Embracing Inclusivity During Heritage and History Months: A Guide for Small Businesses
Did you know there are ten history and heritage months celebrated each year? In the U.S., these months honor and recognize various ethnic and marginalized communities as well as celebrate and educate others about their histories and contributions to American history.
These designated heritage and history months also offer small businesses a fantastic opportunity to embrace and celebrate diversity while strengthening their communities. As a small business owner, they also allow you to reflect on your core values and demonstrate genuine inclusivity.
So why exactly is inclusivity important for small businesses?
Being inclusive during heritage and history months has several benefits for small businesses, including creating a positive public image, building trust and loyalty among your audience, expanding your market reach, enhancing employee satisfaction, and contributing to your long-term success.
However, it's important to remember that inclusivity needs to be genuine and not just a temporary gesture. Virtue signaling—making superficial gestures without a steadfast commitment—can backfire, damaging your credibility, diminishing your brand value, and creating confusion among your staff/team if your actions don't align with your message. It can also prevent you from forming genuine connections with your audience.
So, how can you ensure your small business is genuinely inclusive during heritage and history months without falling into the trap of virtue signaling? Below are seven tips to help you do so:
1. Be authentic.
Authenticity is a must when creating an inclusive environment and avoiding virtue signaling. Authenticity means being true to yourself and aligning your business practices with your core values and beliefs. This creates a consistent and genuine approach to inclusivity.
Authenticity also builds trust with your audience and fosters a positive work environment among your team. When your audience sees that your inclusivity efforts are genuine, they are more likely to support your business. Likewise, your employees will feel proud to work for a business that openly embodies its values.
To embrace authenticity in your small business, take time to reflect on your values to ensure that your inclusivity efforts align with your personal and business values. Be bold and transparent about your inclusivity journey, including your successes and areas for improvement.
2. Support causes year-round.
To demonstrate your genuine support for a particular cause, you want to show your commitment throughout the year, not just during nationally recognized months.
By regularly donating and contributing to relevant organizations that align with your values, you show your commitment to supporting their initiatives in the long term, not just in the temporary. Participating in and contributing to events and initiatives around the cause is also a great way to show your year-round support, which leads me to the next tip.
3. Get involved.
Active involvement in community events and initiatives that promote inclusivity demonstrates your support during heritage and history months. By partnering and collaborating with organizations dedicated to those causes, actively participating in and volunteering for community events and initiatives, and engaging with the community in meaningful ways, you help foster genuine understanding and commitment.
Additionally, hosting events or workshops that support and educate the community about inclusivity is an excellent way to get involved during heritage and history months and beyond.
4. Avoid "the show."
While changing your logo or making temporary gestures can seem like fun and effective ways to show support, they may come off as performative and lacking genuineness. Actions are more meaningful than symbols and temporary gestures.
Instead, focus on substance and ensure that any changes or gestures you make have real meaning. This entails clearly explaining the purpose and impact of your inclusivity efforts, investing in long-term initiatives (not just a temporary "Look at what we're doing this month!"), and prioritizing your actions to promote those efforts.
5. Hold yourself accountable.
Deciding to be inclusive requires long-term commitment and transparency about your efforts and progress along the way. Holding yourself accountable builds trust within your community and with your staff.
Below are a few essential and thoughtful questions to ask yourself as a small business owner as you consider your business's stance during the various heritage and history months:
What actions have I implemented to integrate inclusive practices into my small business operations?
How have I maintained my promise to foster inclusive business practices?
How much time and effort can I realistically allocate to learning about and adopting inclusive business practices moving forward?
How can I prioritize my commitment to address the needs of my customers and employees while being mindful of my resources?
What do I need to ensure we remain accountable to the commitments made toward inclusivity?
6. Demonstrate it through your marketing.
Your business marketing materials and campaigns can be a strong vehicle for demonstrating and reflecting your commitment to inclusivity during heritage and history months. Incorporate it by using language and imagery that genuinely and respectfully represent the community and initiative.
Additionally, you can use your social media to humanize and show a real commitment to inclusivity. Use your platforms to share posts and information that celebrate inclusivity and diversity throughout the year and highlight the stories and experiences of diverse individuals within your community.
7. Check in on your business values and practices.
Last but not least, it is vital to regularly review and update your internal policies to ensure they are inclusive. You want to ensure that your policies around non-discrimination, benefits, and support programs are up-to-date and inclusive.
Consider providing diversity and inclusion training for your team to help create a genuinely inclusive environment. And remember to regularly ask for feedback from your team and community on your inclusivity efforts!
If you are struggling with balancing or establishing boundaries on your cell phone or social media accounts, contact me today for a complimentary 30-minute chat to discuss the possible solutions.
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