Category: marketing

community | economic development | entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local | social media | tools
Let’s Talk Newspapers: Working Together Locally
ByDeb Brown April 17, 2026April 29, 2026
Hometown newspapers are small businesses, just like the hardware store, the cafe, or the auto repair shop. They’re not just “media.” They’re employers, sponsors, storytellers, and neighbors, and their work ripples through every corner of the community. This year, collaboration is a focus of ours at SaveYour.Town, and I want to talk about how newspapers…
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entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local
The Treasure Hunt Economy: exciting retail experience for small towns
BySmall Biz Survival April 10, 2026April 4, 2026
Guest Post by Jason Duff, Small Nation I’ve been noticing something interesting happening across the small towns we work in, and I don’t think it’s temporary. In a time where inflation is still pinching wallets, customers aren’t just spending less, they’re shopping differently. They’re hunting. Not just for cheap, but for value, uniqueness, and the…
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big company | entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local | trends
Small town marketing secret: Have something to invite people to
ByBecky McCray February 24, 2026February 24, 2026
People need a compelling reason to leave their homes and come experience your business with you. This feels like a very heavy lift. . You’re supposed to be exciting enough to pull people away from their phones, their families and the comfort of online shopping. You’re competing with everything else demanding their attention. Here’s the…
Read More Small town marketing secret: Have something to invite people to
entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local | trends
More experience-based retail: the Charm Bar, Valentine’s Rose Bouquet Bar
ByBecky McCray February 14, 2026April 29, 2026
Following up on the trend of rural experience-based retail, I spotted these Valentine’s Day offerings from my local women’s boutique, The Daisy Village. I’m seeing more and more use of the term “Bar” to refer to any assemble-your-own type experience. Think like a salad bar, where you pick just the parts you want, but for…
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entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | Small Biz 100
Get more customers without advertising: Show up where they can find you
ByChris Brogan January 13, 2026
How the Roofer Nailed Marketing Guest Post by Chris Brogan Let me tell you about an experience I had in a little diner in Lewiston, Maine. I sat at the counter of a busy Maine diner slinging breakfast to a crowd of mostly locals, it seemed. One guy a few seats away from me did…
Read More Get more customers without advertising: Show up where they can find you
community | entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | shop local
Local Products Make the Best Swag
ByBecky McCray January 5, 2026December 22, 2025
Jim Katzman wrote a great article on Medium about creating swag that customers actually want. One of his tips was “Leverage Local Pride.” That got me thinking: Local products would make the best swag. Local products are easier Instead of designing a batch of custom pens or ordering another lot of logo coffee mugs, walk…
Read More Local Products Make the Best Swag
customer service | entrepreneurship | marketing | rural
Use your loyalty card as your business card
ByBecky McCray December 15, 2025
At the LaunchRuralOK Small Business Resource event in Alva, I overheard the owner of Millie Coffee from Fairview, Oklahoma, talking to a service provider she wanted to work with. She apologized for not having business cards with her, then handed over her shop’s loyalty card instead. I looked over my shoulder and said out loud,…
Read More Use your loyalty card as your business card
entrepreneurship | ideas | marketing | rural | survivors | trends
Will trendy axe throwing and escape room businesses last? More experience-based retail: the Hat Bar
ByBecky McCray March 31, 2025March 31, 2025
Continuing the discussion on experience-based businesses, what happens after everyone in town tries it? Do these businesses go away? Sheila Scarborough posed the question this way: How do all these axe-throwing and escape room places think they’re going to stay in business past a few years? Main Street Expert Jackie Wolven weighed in: In a…
Read More Will trendy axe throwing and escape room businesses last? More experience-based retail: the Hat Bar

Small Biz Survival

The Treasure Hunt Economy: exciting retail experience for small towns

Small town marketing secret: Have something to invite people to

More experience-based retail: the Charm Bar, Valentine’s Rose Bouquet Bar

Get more customers without advertising: Show up where they can find you

Local Products Make the Best Swag

Use your loyalty card as your business card

Will trendy axe throwing and escape room businesses last? More experience-based retail: the Hat Bar

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