… got my lawnmower fixed.
I had been unable to remove the rusted bolt holding the blade, despite whatever tools of mine (and my neighbors) I tried.
So I took it to a local gas station and asked the mechanic if he could help.
He loosened it in about 15 seconds, wished me a nice day, and went smiling back inside.
Yesterday, that gas station was unremarkable to me, one of dozens within a five-mile radius from my house. Today, it looks completely different.
Sometimes, 15 seconds helping a stranger is the best marketing you can do.
My dad, a now-retired orthodontist, had a policy of helping out (for free) vacationing tourists with braces-related problems. It may not have resulted in much direct business for him, but he regularly saved people’s vacations and it was a great word-of-mouth thing for our local area, which was heavily reliant on the tourism trade. “People there are so NICE!”