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4A Daily News – Wednesday, September 5, 2012 Commerceenterprise business Innovate North State announced Friday that U.S. Bank has made a $75,000, 3-year financial commitment to Innovate North State as a Founders' Circle Investor. As part of its investment, U.S. Bank will become an active participant in helping to grow the regional economy, with a special emphasis on supporting Innovate North State's manufacturing initiatives, including Title Sponsor of the inaugural Manufacturing RePatria- tion Summit in Q1 of 2013, and Indus- try Champion of the Manufacturing and Consumer Products Special Industry Group. "It is a tremendous honor to have one of the premier banking institutions in the United States come on board as a Founders' Circle Investor and make such a meaningful, multi-year com- mitment," said Steve Gonsalves, chair- man of the Innovate North State Board of Directors. Robert Staton, U.S. Bank vice pres- ident and district mManager for the North Valley District, will join the Innovate North State Board of Direc- tors. & Bank to be title sponsor of summit Roundtable for non-profits As an outgrowth of agencies participating in Com- munity Action Agency's Capacity Building Acade- my, it has been decided to form a nonprofit round- table. The roundtable will be held noon Friday, Sept. 14 at Los Gordos Taqueria, 200 S. Main St. in Red Bluff. It is anticipated that by working collaboratively, programs will be able to address areas of common concern such as volunteerism, board development, fund raising, using social media, sharing resources, training needs and marketing. All Tehama County nonprofit, faith-based, or edu- cational programs are invited to attend this meeting to: • Determine the interest for a collaborative organi- zation • Identify a potential organizational structure • Establish interim leadership • Brainstorm possible collaborative areas • Schedule future meetings Tehama Together has volunteered to call this inau- gural meeting. For information, suggestions or clarification call Orle Jackson at 736-5200 or send an email to ojack- son@tehamatogether.org. "It is exciting to be a part of the acceleration of innovation and growth within our region," Staton said. "Our communities are impacted by manu- facturing, technology, and growth hap- pening throughout the nation and this is an opportunity to localize this growth and leverage the amazing resources, innovators, and entrepre- neurs of our communities." Manufacturing work formerly out- sourced to other countries is beginning to return to the United States. Innovate North State is leading this national cause by hosting the inaugural Manu- facturing Repatriation Summit in the beginning of 2013 at the nationally- renowned Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California. U.S. Bank will serve as the title sponsor of this cutting-edge forum which will take place in the prestigious Sierra Nevada Big Room, one of the most elegant facilities in all of non-metro- politan California. The Manufacturing Repatriation Summit will explore the many oppor- tunities associated with in-sourcing manufacturing in today's economic environment, as well as showcasing the manufacturing excellence found throughout California, particularly in the North State. According to Innovate North State Managing Director Bob Linscheid, who also serves as chair- man of the 23-campus California State University system-wide Board of Trustees, "our vision for the Summit is to secure participation from at least 10 major American-based companies with a global manufacturing presence and have them consider bringing home to California, and especially the North State, at least one component of their overall manufacturing. We will facili- tate this process by orchestrating one- on-one meetings with owners or key executives of the Summit's featured small business manufacturers with key representatives on hand from the major corporations — with a goal of getting real deals done." Courtesy photo Good Morning, Red Bluff was hosted Aug. 30 by Ide Adobe State Historical Park. Reasons to be a chamber member marketing options and infor- mation overload I'm often asked by new and existing business owners for a sim- ple, inexpensive way to increase their local visibility and marketing efforts to pro- duce more opportunities and sales. Without a doubt, I always ask a stunningly sim- ple question, Are you a member of your local cham- ber of commerce? I get one of three answers: Yes, No, but tell me more In a world loaded with and We used to be a mem- ber. Now I know every per- son has opinions but I'd like you to take a moment to read this brief article to dis- cover seven reasons why I strongly feel that every busi- ness and non-profit organi- zation should be a member of their local chamber regardless of the size of their organization, marketing budget, years in business, or even if they've heard or pos- sibly had a negative cham- ber experience in the past. In light of the current chal- lenges in the economy, this article is even more relevant than when I first wrote it two-years ago. 1. Visibility. Yes, you've heard it said time and time again, that out of sight means out of mind. This is not a smart strategy for any business, especially when times are good. A market can change quickly. As Jim Collins says, good is the enemy of great. This is a great statement, but I'd like to add to it as it relates to marketing. While good is the enemy of great, compla- cency and short term think- ing is the enemy of sus- tained marketing break- throughs. Let's look at a real world example of chamber com- placency in action. Having worked with hundreds of chambers throughout North America, I'm simply baffled that within many communi- ties how few real estate agents and automotive sales reps are either non-existent or barely active within their local chamber. In these two highly competitive and crowded markets you'd think these folks would do anything to stand out from the competition and fully leverage the chamber to get an edge. Nope. It's as if they have no idea the local cham- ber exists and how it can benefit their business. 