Buying Black is a lifestyle and the Holiday buying season is a great time to both buy for yourself and share with others. The Holidays are an opportunity to share and try new things without a lot of pressure. if you’re ever confused as to gift ideas, or get stumped, you have come to the right place because we will also be publishing several brand new buying guides for 2021 to help get you started. But it’s not just about giving you a list of items to buy (although for sure, I want you to support these entrepreneurs). With the impact of shortages and shipping issues, I wanted to make sure to give you some other tips for Buying Black this Holiday Season before we start to drop our Holiday Buying Guides and Ideas.
Plan Ahead
This is the same as last year’s tip on supporting black owned businesses for the Holiday Season. It still holds true and even more this year. In fact this is the key to a successful shopping experience. You should be thinking right now about the people who are on your list for gifts and the events you may be attending or hosting. If you think about things now, you will also probably save yourself some time, headaches and money. Set a schedule, set your buying dates and know when you need to have your items. Make a list. Also, determine where the packages should go when they are delivered. Consider where they can go where they don’t get stolen or end up damaged.
Order Even Earlier
So if last year didn’t teach you then nothing will honestly. Small businesses need time to get in shipments, process and package orders and turn them around. You should be planning right now, and ordering at the first opportunity to do so. There were packages that weren’t delivered for weeks after they were shipped last year. 2021 doesn’t seem like it will be as bad from the looks of it right now, stores are more open and people are out more, but you should not rely on things to be that much faster. Be smart. Learn from last year. Shipping solutions will be trying but it has been compounded by a year’s worth of back ups and delays. Be Proactive.
Be Patient
If you put in your orders early, then the time comes to be patient. Give yourself time to wait and allow the entrepreneurs to get your orders done and sent out to you. Trust me, they all want to get you your orders. Make sure you get organized as well with your tracking information and make sure that all of the addresses are correct. Also make sure that you check your spam and junk folders to make sure you aren’t missing crucial communications because it isn’t getting through to you.
Be Respectful
Respect is a two way street and you should make sure that you are doing the best that you can, to remain respectful. Pay attention to e-mail communication and check up on social media and websites. In today’s business climate you can often have important announcements and information given out via Instagram, Twitter and Facebook before it ever hits e-mails and websites. When you must communicate, remember that many of the people you reach might be small business owners without a dedicated team of professionals who can put aside abrasive language. Start off on the right foot.
Business Owners : Communicate Clearly
Business Owners, this tip is for you. Do not think that a customer should know something because you put it on one social channel. One thing I have seen over the past year is that different customers come from different channels and they don’t always check the others. The algorithm also may not put the right information in front of the right eyeballs in a timely manner. Be as precise as possible and as transparent as possible. Don’t stretch the truth to preserve sales.
Pay the Shipping
This might be the most important of the suggestions for 2021. We tend to always wait for a sale, or free shipping or the included shipping for items. If it’s important, and you haven’t given it plenty of time, make sure you add in shipping costs in your budget. We are all dealing with it, don’t complain, be proactive and understand that it is a part of the process.
