But there's something independent businesses have that chains can't replicate: actual relationships with the community around them. The problem is most local businesses try to grow in isolation, when the better play is to grow together.

This isn't a new idea, it's just underused! We're not all in direct competition.

The basic mechanic: your customers are already shopping nearby

Think about the block or neighbourhood your business is on. The people walking into the cafe next door, the gym down the street, or the bookstore around the corner are probably the same demographic as your customers. Same area, same habits, same spending patterns.

Right now, those businesses are strangers to each other's customer bases. A simple partnership changes that. You're not building new traffic from scratch: This foot traffic that already exists, and they're familiar with other businesses in your community.

Shared promos

The simplest starting point. Two or three businesses agree to cross-promote each other in a way that benefits the customer. You often see examples of these collaborations between gyms and health-food stores, or run clubs and cafés/bars. It's nothing new, and these groups do it because it works!

A few examples that could work:

• A cafe and a yoga studio offer a deal where you get a free coffee with your class drop-in, or a discount on a class when you spend over a certain amount at the cafe

• A bookstore and a wine bar run a "book and a glass" night where each sends customers to the other

• A barber, vintage shop, and café on the same street offer a Main St. Perks card, where each business offers unique perks to members

The key is making the incentive clear and the barrier low:"Show this receipt for 10% off next door" is simple enough that staff can execute it without a system. You can start there and build from it. Test it out, then iterate.

Passport-style loyalty

This one takes more coordination but the payoff is bigger.

The idea is a shared stamp card or digital pass that spans multiple businesses. Customers join the program, and get unique perks at each participating business. Alternatively, customers visit participating spots, collect stamps or points, and unlock a reward once they hit a threshold.

You've probably seen versions of this at farmers markets, local business districts, or during events like Small Business Saturday. The reason it works is that it turns browsing into a game. People will go slightly out of their way to complete something, especially if the reward is worth it.

A few things that make these programs work:

• Keep the number of participating businesses manageable (3 to 6 is a sweet spot)

• Make the reward genuinely good, not a 5% discount nobody cares about

• Use a digital pass instead of paper so you can actually track it

Digital wallet cards are a great option, because customers don't need to download anything and the pass updates automatically as they collect stamps or visit. It keeps the friction low on the customer side, which is where most of these programs fall apart.

Cross-store incentives

Similar to shared promos, but tied to specific behaviours rather than just proximity.

The mechanic: when a customer does something at your business, they unlock something at a partner business, and vice versa.

Some examples:

• Spend $40 at the boutique, get a free pastry at the bakery next door

• Complete your 5th visit at the gym, get a discount at the smoothie bar across the street

• Buy a gift card at one business, get a bonus offer from a partner

What makes cross-store incentives different from a basic promo is that they reward loyalty, not just showing up. You're building a habit loop across multiple businesses, which means customers are moving through your neighbourhood more often and spending more in total.

This works best when the businesses complement each other. A gym and a health food store make sense. A laundromat and a cafe make sense (people need somewhere to be for an hour anyway). A furniture store and a hardware shop make sense. You want combinations where the customer already does both things, not where you're forcing an awkward connection.

Event-based engagement

One-off events are a low-commitment way to test a partnership before committing to a full program.

A few formats that actually drive foot traffic:

• Neighbourhood crawls. A guided (or self-guided) route through participating businesses, each offering something small: a sample, a demo, a discount. Works especially well in walkable areas.

• Joint pop-ups. Two businesses share a space or set up side by side at a market. Good for reach, low on logistics.

• Themed nights or weekends. A handful of businesses agree on a theme and each activates it differently. The coordination is light but the combined marketing reach is much bigger than any one business could do alone.

• Community events with a commercial tie-in. A cleanup day, a charity drive, a kids' activity. The businesses show up together and capture goodwill and visibility at the same time.

Events also give you a natural reason to cross-promote on social media. Tagging each other, sharing the same event, and showing up in each other's content is free reach that compounds over time.

How to actually get this off the ground

The hardest part isn't the idea. It's the coordination.

A few things that help:

1. Start with one other business, not five. Bilateral partnerships are easy to manage. Multi-business programs need more structure and more buy-in, so save those for once you've got proof the concept works.

2. Make the ask specific. "Want to do a collab?" is too vague. "Want to try a two-week cross-promo where we each put a flyer at the counter?" is actionable.

3. Track it, even loosely. Ask customers how they heard about you. Count redemptions. If you can't measure whether it's working, you won't know whether to keep doing it.

4. Keep the commitment low at first. A two-week test is easier to say yes to than a six-month program. Start small, see if it moves the needle, then build.

The businesses most likely to say yes are the ones that are already community-minded and struggling with the same problems you are. Which, honestly, is most of them.