As a business, your reputation is key. This is why you work so hard to build on things like product quality, company values, and a reliable industry standing. But, did you realize that your commercial space can also have an impact?

Admittedly, this is less the case as more companies adopt at least partial remote setups. But, with many businesses still seeing the value in a physical local presence, it’s still relevant to some degree. 

In particular, brands looking to win over their local audiences need to take steps to become the best neighbors in their business district. And here’s how they can achieve it. 

Unless you're a solely office-based business, you’re inevitably going to make noise in your commercial space. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, and everyone in the properties around you will expect it to some extent. But, if you’re making noise early in the morning or well into the night, you could quickly start to annoy people. And, let’s be honest, no one will rush to buy from the brand that kept them up all night. Of course, you can’t just stop your production in your manufacturing plant, restaurant, or really any other premises, and no one will expect you to. You can, however, be considerate about limiting the disruption you might cause with those noises. Largely, this means limiting loud production to sociable hours of around 9-5. You could also benefit from taking note of any noise complaints and trying to find ways around them, e.g., not drilling at noted times, or starting a little later each morning.

Health and safety is something business managers should always prioritize in a commercial space for the sake of their workers. Being proactive about external health and safety is also important for keeping locals onside. 

You certainly won’t do good business if you’re the company known for having rats outside or leaving garbage bags spilling out into the street. Instead, you should take steps towards maintaining a pristine, hygienic commercial exterior. Most pressingly, this means working with a waste haul company like the ones in the CurbWaste network to ensure regular and responsible waste removal from your premises. Equally, things like regular pest inspections, and reliable commercial cleaning services, can keep your space looking pristine, welcoming, and far more fitting with local landscapes. 

Along roughly the same lines, it’s also worth taking steps to provide attractive outdoor areas that appeal to residents. Too often, brands entirely neglect commercial exteriors, but this can lead to scruffy appearances, and it also means missing a trick. 

By instead taking the time to implement attractive landscaped gardens, and even communal benches for use by residents, you can win people around. As well as generally making your offices look better, these efforts show that you’re willing to go the extra mile within your community through the regeneration of green spaces. And, that’s got to be better for your brand than being associated with that blank paved area out front.

So often, brands fall out of local favor because they fail to communicate about disruptions like planned commercial events, major works, and even renovations or road closures. Worse, many companies are unresponsive when residents rightly complain about these things, leading to inevitable reputational fallouts. 

In the same way you might warn your neighbors about a party you have planned, simply posting fliers around residents in advance of these things can make a huge difference. What’s more, this provides you the opportunity to offer an olive branch that could soften the blow of, say, even excessive noise disruptions. 

Simply include something extra with these notifications, such as an invite to any events, or a personalized resident discount code on your products. It’s a small effort that will barely cost you anything, yet it’s key to turning you into a considerate local neighbor that everyone’s more likely to buy from and recommend. 

You have a business to run, and you rely on your commercial space to do that no matter how noisy or disruptive things might get. But, you don’t need to bulldoze local relationships to achieve company output. Instead, taking small steps towards becoming the best possible neighbor could be far better for the standing of your brand overall. 

Whether you’re working within a residential or commercial area, consideration is key. So, show that you care by putting these steps into action before you annoy the locals too much to recover your reputation.