 and welcome to Love Where You Live, a monthly production of the Sheboygan County Chamber of Commerce. I'm Betsy Alice and I'm the Executive Director of the Chamber. Today we have three segments and in our first segment I've invited two very important people to join us, Paul Kuplik who is Vice President of Wisconsin Bank and Trust and Lindsay Harrison Irick who owns Engaged Social Media and the reason I say that these are really important people is that they are at the top of our core of volunteers called the Ambassadors. Historically Chambers of Commerce have always had this troop of people who are their face in the community who do some of the really hard work and the fun work and who make it valuable for our members to be part of the Chamber. So I've invited them here so they can talk about this a little bit this morning. Lindsay is what we call the Royal which means she is the top of the top, the creme de la creme of the Ambassadors for 2017 and Paul is next on deck or successor to the throne. He will be the Royal in 2018 so we've got the top folks here will take good advantage of their time. I think probably the Ambassadors are the busiest group. I know that they meet monthly. I know that they attend countless events and activities and they also commandeer some of those and make them into really special times for our members. So Lindsay I want to start with you and we can kind of chime in too because obviously we all know about the Ambassadors but what do you say about the role of an ambassador if you're recruiting a new person will you tell them? Our goal as Ambassadors are to welcome new members to the Chamber so when a new member joins between our core group of about 30 people that represent different businesses we go in and we attend ribbon cuttings and welcome them through emails and phone calls and just make sure that they have all the necessary tools in order to be successful as a Chamber member. Anything to add to that Paul? We're also very active in the community you've talked about ribbon cuttings a little bit and after our social events for helping the business community just connect with each other. Yeah it's a pretty it's a it's a big commitment that has a lot of tentacles. I can recall one event where the group got on the trolley and they're oh they always wear blue coats. They didn't have them today but they usually wear blue coats at the official events and we went around to businesses to drop off visitors guides and say hello and it was fun. We went to every community in well almost every community in Sheboygan County and I saw that as a pretty big part of the tradition is that core of blue coat people who are out there with a good smile on their face and a welcome. So yeah I think it's valuable and the other thing that I know that you do is when a new member joins you invite them to things such as a business after hours just because people don't feel comfortable immediately it takes a little bit of coaxing and cajoling and then they can become part of the group. So so how does one become an ambassador? Well this year we've become very streamlined in our process so we like to see someone involved in the chamber prior to either having them reach out to us or us reaching out to them to become an ambassador. So like I said we've got about 30 right now. You think the goal is always to increase that so that the more you have in your own network the more people that we know and hopefully gain more and more value for being a chamber member because it's always good to walk in the room and know people. It is. So right now that process has become kind of more of an interview where Paul myself and a few other members of the chamber staff will go in and make sure that they're the proper fit. From there if we feel like it's a proper fit they'll be invited to our upcoming ambassador meeting so they'll get to meet the whole group kind of see how a meeting is run and how everything functions and how all of us kind of communicate as a group. Everyone seems to get along really well. It's just a really natural fit. It's a fun group. Then we excuse them from the meeting and we vote on them as a group. Yeah it's very complicated stuff but yes. Has anyone ever said no? No I don't think so. You know when you're a volunteer I think it's always good that you just find the right fit for the group and a lot of people already know walking the door if they feel like they have the time and the resources to be able to to be part of this. And by then both parties kind of know the group knows and they know whether they really want each other to be part of this. Right. It helps to have either you know in Lindsay's case to be your own business owner or in my case to have a flexible employer that's willing to allow me to go out to these events. I mean because I'm taking time out of you know my daily routine and going to the ribbon cuttings or whatever events we have scheduled that day. So that's always helpful. Lots of them. How many ribbon cuttings? I think we thought 8 to 10 per month of things that we ideally like to be at. So that would be a ribbon cutting which happens for basically when a business expands or adds on or does something of that nature or a business after hours which one business hosts every month for two hours where everyone's welcome to attend. Open houses, groundbreaking, different things of that. So there's a lot of good things happening in Sheboygan County. So that keeps us busy which is great because you get to meet a lot of people and really get to be the face of welcoming people into our community. So why would someone want to be an ambassador? We get to wear really cool blue jackets. Is that it? I knew it. That's a good answer. Yeah, they're very professional looking. Yeah, they're fantastic. I mean honestly from from my personal perspective and and perhaps for Paul as well as you really get to meet new people that you may not have been able to meet if it were just in your day to day experiences. So that's been really interesting and fun is you get to connect with a lot of people and a lot of times they become your friends and you call them to to go out for cocktails after work or nice to go to lunch or to introduce them to another business. I mean it's it's truly all about