TREASURE THIS COFFEE CLUB

Join us December 12 from 7:45-9 a.m. for the final coffee club of 2019 at Treasure's Jewelers in Maryville's Foothills Mall.

Wake up to new business contacts at coffee club. 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.

 

 

SAVE THE DATE FOR CHRISTMAS OPEN HOUSE

Put December 11 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. in your calendar and join us for the Blount Partnership Christmas Open House (201 S. Washington St., Maryville). It's the staff's way to thank all the members for their support. Food is prepared by the staff along with a visit from Santa and photos by Jamie Weiss Photography and her Gigglebox photo booth.

 

 

MAXIMIZE YOUR MEMBERSHIP

If you're new to the Chamber or just want to know more about your membership, then join us January 9 from 2-3 p.m. at the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville) as Tammi Ford will explain your benefits and the many opportunities that go along with membership.

Then, join us for the first Afternoon Mixer of 2020 at First Horizon (1820 W. Broadway, Maryville) from 3:45-5 p.m. to gain exposure for your business or organization.

 

VOLUNTEERS NEEDS FOR GIFT WRAPPING

Habitat for Humanity's gift wrapping booth at Foothills Mall is now open until December 24. The booth is located near the interior entrance to Belk. Click here for volunteer shift times and more information or contact Celeste Elias (865) 982-8717. For group reservations, email: celeste@blounthabitat.org

 

LAST WEEK TO GET PLACEMENT IN 2020 BASICALLY BLOUNT

The 2020 Basically Blount lifestyle magazine and membership directory is entering production once again. This annual, full-color lifestyle magazine and chamber membership directory is initially distributed to all Chamber members starting Feb. 2020, along with distribution four times throughout the year via area professional offices, newcomers, visitors, and new businesses all looking to relocate to Blount County.

We are pleased to offer a variety of advertising opportunities at cost effective rates through our media kit. We have contracted with Marcon Marketing Consultants, a local Chamber member, to handle production and ad sales.

If you would like to learn more about the benefits of Basically Blount, the importance of supporting the Chamber, and how to get your business involved, contact: Rick Ford of Marcon Marketing at 865-705-8580 or Vicki Hawkins of Marcon Marketing at 865-310-2963

 

THE ISSUE: THE LACK OF SOFT SKILLS

The Solution: Greg Coker's Soft Skills Boot Camp

This seminar, held January 24, 2020 at the UT Conference Center, 600 Henley St. 4th Floor in Knoxville from 8:30 a.m.-noon, provides a powerful message about the necessary skills that will lead to increased employee effectiveness while boosting a company's productivity, retention and customer satisfaction. Seminar topics will include: image, importance of strategies, creativity, communications, project management, problem-solving skills, customer service, teamwork, conflict resolution, exceeding expectations and leadership

This powerful workshop is designed to accomplish THREE THINGS:
1. Define the gap in employees Soft Skills
2. Build the training for improving Soft Skills
3. Provide easy-to-understand tools to help

Topics covered: Leading/Following; Managing; Employee Engagement; Emotional Intelligence; Customer Satisfaction; Coaching; Change; Teamwork; Culture; Problem-Solving; Organizational Dynamics

Register today www.tnchamber.org, Click on Events and the date of workshop. Fees are $125 for TN Chamber members and $175 for Non-members.

 

CREATIVE AND AFFORDABLE WAYS TO FIND AND KEEP TALENT

Finding and keeping talent continues to be the top challenge of many organizations. Learn the basics of total rewards, the psychology behind the concept, and explore and uncover alternative methods for recognizing and rewarding employees without breaking the bank. Make plans to attend our next Success in 90 Seminar on Wednesday, January 8th from 8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. at the Blount Partnership. The topic will be "Total Rewards: Creative and Affordable Ways to Find and Keep Talent" by Kurt Greene of Vistage.

Register online for this January 8, 2020 seminar held at the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville) from 8:30-10 a.m.

 

SMART TRIPS WANTS TO HELP YOUR BUSINESS BECOME A BEST WORKPLACE

Best Workplaces for Commuters (BWC) is an innovative membership program that provides qualified employers with national recognition and an elite designation for offering outstanding commuter benefits. Employers and developments that meet the National Standard of Excellence in commuter benefits can get on the list of Best Workplaces for Commuters. The application deadline for the 2020 BWC list is December 30, 2019.

Smart Trips has partnered with Best Workplaces for Commuters to encourage employers to apply for this national recognition opportunity. Our program would love to cover the application fee ($230 value) for our Chamber's members. If you know of any members interested, please let them know this is available until the application deadline.

For more information about the application process, please visit our website.

 

SIGN UP FOR THE DECEMBER SOFT SKILLS CLASS

It's Your Career! That's the focus of a free soft skills session offered in partnership by the Blount County Public Library, the Adult Education Foundation of Blount County and the Blount County Chamber of Commerce.

Registrations are currently being accepted online at www.blountchamber.com for a class entitled Creating Infographics for Promoting Your Business on December 13. Learn the basics of what makes a good infographic and explore free tools for making them.

All participants will earn .5 CEUs per session for participating. They will also receive an email survey two months after workshop participation to assess application of new ideas.

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

 

PROTECT YOUR IDENTITY

Take advantage of your Blount Chamber discount and protect you, your family and employees by enrolling in IDShield. IDShield monitors identity from every angle and alerts you to status changes immediately. It can also help restore your identity if it has been compromised. LEARN MORE

 

YOU CAN POST YOUR OWN MEMBER-TO-MEMBER DEALS

Blount Chamber members can now post their own Member-to-Member deals on this page at no charge. Simply login to your account, Click on the "New Coupon" button, fill out the form and click save. It's that easy.

Click here if you need access to your login information.

Of course, we will be happy to add your coupon. Just email information about the product or discount you'd like to offer to the Chamber membership to jmuir@blountpartnership.com. Be sure to include an expiration date.

View the latest deals.

 

REMEMBER TO SHOP LOCAL

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

 

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 or any good news about your business, please send it to us. We'd love to share it with the community.

 

REMEMBER WHEN

Topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week in 1990 was "Because I Love You (The Postman Song)" by Stevie B. It remained there for four consecutive weeks. In August 2018 Billboard ranked the song the 71st-biggest hit in the history of the Hot 100.