Navigation app Waze has launched an outreach campaign ahead of the UK’s Small Business Saturday on 5 December in a bid to support small businesses by encouraging its users to shop local during the holiday season.

From 5 December until 7 January 2021, Waze will give business owners the chance to input an address, contact details, and opening hours for their businesses via a form. This information will then be added to the Waze map by the app’s volunteer map editors. And the hope is making businesses easier to find and get in touch with will lead to more people shopping locally.

“We know small businesses have really been hit hard this year as the result of the pandemic,” said Dani Simons, Head of Public Sector Partnerships at Waze. “Earlier this year we launched location badges to help local businesses show if they have drive-thru and contactless pickup available, giving drivers a way to safely collect their groceries or takeout. As we look towards Small Business Saturday and the holiday season, we wanted to make it even easier for drivers to reach these locations and support the economy by shopping local.”