by Keith Larson
In its simplest form, a chamber of commerce is a form of business network – a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses and advocate on behalf of the business community. According to Wikipedia, The first chamber of commerce was founded in 1599 in Marseille, France. The oldest English-speaking chamber of commerce is New York City, established in 1768.
The Murrieta Chamber has been active since 1915, while Temecula’s was officially founded in 1966. All are dedicated to providing opportunities for its members and guests to network, promote the community, and be the voice for business before government. What can a COC do for me? Some business owners don’t join their chambers or don’t renew their memberships because they fail to see the benefits. Typically they attend a mixer or two, don’t see any increase in business and so decide it isn’t worth it. This more likely reflects the person’s lack of networking skills, which can be improved, ironically, by attending a chamber workshop, Power Networking presented quarterly at the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce. There are also excellent books on the subject, e.g., Make Your Contacts Count by Anne Baber and Lynne Wayman. Here are just some of the programs our local chambers have going:
ü Store openings and ribbon-cutting events
ü Monthly mixers provide networking opportunities
ü Monthly Networking Breakfasts – In Murrieta grab the microphone and tell them about yourself and your business
ü Workshops. Temecula’s June workshops are focused on increasing sales. Murrieta offers workshops on different topics on the 4th Tuesday of each month, free to members and just $15 to non-members.
ü Yearly Mega Mixer: Murrieta invites seven Chambers and their entire membership to network, including Fallbrook, Temecula, Menifee, Wildomar, Lake Elsinore & Canyon Lake Chambers.
ü Business directories provide a listing of all chamber members.
ü Southwest California Legislative Council is a coalition of Temecula Valley, Murrieta, Lake Elsinore and Wildomar chambers that lobbies local, state and federal governments on local business issues.
ü Shop Murrieta First is a cohesive, citywide campaign which highlights Murrieta’s local small businesses and utilizes ‘Murrieta Bonus’, ‘Co-op Marketing’ and Merchant Consulting programs to entice shoppers to make their purchases with Murrieta merchants.
Free business counseling is provided by SCORE and SBDC. You don’t have to be a member (or even own a business) to take advantage of this great service. To schedule a free appointment call 951-781-2345 (Temecula) or 951-677-7916 (Murrieta).
Keith is one of 30 experienced volunteers providing FREE business counseling in the Inland Empire. To make an appointment e-mail k.larson@%20cox%20.net“>k.larson@ cox .net or score503@netzero.net“>score503@netzero.net. Or visit the SCORE website at http://www.inlandempire.scorechapter.org/