08/17/2026
Very well put! My friends and family don’t need office supplies personally - but the companies they work for do. Sharing my posts, sharing my information with their employers or providing me contact information so I can just have a conversation to see if we are a good fit, is the best way to support me.
I saw another local business post something today that really hit home with me.
Their point was basically this:
Supporting small businesses should be a two-way street.
As a small-business owner, I completely understand where they're coming from.
I get asked fairly regularly for donations, sponsorships, free services, discounts and help with different causes and organizations. And don't misunderstand me—I believe in supporting our community, and I've been fortunate enough to help a lot of people and organizations over the years.
But my business is also a little different because I don't have a physical product sitting on a shelf that I can donate.
What I sell is my time, my gas, my mileage and more than 26 years of professional experience and expertise.
When I donate a service, I'm donating all of those things. Depending on where I'm going, it may also mean an hour or more of my day. That's something I don't think people always consider when asking a service-based small business for a donation.
And there's another side to this that doesn't get talked about very often.
Sometimes the first—and only—time you ever hear from someone is when they're asking your business to give them something.
Supporting a small business doesn't necessarily mean you have to spend money with them. You may never need what they offer.
But you can recommend them. Leave them a review. Tag them when someone asks for their service. Send someone their way. Tell a friend about them.
Those things cost absolutely nothing, and to a small business, they can mean a LOT.
So I have to agree with the local business owner who brought this up:
“Support local” shouldn't only apply when you need a local business to support you.
It really does work both ways.
I'm curious what my fellow small-business owners think. Do you get a lot of donation and sponsorship requests? And what makes you more likely to say YES when someone asks?