the networking component of it and building relationships. So in our one minute that we have left I just want to put in a quick plug for the golf outing because I know that it's all hands on deck right now. It's September 13th is the golf outing at Kwikwiak. Well I think we have one for some left so if anybody out there in the listening audience or the viewing audience would well I guess it would probably be too late by then. But in any case always a success almost always a sellout and a lot of companies pitch in to make it a successful event. Tell me how much work it takes. It is definitely all hands on deck between donations and coordinating everything but the most special thing to me is that we are able to present $4,000 a year in scholarships. So I mean to be able to give back to the community and see everyone come together is fantastic. The work component of it I think is minor compared to what you see when these kids light up and they receive $2,000 in scholarships. Right. Well worth the time. And I do have to add too that there are other funds that go into other chamber programs for workforce development and Coastal and all of those kinds of things as well. So it's a big part of the chamber. I mean it's a big fundraiser for us so I thank you very much on behalf of our members and our board because that work is is spectacular. I'm watching it right now at our office every single day. So you'll be there tonight. Yeah, great. Hopefully there'll be pizza. I think so. There you go. Sounds like it. So I want to thank you both for coming in today and helping just educate people a little bit about what the ambassadors are, what they do, and I will tell you how valuable they are. Thank you Betsy. Thank you so much. I'm going to talk about an interesting program that the chamber offers a little brag time for us. It was about five years ago a couple of our volunteers came to me and asked if it would be possible for us to set up some kind of a referral networking kind of event that members could take advantage of. And I basically challenged them back. I said if you design something and bring it to me, we will try to make it happen. So five years later and five deep dive 1.5 opportunities. And now we have today. So I think we started with one. It went quickly to three. Then it became five. And and you know today I've invited a special guest, Lindsay Harris and Iric from Engaged Social Media is here. And Lindsay was probably one of the founding members of this group and some of the first groups that we established. So we're going to just talk a little bit about how it works. If it interests you, all you need to do is call the chamber and see how you can get involved. Our members pay nothing extra for this opportunity. So I find that to be probably one of its biggest selling points. But I think what goes on in these meetings is important. So Lindsay, welcome to the show. Thank you Betsy. Yeah. Lindsay is also a leader of our ambassador group at the Chamber. I I just want to talk a little bit about deep dive groups. I think the name came about because it was a way to establish relationships with other business people. A lot of them either running a business or being a sales representative for that business and kind of going deep with them. So why did you join initially? What pulled you and how did you find it at first? Yep. So I started my business about that same time that deep dive had come out. So I had been in business since 2013. And the Chamber was one of the first organizations that I knew that I had to join in order to network and meet people. So this had come up as an opportunity that was already included with my membership. And it was an hour and a half, two times a month for me to really get involved into network with other people. And the time that I joined, people weren't exactly sure on what social media was. So there was a lot of different, right? How far we've come. So that was an opportunity for me to go out and do my sales pitch and for people to go out into the community and really tell others about what engage tests to offer. And I felt like it was my mini sales force. So that was very nice. Yeah, that's exactly what I say to people when I promote it myself. Is it seems like you have kind of a built in sales force once you have created trust and knowledge about your company, then you have these other how many are in your group? It varies. I think there could be anywhere between 12 and 20 at any given time. So to be able to tell people about new and not becoming things and for them to expand their network. I mean, that's how all this goes, right? Is somebody knows somebody who knows somebody. So yeah, I think that it's doing exactly what it set out to do. Very nice. So I know I'd like you to just take us inside for a minute and pretend that we're all at a deep dive group sitting in the chamber conference room all around a big table. What happened? So deep dive and then it's called 1.5. So the 1.5 represents the hour and a half meeting that it is. So typically how it's structured is we would go in introduce ourselves, introduce our company, say something new that was happening since the last time that we met. Everyone in the room gets an opportunity to do so. And then we have a 10 minute presenter who is allowed to really dive into what they would like others to know about them. So they could do a personal type of presentation. They could do a company driven presentation. So it's really their time to shine. And after that, you've got an opportunity to go around the table again. And to say something new about perhaps an organization that you're part of that they have an upcoming event or they're fundraising for a particular thing. So it really is just truly trying to get the word out about things that are either happening in your life or in your company or in the community or in the community. That's a nice addition to it to I guess so that that group becomes you know, gathers around those kinds of events as well. Yes, I agree. Well, that's a really interesting. So you've been private five years. That means and it meets every other month. No, every other week. Yeah, excuse me. Yep. My particular group right now meets the second and fourth Thursday of the month during lunch. There's