Shop local with your branding, marketing and advertising dollars for a big return

Emily Caswell is the Brand Manager for VIEW Group, the branding divi­sion of View Newspaper Group.

Hopefully many of you were able to shop local this holiday season. Finding unique pieces for loved ones right in your community is satisfying as it leads to a better gift and supports the local econo­my.

The concept of shop­ping local is one we are all familiar with when it comes to gift giving and dining out. We know that if we don’t support our local boutiques, restaurants, breweries, spas and even our locally-owned service industry providers like HVAC professionals and auto shops, the fabric of our com­munity will unravel. The character of our downtowns and business corridors will dissolve becoming bland and unwelcoming.

The statistics prove time and time again how important it is to shop local. Plus, it’s fun! When it comes your branding, marketing and adver­tising, however, do you make a con­scious decision to shop local?

As we meet with clients to plan for the year ahead, the team at View Newspaper Group has made it our goal to remind those investing their hard-earned dollars with us that not only are they making a sound business decision using our printed, direct-mailed, local­ly connected and locally-committed community newspapers to market their goods and services but they are also supporting a locally-owned business that in turn supports the community and local economy like every other locally-owned business.

When you invest with View Newspaper Group you:

Grow the local economy: Dollars spent local, stay local. A forbes.com article on the topic says that for every $100 spent at a small businesses $68 stays in the community, according to Amy Hartzler, director of communications for the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, a nonprofit that advocates building strong local economies.

An article at business.com says, “Small businesses employ local resi­dents, directly returning some of the money they generate to community members. Additionally, small busi­nesses often support other local small businesses as customers or suppliers.”

That’s certainly the case for View Newspaper Group. For example, our office supplies are purchased locally from another small business we’ve worked with for decades, we use local restaurants and catering companies when we host events and we own or rent many office spaces, paying local property taxes directly or indirectly, and use local service contractors for upkeep and improvements on those properties.

Employ your friends and neighbors: From the business.com article, “The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Data Center confirms that small businesses employ nearly half of the American workforce, representing about 43.5% of America’s GDP.”

With 22 locally-owned, locally-con­nected and locally-committed news­papers across the state of Michigan, View Newspaper Group needs a large team of talented professionals to keep our business running smoothly. Along with our sister commercial print com­panies we employ 201 rockstar team members.

Receive excellent customer service: Speaking of our rockstar team mem­bers — We’re human! When you call, a person answers the phone. Our team prides ourselves on responding quickly with the utmost courtesy. Our readers and clients are not just a number to us. Each communication is our reputation on the line, and that means a lot to us. In-person meetings? We love them. It’s cliché, but many of our clients are like family. Our team members know their client’s birthdays, anniversaries and favorite drink.

Work with a team of local experts: Our team members are also experts in their field. When you invest your branding, marketing and adverting dollars with View Newspaper Group you are working with team members who combined have more than 250 years of experience. We’re also local, meaning when you come to us for your branding, marketing and advert­ing needs we know the market inside and out. Your customers are our cus­tomers and readers.

Get results: Our clients tell us and readers through our testimonial ad campaign that their print advertising in our newspapers continues to help their business grow.

Support local nonprofits: Through our signature events, donations and sponsorships View Newspaper Group supported nonprofits to the tune of more than $120,000 in 2025. That dollar amount is in addition to the thousands of dollars’ worth of low or no-cost adverting and coverage in our newspapers we provide to nonprofits to help publicize the vital work they do, fundraising events and more. We look forward to growing that number in 2026.

From the forbes.com article, “Small businesses donate 250% more than large businesses to local nonprofits and community causes, creating a pos­itive cycle of giving back locally. This includes local charities, youth organ­izations, local first responders, local service groups and more.”

While some media corporations give back, how often are those dollars going to a cause in your community? How much money have digital mar­keting platforms donated to the local food bank or domestic violence hot­line? View Newspaper Group gives back to the same causes our clients do, because they are local and support our neighbors in need, making a real impact right in front of our eyes.

When you’re ready to shop local for your branding, marketing and advertising contact me at [email protected].