A Heartfelt Thank You—and Some Honest Housekeeping

From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Your time, your attention, your shares, and your encouragement are the reason Lakes Area Buzz exists at all, and nothing about that is taken for granted. This newsletter has grown into a community space because you open it, read it, talk about it with friends, and support the local businesses and people featured in every issue.

Before anything else, a few clear promises. Lakes Area Buzz is not turning into an ad-filled sales pitch. The heart of this project will always be local stories, local businesses, and local people—first, last, and always. Shopping locally remains the priority, and nothing here is meant to push you away from Main Street and toward a shopping cart. This newsletter will remain free to read, and there are no hidden plans to slide into paywalls or mandatory subscriptions down the road.

Why You’re Suddenly Seeing Amazon Links

You may have noticed something new: Amazon links sprinkled into the newsletter. Those are affiliate links, and they’re one of the tools being used to help keep this project alive and growing. When you click one of these marked links and make a purchase on Amazon within a set time window, Lakes Area Buzz earns a small commission on your order—at no extra cost to you.

Here’s what this does not mean:

- It does not mean the newsletter is now about selling you stuff.  
- It does not mean recommendations are for sale to the highest bidder.  
- It does not mean anyone is suddenly “getting rich” off your purchases.

Those small commissions go toward very specific, unglamorous line items: website hosting, email tools, software, and the time it takes to research, interview, write, and edit the stories you read. Without some form of funding, that back-end work becomes harder to sustain and limits how much local coverage can be provided.

Every affiliate link will be clearly labeled so you always know when a link helps support Lakes Area Buzz. Transparency isn’t just a nice idea here—it’s non-negotiable.

Local Shopping Still Comes First

It’s important to say this plainly: if you can buy something from a local shop here in the Brainerd Lakes area, that should always come first. Local dollars stay in the community, support local jobs, and keep our main streets vibrant. Lakes Area Buzz exists to highlight those businesses, not compete with them.

So where do Amazon links fit in? They’re a **temporary** bridge solution to help cover operating and expansion costs while other long-term support options are explored. That might mean local sponsors, reader-supported contributions, or new partnerships better aligned with local-first values. As those options develop, you’ll be kept in the loop.

In other words: local shopping supports the businesses we feature. Affiliate links support the platform that tells their stories. Both matter, and both can work together.

For Amazon Shoppers: Your Quiet Superpower

If you’re someone who already uses Amazon—whether for convenience, specific products, or items that simply aren’t available nearby—you have a quiet superpower. By taking one small extra step, you can turn your regular Amazon orders into direct support for Lakes Area Buzz, without changing what you buy or paying a cent more.

Here’s the simple ask:

• Before you shop on Amazon, click a clearly marked Lakes Area Buzz affiliate link.  
  - Then shop as you normally would.  

That’s it. Whether you buy the item recommended or something entirely different, that session can generate a small commission for the newsletter. These aren’t life-changing sums, but they add up to hosting paid on time, tools upgraded when needed, and more space to focus on telling stories instead of chasing bills.

You are not being guilted into changing where you shop. This is an option, not an obligation. If all you ever do is read, share, and support local businesses, you’re already doing something valuable. But if you *do* use Amazon anyway, that one extra click lets you become one of the quiet heroes keeping this whole project going.

You are the driving force behind Lakes Area Buzz. Your everyday choices—whether that’s visiting a local café you saw in a feature, forwarding an interview to a friend, or using an affiliate link before buying something online—have more impact than you might think.

Trust, Integrity, and the Road Ahead

A fair question is: “Will recommendations still be honest, or just whatever pays?” The commitment here is simple: integrity first, always. Any product mentioned will be chosen because it’s genuinely useful, relevant, or helpful to this community—not because of a commission percentage. If a product doesn’t fit that standard, it doesn’t belong in the newsletter, affiliate link or not.

The word “temporary” can sound fuzzy, so here’s the promise: as sustainable support options grow—more readership, possible sponsors, or other community-driven models—the reliance on Amazon affiliate links will be revisited and openly discussed. You’ll be told how things are going, what’s changing, and why. No surprises.

Every form of support genuinely matters. When you:

- Shop locally.  
- Use an affiliate link before an Amazon purchase.  
- Open, read, and share the newsletter.  

You’re helping keep this project alive, independent, and rooted right here in the Brainerd Lakes area.

The future of Lakes Area Buzz is full of possibility, and that’s entirely because of you. Thank you for trusting this work, for caring about local stories, and for standing behind a project that exists to shine a light on our shared community. Your support—whatever form it takes—means the world, and it’s what will carry Lakes Area Buzz into its next chapter.