We all know that local businesses have faced unprecedented and challenging times over the last three years and so need our support more than ever. Recent research revealed that over three-quarters (76%) of Brits would rely on the recommendations from their neighbours when looking for a local business, proving just how important recommendations are to a local businesses reputation and longevity.
Our research also found that over half (53%) of Brits also rely on community groups to determine the quality of a local business and over a third (37%) of people prefer to take recommendations from neighbours more so than searching for a local business online (30%) and promotional flyers (10%).
That’s where Xero and Nextdoor come in. Xero is one of the leading cloud-based accounting software companies in the UK for small and medium-sized businesses, with a mission to simplify the process of owning and running a small business through their online accounting software. Neighbours come to Nextdoor every day to find local businesses and share trusted recommendations, and Xero recognised that Nextdoor shared a similar vision in supporting local businesses to help communities thrive.
To reinforce their unwavering support for small businesses, Xero leveraged Nextdoor as a platform to enhance brand awareness and foster customer consideration.
In September 2023, Nextdoor launched Neighbourhood Faves - our local business awards - for the first time in the UK, which presented Xero with the perfect partnership opportunity. Neighbourhood Faves gives neighbours a way to celebrate and support the local businesses they love. Businesses are voted by real neighbours and the most-loved local businesses are crowned the title of Nextdoor Neighbourhood Fave.
The co-branded Neighbourhood Fave campaign was rolled out in two main phases. Phase 1 was the Voting Phase, which incorporated sponsored media as well as product placements, to encourage voting and build awareness of the Neighbourhood Faves programme. This provided the brand with a significant audience reach as well as multiple brand touch points to increase awareness with neighbours, reach a wide audience base and increase product awareness.
The second phase focused on the Winner Announcement, using Sponsored Posts to drum up excitement and encourage neighbours to view and celebrate this year’s winners.
Xero branding was integrated throughout the campaign across multiple touchpoints, including: Sponsored Posts in the feed and Nextdoor’s Discover Map. In addition, a press release announcing the launch of the awards along included a mention of Xero to further amplify awareness.
John Coldicutt, UK & EMEA Marketing Director at Xero, said: "Small businesses sit at the heart of our local communities. They are the businesses driving jobs, economic growth and a place for people to come together. It's so important that we celebrate them through initiatives like the Neighbourhood Faves Awards and encourage people to support their local businesses."
Xero’s sponsorship of Neighbourhood Faves performed exceptionally well, with the Sponsored Posts in the newsfeed averaging a CTR 5x higher than Nextdoor’s finance benchmark.
As part of the partnership agreement, Xero also promoted Neighbourhood Faves across their social channels to encourage businesses to create a free business page in order to be eligible for the campaign.
Overall, Neighbourhood Faves saw 777K votes (Faves) cast by hundreds of thousands of neighbours across the UK, which supported and celebrated more than 277K local businesses.
"Small businesses sit at the heart of our local communities. They are the businesses driving jobs, economic growth and a place for people to come together. It's so important that we celebrate them through initiatives like the Neighbourhood Faves Awards and encourage people to support their local businesses."
- John Coldicutt, EGM of Partner Marketing