Top Ten Reasons You Should Be a Member of the Columbus Lowndes Development LINK (David Letterman eat your heart out)

Wednesday, March 18
10.You get a sales rep for 32 cents a day. It’s true. We get hundreds of requests for goods and services each month and we refer these to our members. 9.Resources and assistance. We maintain a library of phone books and keep statistics and information of all types. When a member needs help, we try to do our part. 8.Representation. The chamber if the voice of the business community to local government, and on the state and national level, working to develop a better climate for doing business. 7.New customers. Our tourism and event activities bring thousands of people to town each year, people that you can work to convert to becoming one of your customers. 6.Local buying keeps jobs. The chamber works to keep money circulating at home, turning over within our community. 5.New business contacts. A major reason that many people get active with the chamber is because they get to meet and network with other business people. 4.Publicity and exposure. Those who play an active role with the Chamber get wonderful exposure for themselves and for their business. 3.We keep our members informed. Through this blog, our newsletter, email blasts of information, personal visits, meetings and events and special mailings. 2.We offer a chance to make a difference by joining with other members to work together to improve the quality of life and the economic climate of the community. 1.If we don’t do it – who will? Remember, we don’t buy glasses, we buy better vision. We don’t buy a newspaper, we buy news and information. We don’t buy a house, we buy shelter and comfort. We don’t buy insurance, we buy security and protection. And we don’t buy a chamber membership; we buy the cooperation and assistance of the most capable business and professional people in the community. We buy a better business climate and a better community. If we are in business, we should be in the Chamber of Commerce.

Challenging Times

Thursday, January 15
I think that many of our members are finding business conditions very tough this year. I know that I certainly have. Our customers are demanding more for less. Lead times have been reduced and payments are coming in 60 to 90 to 120 days rather than the customary 30 days. Our competition has excess capacity and is working hard to take business away from us. Our customers are demanding better quality products and better service. And, we have to work hard every day to train and maintain a top-notch work force capable of meeting ever increasing demands. Does this sound familiar to you? If so, you are the same as the majority of businesses today. How we, as business people, meet these challenges will determine if our businesses will survive. For, if we don’t meet these challenges, we will fail. • Do you take the time to realistically assess where you are in comparison to your competitors? • Do you and your staff discuss ways to accomplish your goals more efficiently and at a lesser cost? • Do you analyze how much cash it will take to stay in business for the next 12 months? If the answer to any of these questions is NO, your business may be headed for trouble. It has been proven many times over that you need a business plan with constant reevaluation in order to survive and prosper in today’s business climate. It doesn’t matter if you are a manufacturer, a shop owner, a doctor or an Indian Chief, you still need a plan. The Chamber is also a business and, as such, we update our business plan every year.We establish our priorities for the year and map out how we plan to get there. The Chamber will be holding a small business seminar in the fall that will address such issues as writing and implementing a business plan. Even if you have been in business for 30 years, it is never too late to map out your course. Watch for details on our small business seminar in the coming months. The Chamber has accomplished many of the things that we have set out to do, but we must strive to do better. How are you doing?

WHY SHOULD I JOIN NOW?

Tuesday, November 04
The LINK (chamber of commerce) is unique. It is a partner to every business and every citizen. You belong in it as long as you are in business in our community for you are benefiting from its activities, and should shoulder a part of the operating expenses. What investment is more important to you as a business or professional person and citizen than such a comparatively small one in our progress and prosperity. You may not have time to answer hundreds of requests for information or help bring an industry into the area, but you know it is being done. If you are unable to support with both time and money, it is especially important for you to financially cooperate with your fellow businessmen who make up various committees and who ARE taking time out from their business to help YOU. Your greatest asset is your location in a prosperous growing community, where new people are constantly moving in, and the economic level is high. That is the objective of any Chamber of Commerce. Your income is derived from activity within our area and you benefit by the activities of the Chamber. If you are a branch office that proves that your company considers this a good place to do business. This is your home, and you, as a branch, benefit from LINK activity. Possibly you have replaced an independent business that did support the LINK, which is all the more reason you should contact your home office and secure its membership. Your first job should be to make yourself part of the community and the way to do this is by identifying yourself with the leading community organization. Perhaps you do your business outside of our area, but don't you make full use of our facilities? You wouldn't call an out-of-town police or fire department, or make use of out-of-town utilities. And aren't your family, and friends, and interests here? You are a part of the community after all, and the LINK needs your support in its efforts to make it a still better community. We are not asking you to give away money, but TO MAKE AN INVESTMENT. Your return is the continued growth and prosperity of our area. The membership dues (which are tax deductible under business expense) amounts to only pennies a day - such a small amount that you can't afford not to belong. The best way to get your business larger is to properly support the LINK … more industries ... more residents ... more tourists ... more people shopping in our community ... will mean more business for you. The LINK is working to promote all of these things (in addition it affords valuable contacts with your fellow citizens and business people). Make your investment NOW. No town - or business - ever stands still; you either proceed or recede. Other cities are active NOW - competing for trade territory, industries, new businesses, better highways, more housing, police protection, education, and everything else that will make them a better, more prosperous and more pleasant place in which to live. Don't put it off … “later” may be too late.

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