Local allegiance is quite natural when it comes to rooting for professional sporting franchises. If you live in Carroll County, the odds are great that you support the Ravens and the Orioles. Occasionally, someone will surface who likes the Steelers or the Yankees, but thankfully this isn't the norm. True Carroll Countians, who were born and raised here, are also passionate when it comes to supporting their local high school teams. We need to develop this same passion for our hometown businesses and support them with the same fervor as we have for the local sporting teams.
We are currently in the midst of the busiest retail shopping weekend of the year. Black Friday and Small Business Saturday have come and gone, and tomorrow is Cyber Monday when people flock to the internet to do an incredible amount of holiday shopping. Before you fall under the seductive spell of online shopping for everything on your gift-giving list, please consider being loyal to your hometown businesses. These people are your neighbors and the people they employ are also your neighbors. The taxes they pay help fund issues that are critical to you like school funding, infrastructure improvements, law enforcement and safety needs throughout Carroll County.
Hometown businesses will also normally yield an infinitely better customer service experience than purchases made on the internet, and a local shop can provide very competitive pricing. My family just experienced such a hometown business victory and it's worth telling the story.
Several months ago, my son, Matt, who plays guitar and sings at venues throughout the Baltimore area, informed me that he'd found a new amplifier online and he was going to make the purchase. I asked him to first call Coffey Music on Main Street in Westminster, as we had purchased many guitars and other musical equipment from Bob Coffey over the past 20 years. Bob informed Matt that they didn't carry this amp, but that they could order it. In less than one week the amp was ready for pick up at a lower price than the online store was offering. A win for local business and a savings for my son.
The story gets better, though, as within six months the amp stopped working. The defective product was certainly not Coffey's fault, but they sent it back to the manufacturer for repairs and provided a free rental amp to Matt so that he wouldn't miss a gig. The service Matt experienced was something an online seller would never have been able to provide and the hassle of boxing up a huge amp to ship back to the seller would have been beyond frustrating. The ease of the purchase would have been overshadowed by the total experience.
The apparent convenience of shopping online can often be an illusion. Consider what type of customer service experience you'd like to have before making your purchases online and you'll find yourself shopping locally more frequently. Keep your money in Carroll County this holiday season. Root for local business. These people are your neighbors.
Mike McMullin is President of the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce. Email him at mmcmullin@carrollcountychamber.org.
