It’s a pretty gloomy world right now. Businesses are going bust left right and centre, people are losing their jobs at a scary rate and the cost of living keeps on rising. But local businesses are the real victims struggling to survive against the power brands of Tesco and Walmart.

But then I saw something yesterday that made me think, businesses shouldn’t underestimate the power of community spirit, no matter how big or small they may be.

This weekend it was Stockton Heath festival. Hundreds of people living in the local area descended on the village to take part and support the local community. The place was alive with stalls, competitions, games for the kids (and parents), exhibitions and of course the beer tent, which is where we spent most of the day!

Young families, teenagers, professionals, OAP’s, they all came out in the droves to support the event and I don’t just mean by buying stuff! The mere presence of people showed that people really do buy into their local community and are proud to be part of it.

These kind of events build loyalty. Ok so they may be a fun day out but people will talk about and remember the experience.

One of the smaller businesses that took part was Riverford www.riverford.co.uk selling homegrown organic produce. These guys are really struggling with the convenience and price of the supermarket brands but they do have a way to differentiate and compete. Their brand proposition is all about making organic, fresh produce ‘accessible and affordable’. Events such as these give them the chance to get that message out there and it works. I stood and watched over 10 people sign up to their service in the space of 30 minutes.

And the big brands recognise this too. The likes of Audi had a stall there with several cars on display. I’m not sure they will have sold many of the £105,000 Audi R8 but the mere presence of them shows that even though they have massive global advertising budgets, they still recognise the value in taking their brand into the community.

Other businesses were taking a more ‘partner led’ approach. We have a lovely wine shop in the village who teamed up with an arts and craft business. Together they offered a combined experience, come in and paint your own piece of pottery and have a glass of wine while you do it. Fantastic idea.

Local schools were taking part in football matches sponsored and prizes were being donated by local businesses, all aimed at a captive audience.

Community marketing can be very cost effective but does require a bigger investment of personal time to make it work. But in difficult times it’s clear to see that people really do pull together and this is a marketing channel that shouldn’t be underestimated. Brands of all shapes and sizes need to harness the power of the community and integrate it into how they operate and how they communicate their message.

If you want to hear some of my ideas on this then drop me a line kerry@studionorth.co.uk