Clarkston Chamber eNews Connection
May 12, 2009
Welcome to the Electronic Newsletter of the Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce
Follow the Chamber on Twitter Be a Fan of the Chamber on FACEBOOK
5856 S. Main St.
Clarkston, MI 48346
248-625-8055
QUICK LINKS
"Community Collaboration
at its Finest"
Heidi Wood
Genisys Credit Union
Gary Hintz, Micos Real Estate LLC
Michigan Week Awards Breakfast
May 21 2009
Schedule now online!
MEMBER 2 MEMBER
NEW Oakland Press
AWARD WINNING
Changing Places Moving & Storage
SPECIAL OFFERS
PROFILES
Hypnotherapy for Health and Happiness
Save Money with the Chamber
Comcast Business Services Chamber Program
Charitable Giving--
Tell us what you support
we'll help you advertise
&promote your projects
on the Chamber's website.
Sign up to receive Chamber eBlasts and eNewsletters
Take 5 (Five Fast Facts)
1. SPARK Growing Your Business in a Now Economy On Tuesday, May 19th, you are cordially invited to learn the Sales, Networking, Branding and Marketing tactics you need to ignite business growth. You'll learn how to plant the seeds, nurture the relationships and harvest the right opportunities to get the sale. Plus, you'll learn the secrets to staying positive and focused in the face of adversity from some of the top minds in the business development world. MORE INFO
2. The Community Awards Breakfast is one of the largest sit down events the Chamber hosts. We often get 175-200 people attending, including many elected officials and community leaders. Are you planning to attend? May 21, 2009 8-10 a.m. at Fountains REGISTER HERE
3. Chamber’s Shop Local task force makes headlines Clarkston News--add your ideas by taking our 10 question survey
4. Are you into Green? Then check out Oakland County Office of Economic Development Services Oakland County Green Summit
May 19, from 8-5 p.m. at the Troy Community Center, 3179 Livernois, in Troy. Registration
5. More Green coming to Michigan. Greening the Heartland Conference hosted by the Engineering Society of Detroit and the U.S. Green Building Council COBO HALL May 31-June 2 MORE INFO
In true David Letterman style, here are the Top 10 Ways to Grow Your Business:
10. Know what sets you apart from your competition - You should know what makes you better than your competition, and you should be able to easily describe it to someone you meet.
9. Be thinking how you can help someone else - It isn’t always about what people can do for you, you have to think about what your company/product/service can do for others
8. Always take a meeting - You never know who will be a valuable connection for you somewhere down the road.
7. Don’t just join, lead - The more involved you are in a group (like your local Chamber of Commerce hint hint) the more you are able to get your name and your business name out to a larger and larger group of people.
6. Become an expert - With the explosion of media outlets there are lots of ways to become an expert in your field. Industry publications, websites, social media, blogs etc all are ways you can show your expertise in your field and become thought of as an expert.
5. Take time to do the little things - At the start of a meeting pass out your card to everyone there. Follow up with people you meet with a quick note. Attend events that are important to your customers and contacts. You would be surprised how few people do these things.
4. Track where every lead comes from - It is important to know where your business comes from so you can make informed decisions on where to invest precious advertising and marketing dollars.
3. Update your internet presence all the time - Static website that never change will not produce strong results in search engines, and will not get repeat views from potential customers.
2. Find the pain - Your customers and potential customers all have pain (they need to redo marketing strategy, stop the losses in sales numbers, increase productivity etc). If you can help them alleviate their pain, they will hire you!
1. Target your top 10 customers specifically - Too many business try the “shotgun approach” to business develop and are all over the place in terms of trying to reach in too many directions at once. If you know exactly who your targets are, you will be able to find out how best to approach them, what messages to use and how to follow up.
Upcoming Networking events
Chamber BOB May 14, 2009 7:45-9:00 a.m. Reservations
Biggby Coffee, 5623 Dixie Highway, Waterford, MI 48329
Upcoming Ribbon Cuttings & Open House events
Wednesday May 20, 2009 Open House Ribbon Cutting 1p.m. (more info shortly)
Mattresses & More--Celebrating 20 Years in Business
4685 W. Walton Blvd, Waterford , MI 48329
Wednesday May 20, 2009 Open House 3-6 p.m. with Ribbon cutting at 3:00 p.m.
Premier Eyecare & Contact Lens Center, 5724 Clarkston Rd, Clarkston , MI 48348
Saturday June 6, 2009 10th Anniversary Open House time tba
Planet Kids Children's Center, 5520 Clarkston Rd, Clarkston , MI 48348
by State Representative Eileen Kowall
April 21, 2009
The Stimulus isn't a Blank Check
The current recession has taught many a tough lesson - the concept of budgeting and living within our means. After a booming economic success, this was a tough pill to swallow, but we've learned it and will be better off because of it.
Unfortunately, state government has yet to learn this lesson, which will . . . . NEXT
Improving Business Performance by Ron DeLorme, Manage Max Performance Improvement
May 5, 2009
Many business improvements pay off big and are really inexpensive!
Here’s a tip borrowed from companies like the Ritz-Carlton and the Disney Corporation (companies renown for excellent service): Use a . . . NEXT
by Jason T. Ryan
April 21, 2009
Twitter, to tweet or not to tweet. That is the question.
Are you on Facebook? Do you update your status? If so, you are not far from “tweeting.” Twitter is a mico-blogging site, with over 14 million users that limits you to 140 characters.
People use Twitter for a wide variety of reasons, to promote a brand, strictly as a social tool, to get feedback, to read news, for marketing, to generate leads, or maybe to drive traffic to a blog or website. Twitter allows you to listen in on and enter . . . . NEXTby Sue Kinch, Fresh Eyes Business Services
May 12, 2009
by Don Rush, Sherman Publications
The Clarkston News
May 5, 3009
May 12, 2009
How to Prevent Employee Theft NEW
by Joseph T. Wills, CFE, CPA Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
1. Selecting the Right Employee
One of the most basic steps in preventing employee fraud is not to hire employees who have stolen previously. Before hiring anyone, you should conduct a background check to find out as much as you can about the employee's previous experience with employers and law enforcement. Each company must decide whether . . . . NEXT
May 12, 2009
Starting a Business is Like Getting Married NEW
by John T. Wood Start Up Nation
If you’re married, or have been, you can think back to the time leading up to your marriage and see several key components that are similar between marriage startup and business startup:Attraction
Going Beyond Attraction
Business-like Characteristics
Just in It for the Money?
Emotional Purpose
Real Meaning ... NEXT