Wakulla County Chamber of Commerce News and Notes April 6, 2010 by Kimberly A. Moore, President

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Greetings Fellow Chamber Members and Community,

As we prepare to enter the second quarter of 2010, I remain hopeful that the coming months will include relief from the current economic challenges.  As you have read in the newspaper or gathered from television, economist has stated that the recession is over.  However, as you can probably attest to with your own businesses, the proof will be in the number of people who return to work, the number of businesses that are in a position to hire versus downsize and lastly whether our businesses are in a position to expand versus close their doors.

{sidebar id=1}In spite of the obstacles faced on a national and local front, your Chamber continues to dig even deeper to ensure that the work of the Chamber is carried out in the most professional and business friendly manner possible.

We are committed to beating the odds and growing our membership in a time when others are seeing declines.  It’s been said time and time again, that we believe that our business community is worth fighting for and that it why your investment and most of all your trust is not misplaced when you chose the Chamber as the voice and advocate for your business.

Over the past month we have been very busy coming up with new ways to add value to your member benefits. 

As a member, it is important that you and your employees take advantage of all the great benefits your investment affords.  There is a wide array of no-cost benefits to select from that will exceed your membership dues many times over.

With that said, I have included below opportunities that are available to members at no cost and for non-members at a nominal fee.  Note the latter is to ensure that the Chamber provides support to all businesses and not just dues paying members.  Each business that is supported has an opportunity to hire someone from the community.  As the Chamber, we can’t and won’t lose sight of the importance of supporting all businesses.

2 More Reasons Why the Chamber is the Best Investment of Your Membership Dollars

• Brown Bag Lunch and Learn Series
  
  Grab your lunch and head to the Chamber!   There will be monthly classes taking place at the Chamber office.  The classes selected are a great resource for businesses during a time when most businesses have all but cut training from their budget.  The training is top notch and will be delivered by our partners at FAMU, FSU Jim Moran Institute and TCC.  The series includes the following topics:
  
  Creating Leader’s Series (Designed for new and transitioning managers)
  Essential Business Tool Series (Designed for all businesses)
  Small Business Series (Designed for small businesses)
  
  Please be sure to review the list included in the current newsletter along with the dates and times.  If you or your staff would like to reserve a seat, please call the Chamber today as space is limited.

• 2010 Ed2Go
  
  There’s no reason to miss out on this great training opportunity.  Why, you might ask? It’s because the classes are offered online and can be taken at work or in the comfort of your home.  The classes are a great way to learn something new or brush up on an existing skill.  The list of classes has been totally revamped.  Please be sure to review the list included in our newsletter. If you’d like a description of a particular class, please don’t hesitate to contact the Chamber office for more information.

Each month that passes the Chamber continues to elevate its presence and value in the community by bringing on Chamber Champions.

If you recall last month CenturyLink, came on board as the title sponsor of our Business Excellence event.  Well this month we have a new sponsor, Florida Commerce Credit Union, who will serve as the title sponsor of the 1st ever Wakulla Breakfast in the Park, Business to Business event. This event will celebrate area businesses and their employees who work in Wakulla County. Thanking them for their perseverance and commitment during these tough times.  Please be sure to mark your calendar for Wednesday, April 21st from 6:30 AM – 8:30 AM and call the Chamber office to RSVP.  If you’d like to pitch in and help out, please contact Jo Ann Palmer, Internal Events Committee Chair at 926-1848.

In addition to the event mentioned above there is lots of committee work taking place.  Remember you joined the Chamber for a reason, so it’s not too late to get involved. 

Lastly, as an additional project, your Chamber leadership is also investigating how our individual resources can be used to establish a co-op marketing strategy.  Over the last 2 weeks we have surveyed the membership who expressed interest in finding ways to stretch their marketing dollars.  Our next phase will be to meet with the advertising companies on your behalf.  Again, this is just one more example of what it means to be a part of the best Chamber in North Florida.

As always, my door is open for your comments and feedback on ways to improve how we serve and protect the businesses of Wakulla County.

Yours in service,
Kimberly A. Moore,
President, Wakulla Chamber of Commerce

This article originally published on April 6, 2010.

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