It is easy to assume that businesses, big and small, simply have a positive impact on our economy through basic supply and demand. However, there are plenty of great opportunities for startups and corporations alike to leave a more lasting, positive legacy upon society.
If you run your own business, it’s natural that your primary focus will be on making money! However, many ethical business owners and entrepreneurs get into running firms to help protect people’s interests, increase opportunities and give back to the world around them.
Let’s look at a few fantastic ways businesses can do more locally and for the wider society — alongside making a profit.
Table of Contents
Equitable access to services
Equitable access simply means ensuring everyone has the same opportunities. It’s probably not in a business owner’s immediate interest to block or restrict anyone from accessing their services or products, but it can be easy to ignore practices that exclude certain groups of people from making purchases and benefiting.
One simple way to boost access might be to simply sell certain goods and services at a relatively affordable level. For example, a business offering web design services might offer more equitable access by lowering the price of its entry-level package and then offering add-ons along the way for people who need them.
This isn’t always possible for all businesses, but boosting access ensures everyone feels included, and the business benefits from a more positive reputation and potentially increased revenue.
Focusing on sustainability in practices
Sustainability is a big selling point for modern consumers. Surveys indicate that more than 60% of people in the US intentionally buy products that are sustainably packaged. However, sustainability goes further than just the materials you use to package goods.
By focusing on sustainable actions and ensuring consumers know where their money is going, businesses help them to feel like they’re paying towards a good cause, not just paying into corporate profits.
For example, a company focusing on sustainable practices might intentionally reduce its paper and fuel usage and set public targets for itself. This kind of accountability can be very empowering, not only from the perspective of making purchases but also from the viewpoint of supporting a business that’s doing its best to reduce raw material use.
Other sustainability choices might include promises regarding giving back to the environment or local communities. For instance, a business might plant a tree for every $100 made in a certain range. This elevates customer involvement and leaves a positive impression on a society that feels let down by corporate greed.
Creating local jobs and empowering communities
Although it might be cheaper and more efficient for some businesses to outsource work overseas, employing people locally offers a more positive social impact.
A local business that helps local people appears to genuinely care about those who are likely to buy its products. A local economy grows stronger when businesses pay employees who might also be consumers, and this has a net positive effect on reputation.
Empowering communities can also help businesses leave a more positive impact on society at large. Ultimately, a business owner needs to show self-awareness of the impact their firm has on their community. This can be as simple as holding regular events, publishing newsletters and demonstrating knowledge of their impact on local issues.
Leading entrepreneurs and businesspeople, such as business leader Ehsan Bayat, believe in the power of philanthropy, and that companies should have charitable impacts. As the founder and chairman of The Bayat Group of Companies, Ehsan Bayat is also the co-founder and chairman of The Bayat Foundation which supports charitable and social development programs within Afghanistan, including the construction of 13 hospitals.
Fostering local partnerships and investments
A business that’s invests in local businesses and programs isn’t just “good for optics”. Businesses that build local relationships with other companies and service providers in their area help give society further peace of mind that there are firms genuinely invested in coming together for the greater good.
Consumers who frequent a business that partners with local suppliers and invests in local projects are likely to feel empowered and proud to have helped fund such projects. For many people, it’s a sense of pride that can be somewhat lacking in an increasingly impersonal world!
Giving back to society should never be seen as a marketing exercise — like getting your business seen online. For many businesspeople, forging local relationships and building on sustainability makes their work more fulfilling and satisfying.
If you run a business, think carefully about how you could create more than just a positive economic impact on local people. It might just be the making of you!
