Why local news is still a great way to promote your business

I want to tell you a story about why local press still matters when it comes to promoting your business.

A couple of years ago, I helped a charity get coverage in their community newspaper. Good story, local angle, ran as a full-page feature.

Eight months later, I got this email from her: "I was just thinking about you the other week as a bag of stuff was donated and it contained a copy of the newspaper article - obviously someone had torn it out to remind themselves of the details and kept it for all this time."

I thought back to when the article was first published. She told me at the time she kept getting recognised in her community. People stopping her to say "I saw you in the paper."

This is the bit that online metrics miss. You can't track someone keeping a newspaper clipping on their fridge for eight months. You can't measure the conversations that happen when someone recognises you in the library. You can't put a number on "oh, you're that woman from the article."

But that's exactly how local press works. It sits on kitchen tables. Gets passed around. Lives in someone's bag until they need it. Builds real recognition in your actual community.

National coverage might get you a screenshot for Instagram. Local coverage keeps you in the minds of people who'll actually walk through your door.