Made in Oklahoma: buying local saves

Photo by: Abby Bellow

 

Local organization Keep It Local OK teaches Oklahoma Christian University students and the surrounding community to help stimulate their economy through interactions with local businesses.

Launched in early 2010 by Oklahoma City businessmen Bryce Bandy and Chris Branson, Keep It Local OK is an organization dedicated to promoting locally owned and independent businesses. They achieve this through online business profiles and advertising to member merchants, as well as an annual discount card for shoppers.

“We just want to be one of those places that help people discover the best places we have in Oklahoma in one spot,” co-founder Bryce Bandy said. “If people can put a face with a business, they’re more likely to shop there and keep that business going.”

The organization’s goal is to boost awareness of local establishments and strengthen the community’s economy by urging local shoppers to spend their money at Oklahoma businesses.

“A long-time friend of mine – Chris Branson – had seen a program similar to it in another state and thought it was a cool idea,” Bandy said. “The more we researched it and looked into it, we thought it was a good idea and we couldn’t believe no one was already doing it here.”

Bandy, formerly employed with Launchpad Creative and Sureshot Imaging and Design, used his expertise with graphic design and photography to nurture the roots of Keep It Local.

“We really just started out by making a list of all our favorite restaurants and shops in the Oklahoma City area and contacting them about the idea,” Bandy said. “At the time, I was doing graphic design and photography with some of the local restaurants, so I already had some connections there.”

Keep It Local OK offers rewards throughout Oklahoma in Edmond, Guthrie, Broken Arrow, Midwest City/Del City, Moore, Mustang, Norman, Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Yukon.

Independent, locally owned businesses are able to become a part of Keep It Local’s reward opportunity for a $500 annual fee or a 12-month commitment of $50 a month.

“Big companies are great, but the local places are important,” sophomore Jake Gwinn said. “I think Keep It Local does a really good job at exposing those local options that benefit the community.”

A study by Local Works, cited on the Keep It Local OK website, indicates that for every

$100 spent at a locally owned business, $73 remains in the local economy while only $27 leaves; with the same amount spent at non-locally owned businesses, over half of the profits go elsewhere.

“I’ve always really liked going to locally owned businesses, but it can be expensive so that makes it more difficult to shop locally,” junior Emma Axtell said. “With the discounts, it makes it more affordable and easier to support those businesses.”

Consumers enjoy free incentives for investing in local businesses for a year with the $10 purchase of a Keep It Local card. In return, business owners hope to gain loyal new customers who will spread the word about their company.

According to Bandy, the only measureable numbers for Keep It Local’s success are found in its card sales. With an approximate growth of 3,000 card sales per year since their initial card sales of 4,000 in 2010, the organization expects steady growth in the coming year.

“Last year, with the 2013 cards, we sold around 15,000 cards,” Bandy said. “This year we’ve already sold 15,000 cards. I imagine those sales will continue to get exponentially bigger as it reaches a bigger crowd.”

The Keep It Local cards give participants a sense of camaraderie and community amongst themselves with their annual change in design and new valid locations of use.

“I’ve had a card for two and a half years now,” Axtell said. “I get a new one every year and use it most often at Cuppies and Joes for a fourth off their cupcakes.”

The design of the card changes yearly, partly so that cooperating companies are able to quickly recognize their validity to receive rewards. The turnover for the design serves another purpose, though.

“What we’ve done the last three years is commission a local artist to design the card,” Bandy said. “That’s another way we spread the love and support local art as well. For us, it’s a way to support the local arts and get them more exposure.”

Current card artist Jerrod Smith is a mixed media artist and founder of The Society, a collective art space in the Plaza District in Oklahoma City.

Keep It Local provides new outlets and changes for their businesses and cardholders alike.

“One of the cool things about Keep It Local is that they just came out with an app this past year,” Gwinn said. “So when you become a member you can find new places on the map that are close to you.”

With the help of Komorka Technology in Oklahoma City, Keep It Local OK released a free Android App on Google Play in January with the same features that are available on the iPhone App.

“We believe it’s going to be the future of the way we interact with cardholders,” Bandy said. “It’s a lot easier to have the app in your pocket and to be able to find places immediately.”

Bandy’s favorite feature is the “nearby” function that drops pins on places in surrounding areas that are Keep It Local businesses.

“From a marketing standpoint, outreach is huge,” Gwinn said. “If you buy the card and get the app, those small, hole-in-the-wall places are easier to find. For example, Credo House is a little bit off the beaten path and a little bit harder to find unless you know where to look for it.”

Keep It Local OK stimulates adventure and local economy among the young consumers on Oklahoma Christian’s campus. This era of coffee shop-dwelling, technologically driven consumers is catered to through Keep It Local’s efforts to connect consumer and community by providing a new way to market independent businesses.

For more information, visit www.keepitlocalok.com.