COFFEE CLUB AT TRINITY DENTAL CLINIC

Wake up to new business contacts at coffee club held Thursday, April 27 from 7:45-9 a.m. at Trinity Dental Clinic (1127 E. Lamar Alexander Pkwy., Maryville). Coffees are designed to offer our members the opportunity to build business relationships with other members and to gain exposure for their business or organization in an "open house" setting.

Coffees are open to anyone associated with a Chamber member business. Participation is not reserved to the representative(s) listed on the Chamber membership.

 

Check out our 78th installment of The Dialogue at the bottom of this email as we visit with Greg Householder, job developer for The Access Program (200 E. Broadway Ave, Suite 45, Maryville, TN 37804, 865. 256.9228) which finds jobs for people with disabilities.

 

If you or someone you know is looking for a job, please check out www.BlountAreaJobs.com. Additionally, if you need employees, please utilize the job board to advertise your open positions. Click here to get started.

Did you know you can advertise in the Chamber's lobby? With more than 2,500 visitors walking through the Chamber doors monthly, you can use the space to advertise for $300 a month. Contact Amy if you are interested.  

 

GO TO LUNCH OR DINNER AND SUPPORT LOCAL NON-PROFIT

Gather a group of co-workers and head to Moe's Alcoa on April 26 as it will be donating 10% of all its sales to Kingdom Design Ministries. The event will be from open to close, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

 

FINANCE YOUR BUSINESS WITH SBA

Join us Thursday, April 27 from 9-10 a.m. for Financing Your Business the SBA Way covers SBA loan options including which loan program meets a specific entrepreneurial need. The session begins with the 5 C's of credit including character, cash flow, collateral, capitalization and conditions. It then transitions to an overview of SBA's actual loan programs. Lastly, specific information will be shared about interest rates and repayment terms plus our participating lenders. Whether you are an existing entrepreneur or have given thought to starting a business, this seminar will put you ahead of the game in government guaranteed lending. Jacqueline Merritt, Small Business Administration, is the presenter. To register, please email or call Jacqueline Merritt or 615/736-7465.

 

UNITED WAY OF BLOUNT COUNTY CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS

Make plans to attend the free United Way of Blount County's Crisis Communications Workshop on Thursday, April 27 from 8-10 a.m. at 1615 East Broadway Avenue, Maryville. East Tennessee has dealt with a slew of major crises in recent months and years, impacting thousands of individuals, families, businesses, government agencies and non-profit organizations. Now is the time for regional non-profits to gather lessons learned from some of our area's crisis-planning and emergency-response experts. Join the United Way of Blount County as it hosts public relations strategist Mary Beth West and a panel of local communications and crisis-response leaders who will discuss the essential elements of formulating a crisis plan in advance, as well as standing ready to respond quickly and effectively when disaster strikes. Presenter/Moderator: Mary Beth West, APR, Principal, Mary Beth West Communications, LLC Panelists: Jennie Bounds, Public Relations & Marketing Director, Blount Memorial Hospital Lance Coleman, Director, Blount County Emergency Management Agency John Jarrard, Advanced Disaster Relief Instructor, American Red Cross. Register here.

 

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: VALUED MEMBERS OF THE 21ST CENTURY WORKFORCE

Come to the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville) on Wednesday, May 3, from 3-4 p.m. as Robert B. Nicholas, Ph.D. of Tennesseeworks will present on the increasing number of the nation's leading employers have recognized the value of people with disabilities in meeting their workforce needs and have established disability recruitment initiatives. This presentation will provide information on:
Why hiring people with disabilities makes good business sense;
Examples of companies who have benefited from disability hiring initiatives;
Resources here in Tennessee that are available to assist employers with recruitment, training, and retention of jobseekers with disabilities.
RSVP to Amy.

 

PSCC SUMMER CAMPS

STEAM camps provide fun and exciting ways to introduce students to careers in science & technology on a college campus. $395 fee includes daily lunch and a t-shirt. All camp times are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Ages 10+. Register at pellissippi.campbrainregistration.com
Minecraft: Use math and technology to dive deeper into the game as you engage in modding techniques, understand what makes the game work and learn creative game design!
Videography: Mix creative artistry with technical skills for an action-packed experience as you record and edit film to create and produce your own powerful videos for a film festival finale!
Robotics: Explore the vast field of science and engineering through robotics as you conduct physics experiments and use your imagination to build a bot you'll take to a team competition!
Week 1&2: June 12-16/19-23, Blount County campus
Week 3&4: June 26-30/July 10-14, Hardin Valley campus

 

SIGN UP FOR NEXT SOFT SKILLS CLASS

Registrations are currently being accepted for a free soft skills session set for April 28 entitled "Time Management." You're busy, but how productive are you? Join us to learn effective strategies for managing your time and boosting your effectiveness at work.

All classes are conducted in the Blount County Library's learning lab located at 508 N. Cusick in Maryville and limited to 50 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.

 

JOIN THE BLOUNT COUNTY JOB FAIR

The Blount County Job Fair sponsored by Cirrus Aircraft and Pellissippi State Community College is coming to the Second Harvest Food Bank on Friday, May 19, 2017, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. If your business is interested in participating to hire new employees, email Claire for more details.

 

HOW TO MAXIMIZE YOUR CHAMBER MEMBERSHIP

Join us Tuesday, May 9 from 2-3:30 p.m. at the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville) for an opportunity to learn more about the Chamber and the many opportunities that go along with being a member. Learn how to make the most of the benefits afforded to you. RSVP to Amy.

 

SEND IN YOUR MAY MEMBER-TO-MEMBER

Please send in your May Member-to-Member promotions this week for the next email to be send out on May 1. With over 50 merchants participating, there's something for you. See what the Soup Kitchen is offering. Check out the member-to-member promotions. New offers are being posted almost daily, so check out the Blount County Chamber of Commerce Member-to-Member promotions online. This Member-to-Member Promotional Program 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 jmuir@blountpartnership.com. 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 to our member database.
3. All promotions will be posted on www.BlountChamber.com

 

DON'T BE A STRANGER

I know I've talked about how important it is to have a Facebook presence before. I should've expanded and explained that it is important to have a presence in all media outlets. As a consumer myself, when I see a website, blog, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and the last post is over 2 weeks old, I get a bad taste in my mouth for the company. Is that fair? Probably not. Are customers always fair? Definitely not. Read more

Learn more about marketing your small business in a digital world, ask questions about social media, and take the time to discuss future campaign ideas. What are you waiting for? It's free with your chamber membership. Schedule your FREE session today.

 

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.

 

REMEMBER TO SHOP LOCAL

Think local first + Buy local when you can = Being a local!

 

Customer service is more personalized, hands-on and noteworthy from smaller businesses.

 

Find what you're looking for in the Chamber Directory.

 

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

"Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In," released as a single by American R&B group The 5th Dimension was in the midst of a six-week run atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week in 1969. It is a medley of two songs written for the 1967 musical Hair. The song listed at number 66 on Billboard's "Greatest Songs of All Time."