Small businesses play a massive role in their community. They provide well paying jobs, add colour to our main streets, and the personality that makes our province such a wonderful place to visit. Entrepreneurs uplift the communities they serve, and those communities return the love in so many ways.
As we approach the season of giving, your business has a unique opportunity to help your community. From employee volunteering to charity donations (and so much more), here are five ways your business can give back to your community this Holiday season – it might even help to grow your business.
Donate to Charity
Charitable acts like donating are performed without expectation of direct gain, but that doesn’t mean your company won’t receive some indirect benefits. Several studies have highlighted that Millennials love doing business with companies that match their values. In fact, almost seven in ten Canadian Millennials actively consider company values when making a purchase. Donating to a charitable cause not only improves the health of your community, it also builds the respect of your employees, customers and stakeholders.
Volunteer for a Good Cause
Granting your staff time off to engage in charitable work is a win-win situation. It’s good for your community, it’s been shown to boost employee mental health, and it even serves to boost the leadership skills of your team. Around this time of year, there are so many meaningful ways to volunteer. Toy and food drives for families, Christmas Tree donations, even carol singing for the extroverted among us.
Get Involved in Your Community
Last year, we spoke with Jay Valeri and Lydnsey Bell of Bigfoot Donuts on our Made Possible podcast. Jay and Lyndsey’s active participation in their community has seen them take a leadership role in their local BIA, sponsor local sports teams, and help beautification efforts of their community in the Comox Valley. All it takes is curiosity and a willingness to pitch in to make a lasting, positive impact on the community you serve. Your customers will appreciate it and will pay your business back in kind.
Reward Your Employees
Giving back this Holiday season isn’t just isolated to your community. Making your employees feel valued will lead to a happier and more engaged team. It will also serve to boost your staff retention. Here are several ideas for how to achieve this:
- Holiday bonus
- Staff party
- Additional time off over the Holidays
- A personalized gift
The pandemic has taken a toll on many people’s mental health. A small gesture of thanks like this can go so far in making your team feel appreciated this Holiday season.
Offer Digital Donation Options
So far, we’ve examined ways an entrepreneur can give back through their business. We understand that the impacts of the pandemic are still being felt, and some businesses won’t have the budget to action many of these ideas. That doesn’t mean you can’t give back this Holiday season.
Consider acting as a facilitator for a good cause, asking customers at the point of sale if they’d be interested in making a small donation to a charity.
Prepare for the Holidays with Small Business BC
Is your business ready to make the most of the busy Holiday sales period? At Small Business BC, we’ve got a range of live business webinars, free resource downloads, and one-on-one business advice to help optimize every aspect of your small business.
