we wait for this
to pass!
No one knows what the new normal will be once the COVID-19
threat is behind us. Big box and mega online retailers will likely survive and
continue chugging along, but will your locally owned stores, restaurants, and
service providers? Seeing social media posts from businesses in my area, some
were starting to experience a slowdown even before the social distancing
recommendations went out. Then one day they adapted and opened with additional
sanitation and safety precautions, the next day - closed to all but curb-side
service because of new official health recommendations.
I won’t go into statistics. We all know small business is
important to a community and creates jobs, and every large business today
started as a small business at some point. Watch your favorite businesses’ social
media pages and websites for how they are still trying to serve their customer
base and to stay open during this difficult time.
If you own a small business and are wondering how you can
change the way you’re doing things, or if you want to help your local
businesses out, here are some ideas I’ve seen in the past few days that might
be of interest:
- A local bakery/restaurant: Changed their normal lunch options for dine-in into frozen meals customers could pick up curb-side in the evenings on their way home from work. Cinnamon rolls and breads are available for morning pickups. Cookies and cupcakes are available at both pickup times. Using an online ordering service (even a Google Docs Form would work), the owner knows the night before what to have ready for the next day so there’s no guessing.
- A bookstore: Curb-side pickup of any book in stock, or free local delivery. $1 shipping if you’re out of the area or just not interested in having someone come to visit you. Coffee and cookies also available curbside, and an online ordering system available 24/7. The bookstore owners are also planning on live streaming discussions about books they’re reading, and games and activities to do with families stuck at home.
- A yarn store: Started streaming about products they had available and upcoming virtual classes people could take part in. Orders by phone, inexpensive shipping and curb-side delivery. They’ll text you pictures of their yarn and other products and provide recommendations for projects you’re working on. Gift certificates are available, and they are encouraging people to buy extra certificates to leave at the store in order to pay it forward to others as an anonymous gift.
- A flower shop: For a flower shop that is the only one within a 20 mile radius, prom is a big part of their business for the year. With proms now canceled, this is a major concern. This particular store started a marketing campaign to shop local – not just at that shop, but others. They also started highlighting an arrangement of the day at a special price, and encouraging people to buy by offering free delivery to the first person to order that arrangement that day.
How are you adapting for your customers or supporting your
local stores? Post a comment and let me know!
Resources:
If you're a local business, visit ksready.gov's Businesses page for information on how to obtain Small Business Administration Disaster Assistance for economic losses suffered since January 31, 2020. They also have a page for Citizens on how to prepare you and your family for COVID-19 and dealing with related stress and anxiety.
For COVID-19 updates as they related to K-State Research and Extension and Kansas State University, you can visit their new COVID-19 page.
K-State Research and Extension's Community Vitality Team offers a First Friday e-Call targeted at entrepreneurs and the communities that support them. You can view previous webinars on our Entrepreneurship page and find out about upcoming calls in our sidebar Events calendar. --Jan Steen, jmsteen@ksu.edu
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