September 2024 Economic Development Update:
For many, September is the time for a reset. The start to a new school year and unofficial end of summer brings fresh beginnings. This is the perfect time for businesses to look back at the goals they set back in January and make a plan to achieve those goals by the end of the year.
Why not start with making sure potential customers know how to reach you when they need your products or services? In a rural area like Sunrise Corner with about 3,600 people across 17 hamlets spread over 3,600 sq km, it takes more than the population of your own community to ensure the success of your small business. It takes the entire region.
Bottom line, potential customers need to know your business exists and how to reach you. The majority of people in our region want to support local businesses, but literally don’t know they exist, so go to larger trading centres to buy products or pay steep travel charges for services. And with so many new people moving to our area, word of mouth isn’t what it used to be when everyone knew everyone else.
That’s where having a strong online presence is critical. That may sound daunting to a small business owner who doesn’t have the technical know-how to build a website or figure out social media. That’s where Sunrise Corner is able to help with our online directory. Best of all, listings are free for Sunrise Corner-based businesses and instructions are on the website to help you add or update your listing. If you need assistance, send me an email – I am more than happy to add the listing for you.
Visit the Sunrise Corner online directory where you can search by community, category or key word. We start by adding a basic listing for businesses as we learn about them, but we can enhance listings with photos, promotions and product/service features and benefits.
And a suggestion for Sunrise Corner residents: Check out the businesses in our region, you may be pleasantly surprised. You’ll likely learn about a local product or service you need but hadn’t heard of before. Remember, shopping local supports our neighbours, friends and families, and makes our communities stronger and more self sufficient. Sounds like a good goal to pursue for the rest of 2024.
Monique Chenier
monique@sunrisecornermb.ca