So it’s great to have a Chamber of Commerce in your city. And the networking events are fun — in person — but what about online? How do you control the conversation about the businesses in your city if you don’t have an online network?
A good chamber of commerce helps businesses band together and come up with ways to better market their products and services. They form a collective to address important concerns and issues for the business community.
Study.com
Online Networking Is Networking
The core purpose of a Chamber of Commerce is so businesses can get together and network. Do restrict this behavior to online only is to deny the reality of online commerce or eCommerce. Brick and Mortar and eCommerce are partners, not rivals.
Physical businesses are not dead nor are they dying. Online business, freelancing, and remote work is a growing sector of our economy. Those workers should be part of their local Chamber of Commerce, too.
For the first time, as many freelancers said they view this way of working as a long-term career choice as they do a temporary way to make money. In addition, the share of those who freelance full time increased from 17% in 2014 to 28% this year.
Upwork (2019)
Recruit New Members with an Online Community
Freelancers and remote workers are a cash cow for Chambers of Commerce. Offering a lower level membership that only includes the online community is a great way to get more revenue. This allows membership without sacrificing the rewards of the in-person events.
Including all types of workers and businesses helps a Chamber of Commerce thrive. Engaged businesses are an important factor when collaborating on town events, sponsorships for your local parade, and, of course, Small Business Saturday.
An engaged community is the way to lift up all local businesses. Not to mention, increase revenue for the Chamber itself.
Avoid Membership Attrition with an Online Community
We do business with people we know like and trust. This is so true, it’s a cliché. So, in-person business meetings are great and we should have face-to-face networking. That’s fine. But what about members who don’t thrive in that environment?
As an example, I joined my Chamber of Commerce two years ago. It was fun to get the plaque and be in the annual magazine. I went to one lunch and learn. One. It was difficult to meet people. They knew each other. There was no icebreaker.
I thought of attending Thursday cocktail hours but my schedule doesn’t allow for it. The bottom line is that the Chamber of Commerce didn’t work for me. I didn’t renew my membership. That’s a $200 annual loss from me.
Don’t Rely on Facebook
Chamber of Commerce has been a powerful voice for local businesses for decades. But the busier we get, the harder it is to attend in-person meetings. So, how can you get your members to engage with each other more frequently?
Some turn to Facebook. Instead of creating a Facebook group, supplement the face-to-face networking on your website. This is easily accomplished with PeepSo. Start today!
