One of the things I like best about Buy Local is the networking that goes on. We are all trying to support each other but there's another way we can support all local businesses - educate your staff!

There have been several occasions where the local business owner is pushing the Buy Local (or Shop Local) idea and yet their own staff isn't supporting it. Their employees are still going to corporate-owned businesses over the local owned business! There are valid reasons for choosing one business over another, but what I'm hearing for reasons aren't valid. I hear "that business is too far away" or "they can't help me" (being said without even trying the business first!).

Please take time either one-on-one or in your next staff meeting to remind your employees how important it is to support local businesses and to be making smart decisions when going to one business over another. Challenge each of them to change one corporate-owned business to a locally-owned business for one month and see how it works out. Often it takes walking in a door of a locally-owned business to see what's being missed so this challenge works!

We all need to work together - especially in this economy! - to continue spreading the word of Buy Local, getting other locally-owned businesses to sign up on this website (seems to have stalled a little), educating our staffs (who will then hopefully educate their friends and family), and make the overall effort to Buy Local!

Nancy