other groups that will meet before work. So a 730 until nine. And then there's also a group that meets after work from 430 until six. So the Chamber has really done a nice job trying to vary the time so that it fits into people's schedules where they feel like they're able to attend. As with anything, the more times that you attend, the more people get to know you, the more times that you really get to have your showcase in front of people. And it just goes from there. So that's the incentive to keep attending. Because the group becomes a little interdependent right at some point. I know when we started it, we talked about making it the 1.5 would also point to you'll stay in this group for about a year and a half. And then you can choose another group. Most people don't. Right. Most people want to stay with their original group. Right. And also one more point, the groups are made up of people in particular services or sectors. And we try not to duplicate that unless the group says it's okay. So in other words, if you have two real estate agents, and one is commercial and one is more residential, they may be able to work that out and it would be okay with the group to do that. But in some cases, if they're direct competitors, we'd find another group for them to be part of. Yeah, that's really nice thing is when you walk into the room, you typically don't have a competitor in there. And people are. But the nice thing about how it's all structured is that people really take pride in getting to know you and building a relationship so that they can refer you out and that they feel comfortable doing so because it's their name that's also on that referral. So the more times that you can attend and the better that you get to know people, just the more your relationship starts to build. I've always also said there's a member of the chamber. It's the glass coffee shop. And whenever I stop in there, I always notice that there are people after their deep dive groups who then convene there and meet one on one, just so that they can get to know each other better. And I think they also visit each other's businesses from time to time. Absolutely. Tours and visiting businesses and meeting other members of their company. I mean, like I said before, this is relationship building. So the more people you know, the more that you'll get out of it. Well, I can I can speak for Lindsay and saying that if if networking is the key, then that's the reason for her huge success with engaged social networking because it is I've watched this business grow and change and add services. And and every time you do that, you get to talk about that at one of the deep dive groups. Right. But also it's a matter to I think of plugging into the chamber, being part of the business after hours being part of the ambassadors as you have been being part of deep dive and then also now being on our board of directors. Yes. So thank you. Yeah. Lindsay's made quite a quite an effort at plugging into the community so that she can better her business and its reach. So thank you, Lindsay, for being with us this morning. Thank you. And I know we're going to be meeting with Sean Jackson from the chamber and talking a little more today about benefits. And that's one of them. So thanks a lot. Thank you. To love where you live. We now have in the studio Sean Jackson, who is the Community Relations Director for the Sheboygan County Chamber. I'm Betsy Alice. I am also with the chamber. Today we're going to just talk a little bit about we realized that a lot of times people don't know what the Chamber of Commerce does. What we do for your business, for example. So we're going to talk a little bit about that. And even if you're a member of the chamber, this might be enlightening for you as well, because there's just a lot of stuff to remember when you first joined. So Sean, welcome. Thank you. And Sean joined the chamber. Sean became an employee of the chamber in June on June 1st. Right about there. Yeah. This year. So he's definitely gotten up to speed very quickly and is building those relationships with our members. So he's the best person to talk to about joining the chamber. But today we're going to talk a little about what happens when you've already signed that dotted line. Exactly. So somebody joins the chamber and there's there's a lot that we go through and the chamber has so many events and benefits and ways that people can get engaged. Realistically, the first thing that's going to happen is we're going to give you access to our chamber website. And you're going to go in there and you're going to list the people that work for you. You're going to be able to link your Facebook page and your website and your Twitter account and whatever else you have on the social media side directly to our business directory on our shabuigan.org page. You know, so and then there's a new member meet and greet that comes up where we go in depth with with things. I mean, and the nice thing is that the staff at the chamber is very, very helpful if a member ever has any questions, concerns, needs help with anything very reactive, whether it's somewhat up front or me or whomever. Yeah, let's go back to the website just for a minute because I love one aspect of it too. And that is that they all have what we call the upgraded option for their website page within our website. And they can put videos there and photos there and we strongly encourage it because people click on that people go to find certain types of businesses and they will find you that way. Right. Well shabuigan.org. I mean, first of all, think about it. I mean, that is the number one website of somebody is looking to do something in Shabuigan County. Visit here. If they live here looking for a service, you know, I mean, thousands and thousands of clicks per month. I was looking at a business the other day where in a six month period, they had 158 views just to their directory page. So someone come to shabuigan.org. There's a business directory. They'll look up, say restaurants. That's what this category was at the time. And so there's 158 times in six months that people came to shabuigan.org went to their business directory. And the neat thing is because they had their website link to it, there