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Holiday Marketing 7: Small Business Saturday

By Becky McCray

Shopping bag labeled "Shift your shopping"We’re all using the same marketing theme this year: Shift Your Shopping. When we work together to spread the word, we’ll multiply how many customers we reach.

Shop Small logo

In the USA, this weekend is Small Business Saturday. (Canada celebrated last month, and the UK is holding out for Dec 5. Australia is taking the whole month of November, which is smart.)

Expect a lot of media attention in the US for #ShopSmall events, so this is a big chance to piggyback on that. You can do this on any of your social media channels and in ads you run.

Since weekends are usually a time when folks shop in big cities and at big box stores, it’s up to us to remind them that this Saturday is different. Tell customers that they’ll want to make plans to stay and shop in your community this weekend. Give them good reasons, by mentioning any local events that will be happening that day. Point out special activities. Make a big deal about the variety of local stores in your community.

When you write your social media posts this week include the #ShopSmall and #ShiftYourShopping hashtags. For your print ads and in-store displays, use the ShopSmall logo from ShopSmall.com as well as the Shift Your Shopping logo.

Watch for your fellow local stores. More of them may be online this week gearing up for the rush of activity. Make sure you find, like and share their stuff.

Shift Your Shopping is our group theme for holiday marketing this year. You have my permission to forward these articles to your local retailers, merchants association, chamber of commerce, downtown development group or any one else you think would benefit from them. All you need to do is list the author as Becky McCray of SmallBizSurvival.com and then let me know who you are sharing with.

Shift Your Shopping 2015 series:

  1. Picking your Holiday 2015 marketing theme
  2. Set your cover photos
  3. Spotlight a local business
  4. Spotlight on community
  5. Share the causes you care about
  6. Support your service providers
  7. Small Business Saturday
  8. Tell your founding story

 

  • About the Author
  • Latest Posts

About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.
  • Downtown is your town’s core: How to make your case - February 22, 2021
  • Zoom Towns: attracting and supporting remote workers in rural small towns - December 10, 2020
  • In an economic crisis, spend your brainpower before your dollars - November 25, 2020
  • Video: How to fill empty car dealership buildings for the holidays - November 6, 2020
  • How has 2020 changed the challenges rural small towns face? Tell us here - October 20, 2020
  • The Idea Friendly Method to surviving a business crisis - October 6, 2020
  • Join me for the Rural Renewal Symposium online Oct 13 - September 26, 2020
  • Cheap placemaking idea: instant murals - September 11, 2020
  • Refilling the rural business pipeline - July 7, 2020
  • Huge vacant buildings: grants to renovate? - June 9, 2020

November 23, 2015 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, marketing, ShiftYourShopping emails, shop local

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Trackbacks

  1. Holiday Marketing 5: Share the causes you care about says:
    November 29, 2015 at 2:13 pm

    […] Small Business Saturday […]

  2. Holiday Marketing 6: Support your service providers says:
    November 29, 2015 at 2:18 pm

    […] Small Business Saturday […]

  3. Holiday Marketing 8: Tell your founding story says:
    November 30, 2015 at 6:08 am

    […] Small Business Saturday […]

  4. Holiday Marketing 9: Tell your customers’ stories says:
    December 7, 2015 at 5:57 am

    […] Small Business Saturday […]

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