5 Reasons to Shop Local on Small Business Saturday

It pays to spend your money close to home.

Thanksgiving weekend is supposed to be about spending time with loved ones and being grateful. But for better or worse, it's evolved into the busiest shopping weekend of the year, sandwiched by Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

In the middle of Thanksgiving weekend is Small Business Saturday -- a day when consumers are urged to shop locally and swipe their credit cards at neighborhood businesses rather than large big-box and department store chains. If you're on the fence about where to do your post-Thanksgiving shopping, here are a few good reasons to support your local stores on Small Business Saturday.

1. You want to keep your local businesses around

Do you find it convenient that there's a toy store in town so that when you forget about a birthday party that's starting in less than an hour, you have a means of grabbing a gift? If you want that toy store to be able to stay in business, you'll need to support it. So if you plan to do a lot of your holiday shopping over Thanksgiving weekend, you might as well give the shops in your neighborhood priority.

2. You want to support businesses that create jobs in the community

Small businesses tend to be invested in their communities. And they may be more likely to hire locally. So if you have a teen who you're sure will need a summer job, supporting an area business could be your ticket to securing their future employment. 

3. You want to make sure the value of your home holds steady

Living near a thriving small business community could do a lot for your home value. On the flipside, if small businesses in your area can't sustain themselves and start to shutter in short order, the value of your home could plunge. That's not something you want.

4. You'd rather support a local establishment than a large corporation

Maybe you know Steve, who owns the local bookstore, and have kids who are in class with his children. If you're going to spend money over Thanksgiving weekend on holiday gifts and other purchases, who would you rather that benefit -- hard-working Steve and his super nice family, or the CEO of a major company who's already a millionaire many times over?

5. You might benefit from higher quality products and superior customer service

Small businesses tend to rely on repeat customers to stay afloat (whereas you can bet that your local Walmart probably won't notice if you stop coming in to shop). And so they tend to offer outstanding customer service and higher-quality products to prove their worth. If you shop locally on Small Business Saturday, you might have a much better experience and come away a lot happier with your purchases.

Supporting small businesses is something you should really aim to do all year round, and not just on one particular day of the year. But it especially pays to shop locally the Saturday after Thanksgiving. You can bet your local establishments will be more than grateful for you showing up.