Home Business Jumpstart Tips Series: Giving Back, Is It Worth It?
Jul 27, 2022 5:09 pm
The HBJ Newsletter is back!
After taking a few weeks for a summer break, the Home Business Jumpstart Tips Series is back. This week we're talking about:
Giving Back, Is It Worth It?
Even the newest and smallest of home businesses will have the opportunity to give back in some way. Should you?
The idea of giving back to others as a home business can cause some conflicting emotions. On one hand, what kind of person just outright refuses to give back? On the other, if you're a brand new or struggling business, you may feel it's impossible to do. Money might be tight, your time might be overbooked and as much as you might like the idea, you might not be able to see a way clear to do much giving at the moment.
It's important to know that giving back comes in many different forms. When I first started my business, I discovered Kiva. For just $25 it allowed me to choose an individual I wanted to help, most of them small business owners from around the world. Kiva put my $25 together with the donations of others who wanted to help a particular individual in order to provide loans to them. It was a great way to get my feet wet in the giving back department.
I also found there were lots of non-money ways to give back. I've provided free coaching to women leaving domestic abuse situations to help them start their own businesses and created websites at deep discounts for local organizations like the library in the town I grew up in. During the pandemic, I even offered my
webinar on winterizing a business by going remote for free in order to help businesses adjust to pandemic lockdowns.
When money isn't quite as tight, you can consider giving back locally, in other ways. For example, I bought ad space in our high school graduation program this year. You could also place an ad in the high school yearbook. Or another favorite school-related opportunity that I love is donating to one of the local teachers through Donors Choose. The really cool thing about Donors Choose is that often big companies and celebrities will match the donations that come in helping those teachers reach their goals even faster.
Although I adore Kiva and still loan out money through them, I've found that the non-money and local givebacks come with an additional perk. More connections often lead to more clients. And even if the individuals you are supporting or helping out don't become a client or customers themselves, they'll be singing your praises to people they know. Word of mouth is the number one way of building your client/customer base. By giving back, you're making yourself and your business more well known, which is by definition, marketing.
And let's not forget how awesome it feels to help others. Sometimes when you're just feeling overwhelmed in your own business, being of service to someone else can be just the thing you need to reaccess, regroup and revitalize yourself.
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