2. Access. Unless you're crazy or like consistent rejection, no one enjoys making cold calls all day long. It's a painful, tedious process that often wastes far too much time and mentally drains even the most upbeat and friendly person after a while. When you join a chamber and actively get involved you'll discover that meeting prospects who may have an interest or who can refer you to key contacts you're trying to reach, is a huge benefit of member- ship. From being on com- mittees, serving as an ambassador, or attending specific events where prospects are likely to be, you'll find yourself in situa- tions where you can identify and meet decision makers face-to-face versus making cold calls. 3. Ongoing training and education. Unless you have the luxury of a training bud- get or can afford to bring in local, regional or nationally known experts on different topics, I firmly believe that there's no other organization in America that delivers timely programs at such an affordable price as the local or regional chamber of com- merce. By spreading costs among fellow members through registration fees and sponsorships, members can stay updated, informed and educated at a bargain price. The old adage, out of sight, out of mind, is so true when it relates to network- ing. The chamber gives your several different venues to meet new people. My entire career I've utilized the power of networking in my home chamber's ranging from serving as co-chair of the ambassador league to sponsoring and speaking at different events. The posi- tive outcomes on the bottom line and great people I've met have been great. In addition, doing business with fellow member who offer wonderful products, services, and ideas has also been a big plus. 5. Low cost advertising opportunities. As far as visi- bility at the local level, a chamber offers a wide range of affordable advertising options and sponsorship packages for just about every business or non-profit, regardless of how big or small their budget may be. I've bought and sold tradi- tional media and I can tell you it's not cheap. For the price of a few ads within a major media outlet, you can often sponsor an entire pro- gram with the chamber, give a short commercial about your company, meet new prospects and follow up with the list of attendees 4. Networking. From seminars, leads groups, lun- cheons to business expos and various business and community committees, there's absolutely no excuse for not being able to meet new contacts, referrals and peo- ple who can help you with ideas and addition- al ways to grow your business. who may have a need for your offering. This is a won- derful way to hold your mar- keting dollars accountable and see them working hard right before your eyes. A common area to get low cost or free advertising is sub- mitting updates or news briefs for pos- sible inclusion within the chamber "Member community. News' section of the newsletter or eletter. Amaz- ingly, a lot of members do not take advantage of this wonderful free marketing opportunity provided with their membership. The chamber is always on the lookout for member related news. I make it a goal to get over a small news update or announcement at least every two to three months to my local chambers because I know many times it will get printed and read by key peo- ple in the business commu- nity. 6. Advocacy. A foolish belief among large compa- nies, especially national retail outlets, is that they're too big or not local enough to care about getting involved or joining their local chamber of commerce. A few things they should think about: Are their employees and customers local? Are taxes and school systems important to finding and retaining a high quality work force? These are key areas that the chamber researches, lobbies and rou- tinely discusses with local and regional government units, politicians and the media to keep people up to date on central issues of importance pertaining to their membership and the What happens to your local employees and cus- tomers does have an impact on your business even if you're a national chain. In addition, missing out on net- working, sponsorship and other business building news and benefits, I think it looks incredibly tacky if four or five local businesses are active in the chamber and a national firm in the same market area won't even join. In my mind this sends an incongruent mes- sage to the market when the national company claims to be 'a good corporate citizen' but they won't join and get involved with their local chamber of commerce. 7. Money saving dis- counts. If you fully leverage the cost saving discounts ranging from health insur- ance, office supplies, to dis- counted phone service to other items your business currently uses or will need, it's not uncommon for a small business to easily find enough savings in the first 30-60 days upon joining with endorsed providers or member to member dis- counts to recoup most, if not all of their membership dues. Being a small business owner, I can attest to the fact that being a member of the chamber and shopping around for discounts and services available makes joining achievable for any company regardless of how limited their marketing bud- get may be. By Tony Rubleski, a bestselling author and the president of Mind Capture Group. For additional information, visit: www.MindCaptureGroup. com. Come Join Us for a Fun Filled Family Day Be prepared. Have your car AC serviced. repair, custom paint and matching 35 E7DH;57 EB75;3> "'//5 Auto repair and refinishing, glass +refrigerant, (134A) 530.527.6160 • 915 Madison St., Red Bluff Red Bluff Collision It's heating up outside. Pre-register for a time slot 1 Free DVD per child 30 spots available 528-8000 FREE for kids try your hand at Gold Panning & Metal Detecting Sat., Sept. 8th 11am-2pm www.redbluffgoldexchange.com Gold Exchange EVERYONE'S A WINNER facebook.com/redbluffgoldexchange