This list was inspired from seeing a recent Facebook post from my Alex Preston’s about her new business Bella Bloomz, a South Florida based floral arrangement company. I have been so happy for her, so much so that I’ve been re-posting her business posts and sharing info and resources with her. She has been very supportive of me as well on my entrepreneurial journey while I have turned this blog into a media company. Alex and I like and share each other’s business info on social media all the time. We message each other motivational messages and randomly offer words of encouragement to each other if we see social media posts that might hint that we are not having the best of days. And here’s the thing, we aren’t super duper close best friends, but we really do just want to see each other win. My support of her and so many other small businesses in South Florida is motivated by me knowing how tough it is to come from Carol City and launch a business with little to no support, knowing how tough it can be to be a first time black businesses owner and believing that financial freedom comes from business ownership. Our support of each other had me thinking, “Why doesn’t everyone do this?” Then I thought maybe they don’t know how, especially if they aren’t entrepreneurs. I think some entrepreneurs are more open to cross promoting because they truly know the importance of it. I decided to share some tips and also explain why specifically why each tip can be super helpful to your loved one’s business or Non-Profit.
Here are 7 FREE & EASY ways you can support ME and ANY person that’s your loved one with a business or non- profit. And it doesn’t have to be a loved one, it can just be a business or organization that you like and want to see grow. Get into these tips!
1. Like, share and comment on ALL your loved one’s posts that you see when they are promoting their business, especially stuff you see from their FB Like page or any business page they create on any platform. This helps build their engagement and reach on social media which can result in a new client or customer seeing their page or content. And sharing a post means the most. You instantly help more people see their content.
2. Invite at least 10 people to like their FB Like Page or follow their Instagram Page. Again that can increase their impressions and help increase their page’s reach. On Instagram you can easily share a post from their business page to people’s DM. Here’s a simple message you can copy and send with the IG DM: “Hello! Check out and like my friend’s new business page. Thank you in advance for your support.”… Also, if you can invite more than 10 people to their like page or DM more than 10 people, please feel free to do so. The more the merrier!
3. Ask your loved one how you can help them to get the word out for their business on social media and actually DO what they ask. I’m sure none of them are going to ask you to pay for their Ad campaign, and it’s probably going to be something free that they ask you to do.
4. If they have a website, click the links they share and share the link on your social media page. This can help increase their website engagement. More visits to their website can mean more new business.
5. If you see events, resources or initiatives that can be helpful for their business, send that info to your loved one so they can be informed. Small businesses and non-profits are always looking for ways to build their brand through networking and learning.
6. Randomly call or text your loved one and see how they are doing. Offer them a kind word of encouragement. This goes a long way because that person could be having a rough day and you can offer them some positive energy. Also if they are having a good day, it just adds to their fuel to keep going.
7. If you see similar businesses that are doing what your loved one is doing; share that competitor’s business social media page or website. A business should always be on the lookout for what their competitors are doing to find inspiration, to learn what not to do or they can possibly reach out to them to collaborate on future projects.
A Small business owner or small non-profit org’s key to success REALLY relies on people knowing that they exist. If you can help with that then you are doing them a great service. Also sometimes you may not be your loved ones target customer or have the money to patronize them, but you can always help them with promoting and sharing with people what their business does. And please don’t think because you may not have a lot of IG followers or FB friends that your share or like or comment won’t mean anything. It all matters and it helps. If you believe in that small business owner, then do what you can in your own power to help them. Trust me, they’ll appreciate it.
And to small business owners and non-profit founders, be patient and don’t take things personally if a loved one forgets to do these things or just flat out never does it. Keep pushing to find the ones who will support you. Also don’t be afraid to ask your family and friends for help and be specific with your ask. Make it easy for them. Pre-write the Caption what you want them to post and pre-pick the picture or graphic you want them to post. People don’t want to do too much thinking on your behalf. Also, you can control the content that’s posted about your business if you pre-write and pre-pick the pcitures for your family and friends to post to social media, which is good for the continuity of your brand.
In the comments below, add tips that you think I missed on free and easy ways people can support small business owners and non-profit founders. Let’s do better in supporting each other and building our business community.
This article was written by Janey Tate. Follow her on Twitter @Janey_Tate. To send Hy-Lo News your story ideas, click here.
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