With more and more shopping happening online, local businesses all over the US are struggling. But every day, Facebook helps over 10MM local businesses compete by connecting them with their local customers. But since all of that happens behind a screen, it’s hard to make Facebook’s local impact felt.

Our brief was to prove to locals and small businesses across America the real world impact that Facebook has on local businesses and local economies. We were able to create real impact by celebrating the local businesses that make each city so great.

We created ‘Keep It Local,’ a campaign that rallied communities around their local businesses and showcased how their local businesses keep their city’s spirit alive. In each city we activated in, we created a shoppable experience tailored to what makes each city special. For example, In Nashville, aka “Music City,” we got local business owners to perform a shoppable concert. And in dog-crazy San Diego, we got local business owners to host “Pawmaste” a shoppable yoga retreat for dogs and their owners.

With the power of Facebook, we rallied locals to come out and support their local businesses with their hearts and wallets, bringing the connections that happen on Facebook between local businesses and their online fans off the Internet and into their stores.

In each market, we spoke to policy-informed locals and small business owners/employees to understand the impact that local businesses have on their city. Their response was overwhelmingly clear: Local businesses reflect their city’s unique culture and flavor. Therefore, our strategy was to showcase that supporting local businesses is the only way to keep the spirit of their city alive and encourage more people to shop local.

Based on our on-the-ground research, we uncovered specific themes that spoke to each city’s unique culture, and created a tailored shoppable experience to bring that theme to life. In Sacramento, the “City of Trees”, we built a treehouse market. In Nashville, we threw a shoppable concert starring local business owners who moonlighted as musicians. In San Diego, one of the dog-friendliest cities in the U.S., we held a yoga retreat for dogs and their owners. And in Columbus, the city of parades, we held a local business parade with floats that doubled as storefronts. Before each event, we used the power of Facebook to get the word out to locals, and after each event we used Facebook to share the experience with locals who couldn’t attend.

Between Nashville, Columbus, San Diego, and Sacramento, our “Keep it Local” activations generated over 3.5 million impressions, 23 local news segments, and 1,258 social mentions.

But most importantly, we proved the impact Facebook has on local businesses and economies by actually creating real economic impact rallying locals to come out and support their local businesses with their hearts and wallets. We drew out 4,118 attendees to support their local businesses, creating connections between businesses and locals that will extend beyond our activation – and the value of that can’t be measured in dollars. It’s the ice cream enjoyed, the baseball bats customized, and, yes, even the dogs adopted that show that the best part about Facebook doesn’t happen on Facebook.