Cha-ching! (12-22)

With the "buy local" movement gaining more and more momentum around the country, it only makes sense for businesses to show customers that they don't simply pay lip service to the notion -- they practice what they preach.

At Detroit Garden Works in Sylvan Lake, Mich., a section of the company's e-commerce site displays "homemade" products, supplied to the store by Michigan vendors. The array of containers and fountains -- all high-end -- serves to brand the store as one that appreciates its roots. And customers can take pride in the idea that by purchasing the items, they, too, embrace locally crafted goods.

Retailers all over are looking for branding elements that separate them from the competition. And when those elements reinforce a "we're in this for the greater good of the community" mantra, customers tend to take notice.

That's "notice," as in "Cha-ching!" 

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