The 3/50 Project
The 3/50 Project is a viral Buy Local campaign that sprung from a simple blog post in March 2009, supporting independent, locally owned, "brick and mortar" businesses. By educating consumers AbOUT the impact of their spending habits, the Project's goal is to increase consumer spending in a way that delivers the greatest amount of financial benefit to local community economies.
History
Inception
During the Financial crisis of 2007–2010, small business owners saw pronounced shrinkage in consumer spending from quite early on, leading many to fear for their existence.
In March of that year, on the heels of one week filled with particularly dire media headlines, a retail consultant in Minneapolis, Minnesota wrote a blog post titled Save the Economy Three Stores at a Time in hopes of inspiring small business owners to unite under a single banner with the common goal of reigniting local consumer spending. One week later, she created a flyer that included the Project's message that could be reproduced on a desktop printer, again posting it on her blog with little expectation its use would extend beyond friends and family.
Within the next five days, however, more than 350 emails arrived from business owners around the country, asking what other materials were available. The following Monday, March 30, 2009, The 3/50 Project website was launched, having been quickly constructed the day before, to give enthusiastic supporters a place to land.
Viral growth
Seven days after the site launched, more than 7,600 absolute unique visitors had landed there; at its seven month mark, AUV had exploded to 194,000 (total visits climbed over 246,000), much of which is credited to overwhelming support from bloggers and Twitter users. The 3/50 Project Facebook page, launched on April 1, had more than 20,000 fans by its seven month anniversary.
Regional and national media embraced the Project as well, resulting in coverage by The Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur, Consumer Reports, CNN, and The Washington Post.
During a pre-segment tease, anchors on Fox Business News referred to The 3/50 Project as the movement that"just might have the formula that could save some local businesses that might not otherwise survive the recession."
The future of The 3/50 Project
Sheer volume and growth of the Project quickly made it necessary to view the grass roots movement as a start up business in its own right. Entrepreneur editor Eve Gumpell wrote an August 17, 2009 follow up article about The 3/50 Project founder, Cinda Baxter, who spoke of plans for additional opt-in tiers of paid membership, including co-branding and organizational support for participants. To assure strong continued growth, corporate sponsorships would also be considered, avoiding a scenario where the bulk of revenue pressures would rest on the membership itself.
In response to frequent requests, three international versions of The 3/50 Project are in the works for Canada, the U.K., and Australia.
The message
The Project's tag line, "Saving the Brick and Mortars Our Nation is Built On," refers to its sole purpose--retention of locally owned, independent businesses, whose dollars provide a large portion of annual revenue critical to funding public resources and services.
Much of The 3/50 Project's success has been attributed to its simple, consumer-friendly message. Unlike traditional Buy Local campaigns, the Project speaks in what's been referred to as "dinner table language," avoiding technical terminology or mathematical equations.
• Consumers are asked to think of three businesses they would miss if they disappeared, then return to them, with a reminder that those transactions are what keeps the doors open.
• The number 50 ties to the fact that if just half the employed U.S. population dedicated $50 of their current monthly spending to locally owned independent businesses, more than $42.6 billion of revenue would be generated annually.
• The 3/50 Project message then explains that for every $100 spent in local, independent brick and mortar businesses, more than $68 returns to the local economy; when spent in a big box or chain, the amount drops to only $43. Spend it online, and unless you live in the exact same community as the e-tailer, nothing comes home.
By focusing consumers on only three businesses and $50, the Project message was viewed as simple, personal and achievable--without being exclusionary, political, or protectionist.
What's an Independent?
The 3/50 Project focuses its efforts on "independent, locally owned, brick and mortar businesses," basing its definition of independent on guidelines shared by most Buy Local organizations, with additional points of clarification:
• The majority of the business’ ownership is private, by employees, the community, or an area cooperative, and is resident to the community in which it’s based
• The business operates out of a physical storefront or similar and is the only business residing at that specific doorway’s address (not a kiosk, home based business, etc.)
• The business relies soley on its unique name and reputation (ie, does not “wear” a nationally recognized brand name)
• The business is registered only in its home state, and has no affiliation with an out of state headquarters or corporate office
• Full decision making function for the business is held by the local owner(s), including the name, signage, brand, appearance, purchasing, etc.
• The business is solely responsible for paying its own rent, marketing, and other expenses
• It has no more than six outlets, all of which are located in a single state, with a central base of operations in that state
• It is not a vendor (ie, does not sell wholesale)
Franchises are excluded from the definition because of their access to competitive advantages not available to true "independent" businesses, including volume pricing, corporate headquarter support, and/or "the halo effect" that brings marketplace visibility each time the parent company advertises (nationally or regionally). Home based businesses are excluded from the Project entirely since they make no contribution to the commercial property tax base, instead able to commit every dollar of profit to personal use (home, residential property tax, etc.).
That's not to say that chains, franchises, and other companies cannot or do not support The 3/50 Project. Breaking from traditional Buy Local models, the Project allows corporate entities outside the scope of "independent" to register as Supporters, aware that the failure of any brick and mortar business drags down the others that surround it.
Breaking stereotypes
Additional characteristics of The 3/50 Project fall outside the norm for Buy Local campaigns, in great part because the movement began without a business plan, financial support, or a formal organization behind it. Other elements unique to the Project are:
• A message of balance--including acceptance of "big box" and chain store transactions--that avoids traditional protectionist limitations common to Buy Local campaigns
• A lack of negative language or technical economic terminology
• An expansive selection of free marketing materials, including the flyer originally posted on the founder's blog; window banners and countertop signage; a digital version of the flyer for use in blogs, websites, and newsletters; and media-ready files for print, radio, and movie theater use
• Free listings on the Project website for supporting businesses and free reciprocal links to their own websites
The inclusion of virtually every type of independent, locally owned, brick and mortar business has frequently been credited for its universal popularity as well as the dedication and enthusiasm of its supporters.