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Barrett Sotheby's Summer Walk About Draws Hundreds
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The 2nd Annual Summer Walk About was a huge success, as over 400 hundred residents gathered at Veteran's Memorial Park to celebrate the beginning of summer. Held on the last day of school, under beautiful blue skies, Stacy & the Party entertained the crowd with their lively upbeat music. Chamber businesses offered activities, food and give aways to make the evening a fun filled evening for everyone. Many thanks to premier sponsor Barrett Sotheby's International Realty, Middlesex Community College, Red Heat Tavern, AFC, Short Stop Café Elite Freestyle Karate, Chip In Farm, Whole Foods, Learning Express and Bedford Children's Center for their participation as well as Sheena Santos, Daisy Girifalco, Alyssa Sandoval, Maria Porto and Carla Olson for planning such a spectacular event.
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Summer Promotions
& Plan for Your High Season
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Drum Up Business with Promotions
If summer is a slow season for your business, consider offering financial incentives to increase foot traffic. Don't just dive in with a wholesale across-the-board discount; instead, consider some of the following options:
- Discount Certain Products and Services - Test the market to see if you can shift slower selling products with a limited-time discount (say, for the month of July). Promote your offer to a select segment of your email list, perhaps those who haven't purchased from you for some time. Monitor the results. If the offer works, then consider extending it to other products and consumers next month.
- Package Promotions - Offer a discount if customers buy more than one product or service. For example, buy a coffee and a donut for $3.50 instead of $5.
- Off-Peak Specials - Many people have more flexible schedules during the summer months. Consider ways to draw people in during your off-peak hours, whether it's a time-bound discount or another incentive (free corkage, bring a friend for half price, or a free consultation).
Plan for Your High Season - Take the Pulse of your Market
Again, if summer is your slow season, use the time wisely and start planning your marketing activities for the rest of the year. Conduct market research to gauge what your customers think of your business and the products and services you offer. What could you do better/more of/change? Is there a certain product that they'd like to see you carry? Are there any market or demographic trends that might impact your business in the coming year? Market research doesn't have to cost much money; this blog explains some free resources that can help:
Conducting Market Research? Here are 5 Official Sources of Free Data That Can Help.
SBA's
SizeUp Tool can also help you benchmark your business against competitors, map your customers and locate the best places to advertise.
You can also use surveys to gauge customer buying and spending habits. Use this data to inform your product marketing strategy and any other changes you may need to make in your business before your high season starts.
The above is an excerpt from the article, "Grow Your Business This Summer - 7 Marketing Tips that Won't Break the Bank". For more information please visit www.sba.gov.
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EDCO Collaborative
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EDCO is an educational collaborative providing a variety of services to the surrounding community as well as our 17 member school districts in the Greater Boston area. Based in our recently renova
ted space in Bedford, EDCO boasts state of the art facilities for our students and clients. Our facilities are available for rent to local businesses and organizations for their retreats, staff meetings, or other gatherings. On-s
ite catering is provided. Contact us for more information and our competitive rates for facility rental and catering
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EDCO Collaborative offers high quality and cost-effective special education and a
lternative education programs to member and nonmember districts, and to at-risk students and adults across Massachusetts. Four programs are offered to meet the needs of EDCO districts to reach students with low incidence disabilities: EDCO Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, EDCO Partners Program, North Crossing Therapeutic Day School and EDCO North Crossing 45-Day Assessment Program.
EDCO's McSwiney Center for Professional Learning assists area school districts in strengthening their curriculum, instruction, leadership and professional development through high quality, low or no cost professional learning workshops, courses and roundtables. The McSwiney Center also provides adult and child-centered Community Education options.
EDCO partners with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to provide education options to migrant students and adults in Massachusetts. Through a grant from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, EDCO's Special Education Surrogate Parent Program appoints trained volunteers to act as special education decision-makers for students who have no parent or legal guardian.
With the Department of Developmental Services, EDCO provides related services for adult residents of the Wrentham Developmental Center. And, through a partnership with Boston Public Schools, the EDCO Youth Alternative program provides a full academic program and counseling for at-risk students in Boston.
For more information, visit edcollb.org.
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Bedford DASH Survey
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The DASH is looking for your feedback on our pilot transportation service. Whether you have ridden the DASH or not, we would like your feedback on this very brief survey at the following link:
http://app.keysurvey.com/f/1144080/f7c8/
This survey is also available in paper form on the DASH for riders who would prefer that. The survey will inform us on how the program is working and how we might improve the service going forward in the second year of the project.
