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pay sales tax during the transaction, he or she owes the equivalent use tax to the state--which would balance out the amount lost from local business sales. In practice, however, few people know they are required to pay use taxes for online purchases, or go to the extra effort do so.  In 2010, then-S.D. Gov. Mike Rounds estimated that the state loses $35 million a year in unpaid use taxes, or about 3 percent of the state's budget. 
• This also, of course, puts the local retailer at a disadvantage.
• Schumaker said that charging 6 percent sales tax in his store when no tax is charged during online purchases makes a difference, especially for a bigger-ticket item like furniture. "If somebody spends $5,000 on furniture, that's $300 in sales tax, and that's a factor," he said.
• Furman said the bigger loser is the state. "We lose, too, but the state has no way to collect sales tax, and that lost tax grows every year," he said.
• A recent South Dakota law requires that online retailers doing business with a South Dakotan must inform the customer that he or she is legally required to pay use tax on that purchase. Whether shoppers will ante up with this new information is still in question: Figuring a year's worth of online purchases--or filling out a state tax form, for that matter--is not something most South Dakotans are used to doing.
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• Social media connections
• Even if rural businesses aren't selling directly online, many have started using social media to connect with current and potential customers.
• When Jeani Amacher, owner of Dizzy Blondz in Britton, started her business six and a half years ago, selling her jewelry and custom banners on eBay was a significant part of her business. She and her staff no longer do that because they keep busy enough through the store in Britton. However, they do use Facebook to market products.
• "Any time we get new purse or some new product we want to tell people about, we take a picture and tell about it on Facebook," Amacher said. "We have a lot of people come into the store after seeing (a post on) Facebook."
• Facebook is also a key part of the marketing for Uniquely Yours in Faulkton. Huss said she uses it to post photos of new displays and get the word out about upcoming events.
• John Pfeifer says he connects with new VoWac Publishing clients through social media. He even leaves open invitations to play online games of Scrabble with potential customers.
• "It does help to make connections with people who can become our customers,"

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