There are a lot of important steps business leaders take to strengthen and grow their businesses. One important technique sometimes goes unnoticed: giving back to the community. This single step helps support the people who invest in your business, helps you and your business maintain a connection to the community, and gives you a pleasant feeling of helping others. By strengthening the community, you improve public feelings about your business and generate positive publicity. When faced with the decision to support a charity or non-profit, there’s a lot to consider, such as how it will impact your bottom line.

One: Appeal to Millennial Consumers

There’s been a general shift in expectations held by consumers over the past several years. As millennials become the strongest spenders in the market, it’s important to meet their expectations, and this means becoming a company that leads with purpose. Today’s consumers expect businesses to be more than profit-making machines. Your business can improve relationships with your consumers by donating to charities and non-profits, supporting community organizations, and openly sharing your policy for giving back.

Two: Gain the Attention of New Customers

When consumers shop for new products or services, they are likely to use several factors to compare retailers, such as quality and price. They won’t stop there, however; consumers also look for businesses that support local communities or global charities. As your business becomes known for giving back to the community, consumers take notice. This step is particularly valuable if your competition isn’t known for supporting local causes.

Three: Attract Talented Employees

As your reputation in local and surrounding communities, professionals looking for jobs are more likely to express an interest in working for you. One positive way to increase employee loyalty is creating a matched donation program; this creates an incentive for employees to donate and doubles the impact of the donations your business makes. Engagement in the community leads to stronger feelings of teamwork. In addition to generating positive feelings from the community, it boosts the feelings of morale within your workplace. This good feeling naturally spreads to the community again, because a good percentage of your employees are likely to live in local neighborhoods.

Four: Enjoy Free Positive Publicity

More than ever, consumers today share their feelings about goods, services, and businesses with their family, friends, and strangers on the internet. As a business leader, you can take advantage of this willingness to share. Your socially conscious business can generate a lot of positive publicity by openly participating in local causes and events. When social media influencers get hold of your story, that positive news can rapidly spread and open up new markets for your offerings. Some ideas for improving your prospects in this area include offering discounts during local holidays, hosting public activities, forming partnerships with charitable organizations, and sharing positive stories about employees and community events.

Five: Strengthen Your Business Network

Creating a strong network of business peers is a powerful way to strengthen your business foundation. This can be achieved as you recognize connections with other businesses, including those charities and causes you have in common. While volunteering or attending neighborhood events, it’s easy to meet other professionals and make connections that support both businesses. Talking about improvements you hope to see in the community and what you’re doing to support those changes is a great conversation point.

Six: Increase Your Profits

Ultimately, you want to see improvement in your bottom line. As you work to support your community, you can expect to see customer loyalty improve and increased patronage. Local consumers are more likely to choose your business over others and to send other consumers your way. A small donation of your current revenue is likely to solidify profit growth in the future.

How To Gain Momentum

Once you’ve made the decision to be a company that is positively involved in giving back to the community, you’re ready to look for appropriate opportunities. Take a look at some of the techniques that have worked for other businesses:

• Offer paid time for employee volunteerism whether for a few hours or an entire day
• Collaborate with business peers to support a common cause, holding friendly competitions or partnering to host a neighborhood event
• Donate a percentage of your products or services in addition to making financial contributions
• Promote other local businesses, local sports teams, and neighborhood charitable organizations

For example, Ehsan Bayat and his companies, including Afghan Wireless, have partnered with the Starkey Hearing Foundation to strengthen their local communities. An influential business leader in Afghanistan, Bayat has led an effort to give the gift of hearing to many Afghan citizens. What are some ways that your business has already contributed to your community? Are there business leaders in your neighborhood who have already taken the lead in giving back?

Are you ready to become more involved in your community? Involvement in community outreach programs, charitable events, and other philanthropic opportunities in your area is a great way to improve employee retention, attract new consumers, build a positive reputation, develop a strong business network, and increase your profits. It’s okay to start small as long as you’re working toward a stronger connection between your business and members of your local community.