Why Small Businesses Matter (and How You Can Help Them Grow)

Disclosure: Post sponsored by UPS, but all opinions are my own. Please see below for additional disclosure.

I LOVE to shop local, for many reasons.

Firstly, local shops offer products that I can’t get in a large chain – they rock! What do I buy when I shop? Foods, mainly. I love to eat and local eateries are the BEST. I also love to hangout in coffee shops.

Pretty barista of a popular coffee shop

Secondly, I shop locally to avoid being impulsive. Seriously. Local shops are typically specialized, so when I’ve found what I’m looking for, I’m done shopping. When I go to a large store – a hypermarket or department store, for example – I tend to end up buying things I don’t really need.

Call me impulsive, but there are always little things I need to buy – especially for my kids. If you have kids, you know that if you are not careful you can buy the whole store for your children’s needs.

Thirdly – and perhaps more importantly – I shop local because local shop owners and employees are typically friendlier. They know you by name, and having a chit-chat for a minute or two can give you more local business insight than the media can offer you – seriously.

Furthermore, the owners and staffs can often suggest me something personalized, and often valuable advice. They are not necessarily upselling; in fact, they often save me money by offering better alternatives.

Here’s a good infographic that pretty much describes why small biz matters for me:

What do small business mean to you? (infographic)

In short, small businesses rock. And they deserve to be supported. That is one of the reasons why Noobpreneur.com is founded – to support small business owners and entrepreneurs with resources, tips and ideas.

Of course, my Noobpreneur.com is not alone in its cause. There are plenty of resources out there on the web that share the same vision. From time to time, we feature such resources so that you, our readers, can benefit from them.

Well, if you are a small business owner and you are reading this post, you are in luck! I’ve discovered yet another fab-tastic resource that will benefit you greatly in your endeavors: UPS Connect.

UPS, as one of the leading logistic companies in the world, acknowledge the importance of small business in the economy. Inspired by the passion and drive of entrepreneurs and small business owners, UPS launches UPS Connect to offer logistic-related resources and tools for startups and established small businesses alike to help them improve their operational effectiveness and efficiency.

Learn how UPS Connect can help small businesses:

What’s next?

Small businesses need all the support they need; Helps are always welcomed. I think that UPS Connect can help you a great deal, especially in logistics.

I recommended you visit www.UPSconnect.com to learn more whether it can help you solve some of your problems.

So, what’s next? Well, knowledge means nothing if you don’t share it – so, here’s what I recommend you to do:

If you are a small business owner, and think that UPS Connect is beneficial, please share what you just learned with other small business owners. If you love local businesses like I do, please share about UPS Connect with them and see whether the resource can help them solve their supply chain challenges.

If you are just someone who knows that sharing good info matters, please share this post to your friends, family and colleagues. Hopefully, what you know can help them or someone they know.

Disclosure: UPS partnered with bloggers such as me for their UPS Small Business program. As part of this program, I received compensation for my time. They did not tell me what to purchase or what to say about any idea mentioned in these posts. UPS believes that consumers and bloggers are free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. UPS policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, FTC guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.