Ways To Boost Community Engagement for Your Business

Julie Starr • Aug 20, 2021



Every business should have community engagement as a part of its overall marketing strategy. This is because it is a vital tool for businesses to build trust and make better, people-related decisions. By engaging with the community on all the various forms you can, social media, online, in person, at events, etc., you are privy to some great data for analysis. Your overall goal should be to find better ways to connect with people to build loyalty and create more targeted and specific products and services. The better you can fulfill someone’s needs, the more they will use you. 

Images

When you post a story on your social media account, you need to accompany it with glossy images. These really help you sell your story. Say you have created a new and excellent sustainable product, you need to show the world. You can show behind the scene images of the creators, people love that kind of stuff. It makes you seen very accessible, and you will be humanizing your brand. The more images you post, the more your customers can see how real you are when it comes to your key messages. 

 

Core Values

You need a marketing campaign that really highlights your core values . This way, you can connect with people, build trust and create a loyal customer base. Sustainability is a great value and something that you can showcase in many forms. You can show the world the measures your office or factory has put in place to be more sustainable – trees in the alcoves, etc. These can be posted online to communicate with people and show that you’re not just saying you’re sustainable, you really are. 

 

Use Community Software

If you want help in building your online community, you can always seek help from professionals. Whatever your need, someone is sure you have you covered. So do a little reach ad see what you can discover. Community platform choices come in all shapes and colors, and most are fully customizable. So think about your preferences, like sustainability, and go from there.

Creating a more personal relationship with your customers and the community you serve is very critical. This is because customers must relate to your business in a specific way for your company to thrive. So, first begin, by having a common platform that the people surrounding your business can voice their opinions freely, ensure that the means used are environmentally friendly and do not pose any risk to the larger community.

In addition, streamlining operations and finding how to improve your local SEO will give your business an added advantage. It will provide you with a clear insight into the consumer patterns so that you can adapt your products to them. This will ensure that you utilize the available resources effectively, minimizing wastes and increasing output.

 

Showcase Customers

A great way to build that ever-important trust is to make a point of showing the world success stories from your customers. Nothing sells a product more than other customers being raving fans. Share these customer stories, and if you can, share images of them too. Encourage all your customers to leave reviews and open up the lines of communication by asking questions on your pages. 

 

Don’t Be Afraid of Emotions

If you can show the world your human side all the better. Perhaps a new product has been designed by your company which really helps the world become more sustainable. Let everyone see the mixture of happy emotions you experience. Being proud and happy is great, and if the emotion is a raw as it can be, it will come across as sincere. Make people laugh too. This can be one of your most powerful weapons if you do it just right.

By Julie Starr 07 Oct, 2024
Becoming more eco-friendly and running a greener business is a responsibility that business owners really need to think more about. The good news is that if you spend a lot of time in your office, there are plenty of ways to make it more eco-friendly without having to overhaul everything and start again (which isn’t just disruptive, but expensive too). So, if you’re ready to get started, here are some simple steps to make your office space more eco-friendly; read on to find out more. Use Energy-Efficient Lighting This idea is a simple one that you can do no matter what else might be on your list of tasks - it’s quick, easy, and really makes a difference; change your light bulbs to something more energy efficient. If you’re still using traditional fluorescent bulbs, it’s time to upgrade to LED which doesn’t just last longer, but also uses a lot less energy. They’re easy to install and they’ll help you cut down on your office’s energy usage almost instantly. If possible, you should make the most of natural light too, so think about rearranging your workspace to let in more sunlight, which saves energy and can boost your mood - it’s a win-win that you can do right away. Prioritize Air Quality The air you breathe matters, and keeping it clean can do wonders for your health and the planet. One way to improve air quality is by adding plants to your workspace because plants are natural air purifiers, and as a bonus, they’ll make your office feel more inviting. Another great idea is to make sure your office’s HVAC system is working efficiently, and having air duct cleaning done by professionals is an easy step you can take to improve air quality and ensure your heating and cooling systems aren’t wasting energy. Clean air ducts mean cleaner air, less strain on your system, and even lower energy bills, so it’s a simple but really effective thing to do. Switch To Reusable Products If your office is still stocking up on single-use plastic items, it’s time for a change - swap your disposable cups, utensils, and plates for reusable ones and you’ll be surprised at how much waste to eliminate. And what about encouraging people to bring their own mugs and water bottles to work? Give them tea, coffee, and water to refill everything with, and you’ll be doing your bit to help the planet and have less waste to deal with as well. And don’t stop with these things either - there are loads of reusable products that could be useful in your office. You could have refillable pens and ink cartridges for your printer, for example. Go Paperless Speaking of your printer, is that an office machine you actually need? If you were to go digital and aim for a paperless office , you might be able to do away with the printer, which means less money spent on ink and paper, and less energy used altogether. You should be able to set up a system where documents can be shared online and stored electronically, and there are plenty of tools around to help you do exactly that (and much more). If you don’t need to print something and you don’t need a physical copy of a document, don’t make one - just use the digital version instead and you’ll be a lot more eco-friendly.
By Julie Starr 04 Oct, 2024
Sustainability often gets pushed on the common person. Joe Public is told to be more sustainable with their daily habits as the government pushes for more eco-friendly measures. This is all well and good - but does it really matter when 71% of greenhouse gas emissions come from just 100 companies around the world? Small business owners are desperate to prove their sustainability, but what are bigger companies in some of the most polluting industries doing to help? We’ve taken three of the least sustainable sectors on the planet and explored the unique ways they’re trying to cut down on emissions and be more eco-friendly. Mining Any industry revolving around drilling underground will not be very environmentally friendly! Mining causes a lot of pollution, but its unsustainability often comes from the way it damages local environments and ecosystems. So, what is this industry doing to change things? It’s largely focusing on more responsible mining practices to reduce waste and mitigate the impact on local environments. This is done through mining dust suppression systems to prevent airborne pollution, reforesting mining sites when they’re no longer in use, and recycling as many materials as possible. Is it perfect? No, but it’s a step in the right direction. Fossil Fuels Shock horror; the fossil fuels industry is the most damaging to our environment. Finding ways to change the scope of this sector is the key to ensuring a better future for all. Some companies in this industry are trying to do this through carbon capture and storage. This is a technique where CO2 emissions are captured before they’re released into the atmosphere and stored underground. Realistically, the main thing fossil fuel companies should be doing is pushing for more renewable energy sources. Many are doing this - though reports suggest they’re not investing as much as they should. If fossil fuel companies dumped more money into developing biofuels and other renewable sources, pollution from this industry would drop dramatically. Fashion The most unbelievable stat to take from this post is that the fashion industry is responsible for 10% of our global carbon footprint . That’s remarkable (and worrying), considering how most of us don’t view it as a “dangerous” industry. Fast fashion is the main problem; poorly-made goods are pumped out at a rapid rate, and consumers constantly buy new things. Fashion companies are trying their best to resolve this. Most big brands will now have sustainable lines using recyclable materials. Consumers also hold the key to solving this problem: stop buying new clothes all the time and wear yours for longer. Or buy pre-owned clothes to slow down the fashion production line. Companies can still do more as well: they are trying to adopt more eco-friendly production processes that use less water and energy. The moral of this post is that everyone can do their bit to fight for a more sustainable future. Keep this in mind for your small business . It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in; there will always be ways to promote eco-friendly practices.
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