were 90 people of those 158 that click through directly to their website. So that is a huge benefit from a referral standpoint. That's one example. Exactly. And you know, and the interesting thing is I talked to a lot of our members. They don't know those behind-the-scenes things that we do, you know. So referrals. Yes. I mean really that's, especially if you're a, you know, a small medium business that does a lot of retail, referrals are really one of the biggest reasons that someone is going to join the chamber. Constant phone calls. People walking in. Yeah, you know, I mean, so lots of different types of referrals like I already mentioned the website, but our staff. So you have people coming in the chamber office every single day, especially visitors asking for this or that. Inside the office we have all of the brochures and materials that any of our members want to put in there for their services. A lot of phone calls. We field so many phone calls every single day of people asking where can they go for this or what's a good restaurant or where can I buy this. You know, so we probably have several hundred a month of phone calls just for that. And quite honestly, you know, another benefit of someone joining the chamber that people don't think about is how joining a chamber of commerce boosts, boosts their credibility and boosts their reputation. I know you have some statistics. Yeah, you know, I mean it's pretty, I love statistics, but you know, so soon as someone joins the chamber they get a 28% boost increase in favorability. Okay, they get a 55% increase in consumer awareness, obviously because we put a lot of, you know, information out there, and then a 53% increase in local reputation. Those are tremendous boosts. I mean, you know, because when you look at buying something or utilizing a service, you really want to be able to buy or use the service of someone you trust. And I think what the chamber does is it gives them that credibility and that built-in trust factor, because if we have a member that joins and we refer people to it, we kind of help each other, hold each other accountable to be a good, you know, retailer. And the other part is the awareness and trust building that goes on at networking events, like business after hours. Yeah, the business after hours is pretty neat. Once a month we have that. One of our business members will host it and it's a really nice social networking aspect. And we have anywhere from 50 to 200 people, depending on the time here in the venue, it's free to our members, you know, so you can come in and usually there's orders. And that's a big deal. By the way, because I don't even have to eat dinner that way. I know. I mean. We had the last one we had was out at Amore in Plymouth. It's connected to Antonio's and Antoinette's, and they have a big catering hall, which is Amore, and they put out, you know, their famous fried chicken and mac and cheese, and it was awesome. Yeah. And then they usually have a free beer and wine. So, you know, it's the social networking is something I really, really enjoy, because that's when you get to know people. You build those connections. And again, if you're an engaged chamber member, take an advantage of these benefits and getting, you know, the networking out there and getting your name out there, you're going to grow your business. And one other point I want to make that I think business is in this as well, especially those who have employees, is that their employees can attend these events as well. Correct. So if you can't come, fine, but you can also send other people along the way. So I think that's really an important factor. Exactly. And it's just really just, you know, I want our members to engage, call me, Sean at shabuigan.org. It's my email or call the chamber office. And talk to me, because I really want to help them succeed. And we have so many ways for them to to get engaged and succeed in their business. Yeah, I agree. I think, you know, they may be tentative at first. And I also noticed that at our business after hours, we try to take care of the new folks who come in, you know, try to make some introductions for them, get them out on the floor a little more. You know, I tend to be somewhat introverted. I know that's hard to believe. But I remember when I initially joined a chamber back in, I won't say the year when I had a business and it was a little intimidating to attend those events. But I think the ambassadors do a really nice job. The ambassadors are making those introductions. Yeah, the ambassadors do an awesome job. And again, all the chamber staff, myself included, I think we're very we're vested in wanting to see our members succeed and getting them connected with one another is a huge way to do that. I mean, the referrals, me personally, my family and friends already know if we're going to go out and do something, they pretty much know I'm not going to a place that's not a chamber member. Right. And I'm the same way. I have operated the same way. And they actually do it on their own now. It's like, hey, Sean, are these guys chamber members? Well, yes. Oh, and you bring to me to another point, chamber cash. Oh, that's as a final. That's a really important one to talk about. That is true. I am amazed. Like I said, I've been here a little over five months and we sell over $300,000 worth of chamber cash chamber cash that you can purchase in our office or even at festival foods. And it's a check and they can take it to any retailer and use it just like cash. They hand the check in if it's twenty five dollar chamber cash and it's twenty dollars, they'll get five dollars back because the member gets that. But the neat thing is of that three hundred thousand dollars, we have about two hundred and ten, two hundred fifteen chamber members that that money has to be spent at. Right. So it definitely promotes local purchasing. Exactly. Right. Exactly. A nice benefit. Very nice. Yep. Exactly. Well, thanks. I know we left some things out. And we also can talk about sometime in the future about members in other sectors and the benefits that they receive. But this is a great start for those small businesses who are looking to make connections. Yep, it is. Thank you very much for being with us today.