In the 1998 movie, You’ve Got Mail (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan), viewers are led by the script to root for the small local bookstore (Ryan’s The Shop Around the Corner) and revile the large evil chain store (Hanks’ Fox Books Superstore). It doesn’t take long, nor should it have been a surprise, for Fox Books to drive The Shop Around the Corner out of business. One who did see it coming was a Shop employee who, while the rest of staff was confident that their superior service would win in the end, simply said, “But they discount.”
While Ryan complained throughout the movie that Fox Books drove her out of business, they didn’t. Consumers drove her out of business because they preferred to shop at Fox. Why? Convenience, variety and, of course – price.
During the 1980s and into the 1990s, “Buy American” campaigns were prevalent in national advertising campaigns, for clothing, cars and other consumer products. The hope was that by wrapping a product in the American flag, consumers would overlook other decision-making factors (quality and price, for example) and “Buy American.” There is a reason you don’t see this approach any longer. It failed.
These are important lessons for one of the new newer, communitarian “Buy Local” campaigns. Cities and Chambers of Commerce have taken to running these campaigns in an effort to convince us to shop locally. Appeals are made to community spirit, to the value of keeping sales taxes local and to assisting local businesses (our friends and neighbors) instead of the faceless, nameless proprietors of out-of-town businesses and “big box” stores.
The problem with these campaigns is that, in the end, most of us buy smart and vote with our wallets. The green that we value most is printed by the U.S. government. There is a reason that most communities have more Home Depots, Barnes & Nobles and Costcos than locally-owned groceries, small family bookstores and old-style hardware stores. In the last 20 years, half of all independent bookstores and more than 5,000 independent hardware stores have closed their doors in the U.S.
However, there are exceptions. Buying local can be made to work. For that to happen, there has to be more than an emotional appeal. It has to make sense economically for the buyer, especially in these challenging economic times. As Rick Cole, Ventura City Manager, said recently:
Local advantage is not easy. Local retailers and service businesses still compete with corporate giants by adapting to serve a local clientele. Our downtown is primarily made up of these niche companies, serving local customers and clients. But economies of scale continue to favor bigger players. World-class quality is even harder. “Buy American” is a nice slogan, but most Americans pay no attention to labels on their underwear or their autos.
If buying local is critical to a community (and it is), cities and Chambers of Commerce would be providing their members and stores a much greater service if they worked with local businesses to improve the way they operate, and increase the actual economic appeal of shopping locally, before launching the “Buy Local” campaigns. As Cole said, “Local retailers and service businesses still compete with corporate giants by adapting to serve a local clientele.” All things being equal, many of us would prefer to shop locally, for all of the reasons outlined above. However, cute slogans, bumper stickers and posters in the shop windows will not motivate me to spend my money locally, unless, when I do so, I find variety, excellent service, competitive pricing and perhaps some unique offerings that I cannot get from huge, homogenized chains.
Buying locally can work, but it requires work. Higher prices, less variety and marginal service are not going to be overcome by a clever marketing campaign. Simply put, before any “Buy Local” campaign has a chance of succeeding, it is necessary for businesses, Chambers of Commerce and government entities to learn how to “sell locally.”
Scott Harris is the owner of Mustang Marketing, a full-service marketing and public relations agency serving Ventura County for 25 years. You can reach Scott at Scott@MustangMktg.com or visit Mustang’s website at www.MustangMktg.com.