10/07/2026
PSA: Please be kind to your local small businesses.
Let’s talk about social media shall we?! (This is going to be a longer one- but it’s worth it 😉)
First and foremost: let’s have a food for thought moment. What would it be like to live in a place where only corporations exist? A place void of any unique little mom and pop shops? A place where no one knows your name or what you do for a living or when you had your baby or what your favorite item is or how you like your coffee?
I want to talk about something that has been weighing on my mind and my heart.
I think we can all agree social media can be an amazing tool. It keeps people connected, it keeps people “in the know”. It can be a great way to share interests, hobbies, tips and tricks, life hacks, awesome experiences and so on and so on!
There is also a flip side to all of this- which shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone- in life there is always a flip side. Where there is dark, there is light. Where there is up there is down.
Please remember that when you talk about a small business online, there are real people on the other side of those words.
Not a corporation. Not a faceless company with endless resources. Not a robot or a billionaire.
REAL PEOPLE. REAL FAMILIES. People who have invested their life savings, their time, their energy, and often an enormous piece of their heart into building something meaningful and what may come as a shock to some of you- the majority of the time it is to SERVE the community for many selfless reasons.
Small business owners sacrifice leaps and bounds to keep their doors open. We miss time with our families. We work when we’re exhausted. We work Holidays. Late nights, early mornings. We lose sleep over payroll, rising food costs, slow weeks and whether we’re doing enough. We pour our hearts into what we create because it MATTERS to us - and quite frankly to our livelihood.
And that’s why WORDS matter. The way you choose to use social media matters!!
A negative comment on social media might take someone 30 seconds to type- typically without a whole lot of thought. They aren’t thinking about the impact their words might have, but the impact of those words can last much longer than 30 seconds.
People read it. They repeat it. They form opinions based on it. And when you’re talking about a small business in a small town, those words can directly affect someone’s livelihood.
That doesn’t mean small businesses are above criticism. We aren’t. We make mistakes. If we mess something up, PLEASE tell us. Lord knows I personally like to publicly announce when I screw up so I can be held accountable- because I believe in ethical and honest business practices. Give us the opportunity to listen, make it right, learn from it and do better.
But there is a huge difference between addressing a legitimate concern and publicly tearing down a business—or the people behind it. From what we have seen often times blindly- without ever stepping foot in the establishment- without ever having a human conversation with the people being blasted.
I think social media has made it incredibly easy to forget there are human beings on the receiving end of the things we say.
Behind our counter are people who care deeply about what they do.
Behind this business is a family.
And behind every small business in this community is somebody who took a huge risk and said, “I believe in this enough to try.” But not just that- every business owner I talk to wants to give something special to the community- maybe it’s an experience, maybe it’s a treasure they can’t get anywhere else or maybe it’s the taste of recipes passed down from generation to generation- we all have our own story.
So before posting something hurtful about a local business, before writing that keyboard warrior review- please consider reaching out to them first.
Have the conversation.
Give them an opportunity to make it right.
And remember that your words carry weight.
Supporting small businesses isn’t only about where you spend your money.
It’s also about how you choose to speak about them when they’re not in the room and I think this is a message we should all be open to receiving.
