How To Market Your Small Business During Political Unrest While Staying True to Your Values
I know trying to run your business (let alone function) right now is overwhelming. We’re being inundated with news. There’s so much uncertainty and turmoil that may or may not directly impact your business. You want to be plugged in, take a stand, and be part of the resistance, but you also need to maintain some sense of normalcy to keep your business running.
Let me be clear: You can do both.
You can still marketing and run your business, show up for your clients and community, align your brand with your values, and make a lot of money. (Not to mention, women are much more likely to reinvest in their communities so making bank is also a part of your resistance!)
To effectively market your business right now while also staying true to your values is going to require a balance of authenticity, strategic messaging, and brand integrity (and rest!). It’s about using your platform to stand for something while still running a sustainable business.
So, how do you market your business in times of uncertainty and political unrest? Let’s break it down.
1. Lead with Your Values
If it wasn’t clear before, it’s certainly clear now—Customers today want to support brands that align with their beliefs.
And if you don’t believe that, just look at how it’s working out for brands like Target, Tesla, Amazon, Cover Girl, and more. Massive boycotts leading to billions lost in revenue.
But before that little voice in your head says, “but we don’t want that to happen to us!” I want you to think about it this way—Some of these brands once stood for one thing and then made decisions to go against that. They deceived their customers. And not just that, people are realizing their money has power so they are now wielding that power to take a stand.
So unless you’re going to roll back DEI and join the oligarchy (which let’s be real, you wouldn’t be reading this post if you were), you’re good!
If you want to integrate your resistance into your business to not only take a stake but attract like-minded customers, you’re going to want to make it clear in your messaging, actions, and partnerships what you stand for and the values you hold as a business.
Reaffirm your stance: Update your mission statement or brand messaging to reflect your values.
Speak directly to your audience: Your ideal customers are likely feeling the same way you are. Acknowledge the moment, offer support, and rally your community.
Align your marketing with advocacy: Whether it’s promoting women-owned or minority-owned businesses, supporting reproductive rights, or amplifying marginalized voices, integrate your activism into your brand.
2. Be Intentional About How You Show Up
It currently feels like the world is on fire and 527 new, messed up things are happening every single day. It’s overwhelming and it’s very easy to burn out—for both you and your audience. So you need to be strategic and intentional in your messaging.
Decide when to take a stand publicly vs. when to focus on business. Every post doesn’t need to be activism-related, but when you speak, do so with purpose. I’d recommend trying to integrate a balance of both. Right now, I’d say 25% of my marketing and messaging ends up leaning politically but I’m also not launching anything or feeling pressure to gain new clients. Experiment and find a mix that works for you.
Understand your audience. Some customers will love your boldness, while others may disengage. That’s okay—values-based marketing attracts the right people and repels the wrong ones. And you have to be ok with that.
You can also do this very subtly. I recently had a client that included a mention of Target in an email sequence. While there was a time that their audience actually shopped there, they are now directly being affected by what’s happening in Washington so we decided to take that mention out so it didn’t feel like they were tone-deaf to the moment.
Educate and empower, don’t just react. Instead of reacting to every news event, create content that inspires action and gives your community tools to get involved. People are tired of seeing the exact same news and information every time they log online. Give them more than just regurgitated news. What are you doing to resist? Give them ideas on what they can do to resist. Illustrate why and how certain things affect them. Lead by example by educating and empowering.
3. Integrate Activism into Your Marketing Strategy
Sharing resources, news, and your beliefs on social media is one way to integrate resistance into your marketing but to have a real impact, it’s about using your business as a force for change.
Create an impact-driven campaign. Dedicate a % of sales, launch a limited-edition product, or host an event supporting a cause.
Collaborate with like-minded brands. Partner with other businesses to amplify voices and pool resources.
Make activism part of your customer experience. Include calls to action (sign petitions, attend protests) in emails, social media, and packaging inserts.
I have a client that does all 3 of these brilliantly (even before the current administration took over). They just opened their second and third locations in 2025 and at those Grand Opening events, they partnered with local farm steward advocacy groups giving them a table so guests would learn more and they matched all donations made during the event.
They also put out calls to action to support organizations like World Central Kitchen after Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina.
While these examples are a little different, they do an exemplary job of integrating their values and activism into their business on a regular basis.
4. Prepare for Pushback & Protect Your Energy
Depending on how you’ve built your brand and your messaging prior to this point, you may attract both support and criticism. I don’t want the thought of pushback to deter you from integrating your values and activism into your marketing. I just want you to be prepared to handle pushback while protecting your mental and emotional well-being.
Decide in advance how you’ll respond to negative comments or customer feedback. Having a plan on how you’ll engage negativity is a great idea. That way you won’t let your anxiety and other emotions drive your response. Your plan could be as simple as waiting a minimum time to respond so you have time to critically think of and craft a response.
If you have a team, it becomes critical that they are a part of the planning process. Do they have free reign to respond? Or would you like to discuss the comments with them prior to responding? How will you support them if things get really nasty?
Have clear boundaries. It’s okay to disengage from trolls and conserve your energy for real impact. And honestly a lot of these may actually be bots and not real people. On a post I previously had that ended up on the wrong side of Threads, I noticed the negative comments were rolling in with a similar theme and then another set rolled in with a different theme. By giving myself time to respond, I was able to observe this and realize my post was actually being attacked by bots so I didn’t bother responding.
You get to decide when you’ve had enough and how you want to respond but you need to get comfortable setting these boundaries with yourself and actually respecting them for your own sanity.
Protect your energy. Along with disengaging, it’s also ok to block people and report inappropriate or abusive behavior. You do not have to put up with that (on your own posts or if you see it on other people’s posts).
5. Take Action Beyond Marketing
This might be the most important part of this entire post so listen up! Marketing is powerful, but real change happens through action. Make sure you practice what you preach so your business isn’t only having an impact but you are too.
Vote with your dollars. Choose women-owned, BIPOC-owned, and ethical vendors for your business needs.
Advocate behind the scenes. Reach out to policymakers, join local initiatives, and fund causes that align with your mission.
Use your business to create direct impact. Offer scholarships, mentorship, or paid opportunities for marginalized communities.
If you read nothing else, I hope it’s this one line: Action is where real change happens.
Final Thoughts: Resistance is a Long Game
Marketing during times of political unrest as a values-driven business owner isn’t just about reacting to the moment—it’s about integrating your beliefs into your long-term strategy. Not because it’s good for business. Because it’s the right thing to do.
You don’t have to do everything, all the time. Pick the actions that feel most aligned, create sustainable impact, and make room for rest and resilience.
