Putting up a small online business is hard and can be frustrating at times but you can help your friend out through these various means.
Many small online businesses have emerged during the pandemic mainly as a means to cope for people who have lost their jobs. On the other hand, though, some small businesses were born because other people were also able to make a livelihood out of their accidental creative discoveries. Yes, one of the positive aspects brought about by the pandemic was that it was able
to bring out the creativity of a lot of people. By being locked at home, individuals have discovered hidden talents, new recipes, as well as arts and crafts.
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| Photo by Andrew Neel from Pexels |
20 Ways To Support Your Friend’s Small Online Business
The rise of small businesses
Small online businesses have surged in popularity during the community quarantine. It was understandably so; online is relatively less expensive as compared to
having a physical store. What’s more, almost all people are already online
even before the pandemic happened so it’s easier and faster to get information
across electronic channels.
I personally know three friends who put up an online shop right before and
during the community quarantine and I am happy to say that their businesses
are doing well. Two are selling food items and one is reselling various
clothing products and accessories.
Filipinos are so hard to please
Sadly though, it’s a different story for many other online sellers who have failed in their endeavors. Oftentimes, you
hear stories about not having been able to bridge the gap in between their
finances as the cause of their businesses’ collapse.
Meanwhile, others would
say that it’s the utter lack of support that caused their inevitable
failure. Come to think of it, a lot of Filipinos are really hard to please.
I once
heard from a New Zealand-born Filipino blogger I met in a blogging group that
it was his family that he found so hard to please (i.e. they would not like or
follow his social media accounts no matter how hard he pestered them) to the
point that he declared that Pinoy standards are “way above the sky.” I could
not help but agree with him.
I sometimes do ask why other people, particularly those that you have not even met in person, are more
supportive of your business or passion project as compared to your friends
whom you grew up with. I do not have the answer to that.
What I can
confidently say thought is that, personally, I try to support the businesses
of people I know, not just my friends, without expecting anything in
return from them.
How to help your friend’s small online business
There’s nothing really hard and it will not take up too much of your time or
exert effort. Here are some ways to do it:
The lifeblood of online pages and small business is engagement from other
people. This will get them in front of other people
1. Follow their social media accounts
This is undoubtedly easy and involves no cost to you at all. Give your friends
a pat of confidence on the shoulder by following their social media
accounts.
2. Leave a good review on their social media pages
Facebook in particular allows users to leave reviews on pages. Your friends
will surely be inspired to do more with their small business when they see you
leaving good reviews about their products and services.
3. React to what they post
Again, leaving a post reaction is easy and entails no additional cost to you.
Also, leave a reaction to their posts. “Love” their posts to let them know
that you support them. Do you know that Facebook algorithm gives more weight
on reactions as compared to regular likes?
When their posts get a lot of reactions, Facebook bumps them up in the
newsfeed of followers. Thus, a lot of people would be able to see their
posts.
4. Watch their YouTube videos
If your friend’s business has a YouTube channel, then watch their videos.
Creating videos is hard work and time-consuming. A short 3-minute video could
have taken them the whole night to edit and finally publish it. Support their
hard work by watching their YouTube videos.
5. Comment on and like their YouTube videos
The lifeblood of social media and video posts is engagement. You see, when you
engage on a post or video such as leaving a comment and like, it signals the
social media site that the content that you engaged on has value.
As such, when other people search for terms related to the post or video,
there is greater likelihood that the social media site will show the
most-engaged videos and post in the top result.
6. Share their posts
Help your friend’s small business reach more people by sharing their blog and
social media posts, and memes. Tag them also in relevant posts whenever you
can.
7. Share their products
Aside from your friend’s posts, also share their products and services in your
personal newsfeed or your own page.
8. Mention them in your posts
If you are posting on social media and you know that your friend has a product
or service relevant to what you are posting, mention them in it. Include their
contact information if you can.
9. Recommend them to other people
Your efforts do not have to be necessarily confined in the social media and
online space. You can mention your friend’s products and services or recommend
them during your conversations with your colleagues, other set of friends,
neighbors, or your loved ones.
10. Buy their products
Buy their products and try them for yourself. Remain anonymous because they
will surely insist on giving it on a discount or even for free. Only ask for
discounts when you know that their business is already doing well.
11. Write a review about their products if you can
Leave a nice review about their products in their online shop. Also do the
same when their products are listed in other similar websites.
12. Comment on their blog articles
If your friend keeps a blog about their small business, visit their website
and comment on their articles. Again, it’s a good way to engage with their
business and to give their articles a boost in search engine rankings.
