There are several helping natured people who give back to the needy. With so many unemployed residents, there is always need for a helping hand. This helping hand is provided by the following businesses for the unemployed in their communities.
Free Dry Cleaning
National Drycleaners in Seattle is offering laundry service free for people who have an interview coming up, and there have been many takers. The owner, Erstad is of the opinion that there are several ways of helping people in the neighborhood.
They got good feedback from people and he encourages other business owners to do the same and offer their services to the unemployed. This not only helps the customers but also their businesses in the long run, as it generates a lot of good will while providing great publicity from local media. Erstad says that although he could not afford to advertise on television, with this gesture, he managed to get his name out there.
Free Stay At An Inn
The Rabbit Hill Inn in Lower Waterford, Vt. has a “Pink Slip Giveaway Getaway” program, which targets people who have been unemployed for at least six months. This works by taking a monthly drawing with the winner enjoying a free two-night stay at this inn that belongs to Leslie and Brian Mulcahy. They let people know about this program by using press releases in the local media.
They are doing this because they themselves went through unemployment earlier and understand how bad it can get. This offer is open up to Jan 2010 and they have experienced immense success with this, with hundreds of entries coming in.
This promotion led to increase in business in terms of higher number of customers as well as referrals.
How About Getting A Pair Of Shoes Free?
Hells.com is a Charlotte, N.C. based online retailer that is giving away professional shoes to job-seeking women in that area.
The director said that they surprised women by giving away brand-new shoes free of charge, to give them more confidence during their interviews. This company wanted to offer something positive to people when everything around us seems to be negative at this point. They have received numerous messages of gratitude from women who got the jobs.
Out of Job? See How A Martial Arts Class Can Help
Bayonne Karate in N.J. is owned by Patrick Cunningham, who came up with an exciting idea for the unemployed. He invited the local unemployed to get rid of their miseries with karate. The studio offered a Bruce Lee style aerobic workout every Tuesday and Thursday morning for three months in a row.
Cunningham is extremely pleased with the fact that the participants who came in sad and tired went back home with a smile on their faces. They felt more positive towards life and were all charged up to go out and find work. The best part is that most of them found employment.
This wonderful gesture spread so fast through word-of-mouth that the center picked up several customers after that.
Free Haircut In St. Petersburg, Fla.
The unemployment rate in this area is about 11% and this promoted Albie Mulcahy, a salon owner to give the unemployed something to make them feel better. He understands the importance of what a confidence booster looking good can be; especially when attending interviews. He offered 150 unemployed people a free hair cut and style at the salon on a weekend.
He revealed that he was sympathetic to the stories he keeps hearing from his clients about losing their jobs and wanted to give something back to the community.
People who took advantage of this free haircut got to know of this through news and the local blogs. Some of them couldn’t hide their emotions and cried when given a haircut.
The local media coverage benefited the business by driving in more customers.
With times being hard and cash hard to come by, it can get quite depressing for the unemployed. Their emotional status is usually so low that they end up not giving their best even in their interviews due to lack of confidence. Every small gesture of love and understanding makes a huge difference. These businesses have achieved in doing their bit and bringing cheer to their faces. This is what a community is all about.