If you are not yet familiar with the DASH, it is Bedford's pilot transportation service currently running Monday through Friday noon to 6PM, and available to all those who live and work in Bedford. The DASH is a 14 passenger fully handicapped-accessible vehicle that will travel throughout Bedford and also to Lexington, Billerica, and Burlington and to Concord on Mondays and Tuesdays. Fares are $2 for adults (ages 18-65) in town and $4 out-of-town; Medicare Card Holders, Veterans, disabled persons, seniors (age 65+), and youth (under 18) pay $1 in town and $2 out-of-town. Discounted prepaid ticket books valued at $25 are available for purchase of $20 from the driver or via the website.
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Can Your Business Wall Host a Local Artist ?
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The Culture and Arts Working Group had another productive meeting on May 24 discussing several initiatives to elevate Bedford's cultural and arts community to enliven Bedford places, gatherings, and business climate. The group has participants from the Bedford Cultural Council, Selectmen, Chamber of Commerce, First Parish, Planning Board, Bedford Arts and Crafts Society, BCA Photo Group, the Bedford Citizen, and local businesses and artists, and is being facilitated by Alyssa Sandoval, Bedford's Economic Development Director.
The working group discussed moving forward on several initiatives including:
- Community-wide utility box art program by local artists
- Commercial space for Local Artists
- Cultural and Arts Flyer
If your business would be interested in hosting wall or window space for local artists, please contact Alyssa Sandoval, Economic Development Director, at [email protected] or 718-275-1111. Hosting local art in your venue can be good for your business' visibility and helps to highlight local artwork.
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What the Chamber did in June?
How many of these events did you attend ?
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Board of Directors
Tee it Up Golf
Tewksbury Multi Chamber Networking
CSF Scholarship
2nd Annual Walk About
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WHO WANTS TO BE ON TV?
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We are so excited to offer our members
another
new FREE benefit!
We are partnering with o
ur friends at Bedford TV to produce a monthly show called CHAMBER CONNECTIONS
. In addition to promoting our events/activities, Chamber members will be interviewed providing great exposure for their business. The show will be broadcast on Public channel and also through their website. Contact the Chamber if you are interested in learning more.
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Check out your fellow Chamber members
AFC Urgent Care
Chestnut Dental
The Learning Express Toys & Play
_________________________________________________________________
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CHAMBER CALENDAR
July 11, 18,25,
Tee It Golf League
Patriot Golf Course
4:00 PM
email Josh Franklin for tee times
Red Heat Tavern
152 Great Road
Bedford, MA
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Welcome to Our New Members
36 Middlesex Turnpike
Bedford, MA
(781) 290-4923
AFC Urgent Care
Ametek
A Place for Words
Atlantic Capital
Baldwin Insurance
Barre 3
Barrett Sotheby's Realty
Baudanza Electric
Bedford Car Wash
Bedford Children's Center
Bedford Citizen
Bedford Family Connection
Bedford Farms
Bedford Florist
Bedford Funeral Home
Bedford Historical Society
Bedford Orthodontics
Bedford Research Foundation
Bedford VA Research Corp
Bernstein Development
Billerica Crossings
Brightview Billerica
Brookline Bank
Brown & Brown, P.C.
Callahans Karate Studio
Carlton Willard
Carlton & Duran, CPAs
Chestnut Dental
Christine Pinney Marketing
Cil Cangiano
Citizen's Bank
CouponSurfer, Inc.
Danielle Beck
Davidson Law
The Debbie Spencer Group
Doubletree Bedford Glen
DSA Publishing
Elite Freestyle Karate
EMD
Extend Barre Burlington
First Parish
Formulatrix
Fujifilm Microdiscs
Gorgeous.etal
Great Road Gallery & Framing
Hanscom Federal Credit Union
Harold Nichols Insurance Agency
Heritage Springs
Insperity
InConcert Web Design
Jesse's Pet Care
KB Jewelers
Kimberley Bee Design
Learning Express & Play
Leary Auto
Lincoln Liquors
Live Life Well
Mead Brothers
Merrill Lynch
Middlesex Savings Bank
Metller Toledo
Middlesex Community College
Middlesex Savings Bank
MITRE
New England Nurseries
North Road Chiropractic
OrganizingWorks
Patriot Pediatrics
Peter Quinn Insurance Agency
Primrose School
Quality Database Design
Quinstance
Red Heat Tavern
Right at Home
Salem Five
ServPro Bedford
Short Stop Cafe
The Goddard School
The UPS Store
The Well Effect
Waxy O'Connors
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