Join Illinois Local.
In just over three years, a community of local independent business owners and entrepreneurs has come together to support, champion, and celebrate one another.
The Illinois Local family has achieved so much. We cannot wait to see what the next year looks like and celebrate our members.
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Business Conference & Awards
Our 2024 conference and awards will take place on Monday, September 9th at the Grant Conservatory of Music & Dance. The awards recognize four Illinois Local member businesses and one individual. The awards are designed and sponsored by our members.
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Newsletter
Our members receive a monthly newsletter.
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Best in Illinois
Members feature in Best in Illinois articles on our website, which are then shared on social media. The articles and posts combined reach tens of thousands of users. The lists are increasingly supported by individuals looking to shop from or use the services of local businesses. Best in Illinois are popular with members, as the articles not only showcase the businesses but also provide content for news pages/blogs and social media.
“Connecting us with other local businesses and individuals with similar philosophies, Illinois Local has most certainly helped us to grow. They have gone above and beyond by providing networking opportunities, free professional photographs of our products, gifting our products to others in our community, and highlighting us in their social media posts and newsletters.”
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Stories
Members complete six questions for a feature on our website. The news page is our most visited on the site.
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Coverage
With our help, members were featured on NPR Illinois, Illinois Country Living Magazine, Sweet Spot Living Magazine, and Prairie Land Buzz Magazine.
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Social
We are active on social media, with posts on Instagram, Facebook, member only Facebook group, and LinkedIn.
“We love being connected with other members through Illinois Local. It is great to have a network of individuals at our fingertips. If our clients ask us a referral, we have an easy resource to go to in order to connect them to whatever service they are looking for.”
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Directory
Our directory is driven by the keywords used by members in their profiles. Other directory systems commonly use a set of pre-determined categories. Illinois Local's directory is more intelligent. In addition members can list multiple locations.
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Photos
Illinois Local organizes and pays for six photoshoots a year. The photographer shoots up to 15 members in the studio or at various locations across Illinois.
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Small Business Saturday
The 2024 Small Business Saturday Holiday Market takes place on November 30th at the Expo Building at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Small Business Saturday is one of the busiest retail days of the year. We are a proud Neighborhood Champion for Small Business Saturday.