13. Recommend suppliers that you know of
Refer to them suppliers that you know of, especially if they can offer good
costing so that your friend can save on expenses.
14. Share your knowledge to them
If you have the technical expertise, share your knowledge to your friend. It
can by anything from technology, to marketing, to cost management, or to
shipping. Anything to help them improve their business or make life easier for
them.
15. Ask them how you can help
Offer them your help. You might have shared your knowledge to them but they
still have no idea on where to start, so maybe it’s time to give them a hand You
would be surprised to know that some people, no matter how calm and composed
they appear, can have a lot of turmoil going on in their head.
Help design promotional materials for them or help them sort their orders.
Every little help goes a long way.
16. Talk to your friends and give them words of encouragement
Your friends may not always need any help with regard to the technical and
logistical aspects of their business. Maybe they just need a friend to listen
to them. Talk to them and give them words of encouragement. Listen to their
frustrations and fears, sometimes they just need someone to hear them
out.
17. If you know business seminars, recommend it to them
It helps to attend seminars. Even short, one-hour webinars are a big
help. A lot of times, these seminars are not really to gain new knowledge but
to affirm what we already know.
In the end, it works by providing the attendee more confidence because they
know that they are in the right direction.
18. Recommend trade fairs
Trade fairs involve cost but it’s a good way to bring businesses closer to
potential customers. It’s also a great venue to find other businesses and
experts that you can network with.
19. Recommend Facebook groups where they can join
To tell you honestly, Facebook groups are a big help to me because they offer
a wealth of knowledge and information. There is a Facebook group for almost
any niche – blogging, small businesses, parenting, trading, almost anything!
What’s also good about Facebook groups is that joining is free.
20. Tell them where they can improve
Give your friends honest feedback. Tell them the areas where they can improve.
If you know people who have feedback about their products and services, inform
them about it. It is only by improving their products and services that they can
truly satisfy the needs of their customers.
Epilogue
The start of success begins when you support your friends and family in their
small online business. That’s already a big win for them as putting up a
business is hard; it involves a lot of time, effort, and resources.
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| Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels |
As such, if you know someone who is trying their very best to make their small
online business succeed, give them all the support that you can provide.
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Great ways to support someone close in their business. This pademic has affected all of us in one way or another.
ReplyDeleteI support all my online entrepreneur friends. A simple share from their post will mean a lot to them. I, myself is an entrepreneur.
ReplyDeleteWe all need to do better about following these tips. Even if you can't finiancially support someone all of the time, these other steps can help immensely! I have friends I need to do better about and I would love my friends to do the dame! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas toward assisting your friend. We all need to be our brother's keeper.
ReplyDeleteMaking friends is always good to build your business and grow together. I will start doing it. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely agreeing with you, let's support each other esp small businesses during this difficult time of pandemic. Cheers siennylovesdrawing
ReplyDeleteI agree and try to support small business as much as I can especially with enterpreneurs I personally know as people
ReplyDeleteI never knew that Fillipinos were hard ot please. I have to ask my coworker about this. Previous coworkers were so happy-go-lucky and chilled. But, nice tips to help small businesses out! These are the bread of our society.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a beautiful post, I wish everyone can follow this and lend their support to small businesses. I am surely sharing this post with all my friends.
ReplyDeleteSuch a wonderful post. Sometimes we can help in ways we dont even know
ReplyDeletesupporting a friend would mean a lot, creating engagement in their social media will give them a better reach and insights
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post. Especially in difficult times like these we should open our eyes - and hearts - and grant help and support wherever it's needed.
ReplyDeleteSuper perfect mommy and Daddy, At Ito po ang Nais Ko ang patuloy Kayong Masuportahan sa abot ng aking makakaya at patuloy iparamdam sa inyo ang aking Loved and Genuine Support Hanggang sa Dulo
ReplyDeleteYes. Karamihan sa mga kaibigan ko online seller. Yan Lang Kasi ang paraan nila para matustusan ang needs nila araw araw sa panahon ngayon ng pandemia. Isa ako sa mga bumibili din sa kanila
ReplyDelete#supportsmallbusiness
Very practical and easy to do steps to help friends nurture and develop their online endeavors! This applies not only to sales Ventures but to artistic talent as well. Will share this on my FB, Sir. Thanks for this article, Sir Ivan!
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I learned that the more people reacted to your post, the more that your post will rank well on google search. Thanks for this information.
ReplyDeleteIt has the possibility to rank higher in social media algorithm because of good engagement. Welcome po!
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome po! The same support will go a long way for us writers and bloggers.
ReplyDeleteTama po yan. Let's support each other lang.
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