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If you ever wanted to take a trip to Cuba, you'll want to join us at the Blount Partnership board room for an
information session on the November trip, April 13 from 3:30-4:30 p.m.
Check out our 19th installment of The Dialogue where we visit with Joel Honeycutt, owner of
J&S Janitorial Solutions, which provides custom cleaning solutions to local businesses.
BUILDING A BETTER COMMUNITY WITH SOCIAL MEDIA
 The Blount Chamber invites you to explore the ins and outs of the online community in Blount County. Then discover ways to better connect our local businesses with each other and ways to drive potential customers to your doorstep. We're also going to look at some tips, do's and don'ts, and ways to build your brand. The presenter is Nick Voyles of CSC Interactive.
Join us Wednesday, April 20 from 3-4:30 p.m. for
Building a Better Community With Social Media. RSVP to
Amy.
UNDERSTANDING THE AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE ACT
 Certain parts of the Affordable Care Cat (ACA) are in effect. As a business owner, you will want to know how this healthcare policy impacts your business. If you are confused about the changes, costs, or your role, you should attend this workshop directed at explaining the business provisions of Health Care Reform and the Affordable Care Act. Join us for this free seminar presented by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Thursday, April 28 from 11 a.m.-noon at the Blount Partnership.
RSVP here.
DEADLINE NEARS FOR ALCOA FOUNDATION WORKFORCE READINESS PROGRAM
 Applications are now being accepted for the Youth Workforce Readiness Training and Internship Program, a collaborative project of Blount Partnership and Blount County Adult Education.
This eight-week program provides workforce readiness training in the skills needed to obtain and maintain employment in the field of manufacturing. Participants receive practical training and a paid internship at a local manufacturer. Young Adults ages 18-26, who are unemployed or underemployed, are eligible for this program.
To apply, or for more information, potential participants should contact Margaret Muller at Blount County Adult Education at 865-982-8998 or email
[email protected]. The deadline is April 15.
MEMBER-TO-MEMBER PROMOTIONAL PROGRAM
 Be sure to get your promotion in for the Blount County Chamber of Commerce Member-to-Member Promotional Program which offers you and your company the opportunity to market your products and services to the membership.
Here's how it works:
1. Submit a PDF of a service, product or discount you'd like to offer to the Chamber membership to
[email protected]. Be sure to include an expiration date.
2. An email with all the promotions will be sent out on the final Monday of every month
(April 25) to our member database.
BLOUNT COUNTY JOB FAIR SET FOR APRIL 29
 Please help us get the word out about the
Blount County Job Fair by
printing and displaying this flyer at your business.
Anyone looking for summer jobs, part or full-time employment needs to be at the Blount County Job Fair presented by the Blount County Chamber of Commerce, DENSO, Newell Rubbermaid, Staffing Solutions, the Blount County Library, Tennessee Career Center and The Daily Times on Friday, April 29 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee building located at 136 Harvest Lane in Maryville. Click
here for a list of participating businesses.
LAST CALL TO SIGN UP GLENN SHEPARD SEMINAR
 There are still a few spots remaining for
Glenn Shepard's seminar "Hire With Confidence, Fire Without Fear, Tame Toxic Employees and Put Your Team on the Fast Track to Record-Shattering Success" is coming to the Blount Chamber on Thursday, April 14, which runs from 8:30 a.m.-noon.
Print the flyer to register.
If you missed last year's seminar, the April 14 seminar will offer you the opportunity to sharpen your supervisory skills and become a more effective manager and stronger leader than you've ever been. After completing this seminar, which has been certified for additional HRCI credit by SHRM, you'll have the tools for leading your team to achieving goals much faster than ever before.
BUSINESS-BUILDING WORKSHOP
 Hear from local experts on
how to succeed in your local business. Attend this FREE business event presented by Dex Media on Tuesday, April 26 from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Blount Partnership. Free lunch begins at 11:15 a.m. You'll learn business-building strategies, tips and techniques from your community leaders, all geared toward increasing your productivity and business success. RSVP to
Debbie Laugherty - 865.705.1762
SOFT SKILLS CLASS OFFERED THIS SPRING
 It's Your Career! That's the focus of the final free soft skills sessions offered in partnership by the Blount County Public Library, the Adult Education Foundation of Blount County and the Blount County Chamber of Commerce that are scheduled over the next five months.
With more and more millennials entering the workforce, employers have noticed many workers in a variety of professions are lacking in several areas, including problem solving, conflict resolution and critical observation. But, even though they possess the hard skills to get an interview, it's the important soft skills that will land the job and help them keep it.
All classes are conducted at the library located at 508 N. Cusick in Maryville and limited to 30 participants. Those interested must register online at
www.blountchamber.com/community/soft-skills. A complete class description is located on the registration site. All classes run from 8-10 a.m. with networking beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Registrations are currently being accepted for:
May 20 - Mentoring
AMPLIFY YOUR BUSINESS WITH SAVE LOCAL NOW
 Did you know 46% of online users turn to social media when making a purchasing decision? As the new "word-of-mouth" marketing, consumers visit sites like Facebook and Twitter and expect to find real, relevant (and newly posted) content.
Here's some benefits to being active on social media:
1. Posting on a regular basis with links to your website will increase traffic flow.
2. Search engines like Google reward activity on social media sites, giving you more visibility online
3. The opportunity to connect with followers allows you to build lasting relationships without actually having to meet them
4. Promoting your brand through social media allows you to share your story.
Instead of wasting time posting separately to a variety of social media accounts, Save Local Now lets you do it all in one place. Publish a business promotion on your SLN digital platform and one-click share to Facebook, Twitter and Google+.
If you have any questions regarding your free digital marketing member benefit (
Save Local Now), your digital platform, or online marketing in general please reach out the Blount Chamber's
Rachel Coffman. She is here to help you in the year ahead and will keep you on track as you fulfill your resolutions in 2016.
REMEMBER TO SHOP LOCAL
 Think local first + Buy local when you can = Being a local!
Buying local is about more than how we spend our dollars: It's about supporting what we value in our community, like fair pay, sustainable agriculture, healthy food, and strong local economies.
GOT AN EVENT OR NEWS? WE'D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT
Is your organization hosting an event in the community? Submit it
here on our community calendar. If it's a tourism event, please email
Ashlee so she can post it on
www.SmokyMountains.org.
Also, please
send us any news releases or good news about your business. We'd love to share it with the community.
REMEMBER WHEN
"(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," by Otis Redding completed a four-week run atop the Billboard Music Chart this week in 1968. It became the first posthumous single to top the charts in the U.S.
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