It’s time for a change. After running the office and getting out this newsletter for the last 8 years, I have decided to slow down and have gratefully turned over the office duties to a newer, younger (and prettier) person. May I introduce Jill Konopka. Jill graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1997 with a BA in Communications. Right after graduating from college, she went to work for IKON Office Solutions as an Executive Assistant for five years before moving to work as an Office Manager at Axsys Technologies, an Aerospace and Defense Company. Jill is now Your Chamber Connection’s new Office Manager. Jill resides in Connecticut and is married with two cats and a yellow lab. Her hobbies are hiking, traveling and reading. Jill can be reached by fax at 860/529-4530, or by emaill at yccjill@netzero.com

Jill is much more organized than I will ever be and immediately becomes an asset to YCC. As disorganized as I am, I will still be producing this newsletter and maybe occasionally personally emailing you about some Chamber specialty items. Thanks, Macy Deitchman

QUESTIONS DEPT: Lorraine, where does Jimmy get his suits? I get that question at every Event, and yes, neither Melissa or I accept any credit! Jimmy has found a number of “Zoot Suit” shops around the country in 4 states. He tries to drop in to all of them as he travels to see what’s new and what’s hot. They all know (according to Jimmy) that he has an image to project and they keep his size in stock.

When traveling to a Chamber for an Event or a meeting, he will wear one of his trademark suits. (You should see the smiles on the employees at the airports he usually uses. They now will critique his clothes and let him know their favorites.) If he’s traveling for pleasure, he’s a Nike freak and will wear all Nike apparel.

Lorraine, why is your company so successful? Is it because of what I do? Yes, partly. Is it because of what Jimmy does? Again yes, partly. Is it because of what the office contributes? Yes, partly. It is all of this because of the system and program we have put together that makes it work.

From the time the office sends in a proposal, has some of your board members check references, and hires us to be your membership partner, we all start to work for you. We work on the assumption that you can eat a whole elephant but only if you eat it one bite at a time.

You are sent a control book to get the information out to you. We visit you 3 or 4 times to explain how we work and to get things rolling. I usually get with you first to do a pre-Event explaining exactly what will happen and why. Then on the second visit (usually me again) I work with your chair people on the how’s and why’s. Jimmy then comes out to work with the team leaders and prep them for success and fun. Finally we both come out to facilitate the actual Event during the Event week. During

this period, we spend all of our time working for your success and making sure the volunteers come out of

their session having had a good time and having acquired more knowledge about their Chamber. During all of this, our office is making sure your staff is not swamped with an excess of paperwork that will take them away from their other important duties.

RETENTION DEPT: Getting Small Businesses Involved; A Great Idea Working in Joplin, Missouri: During one of our Small Business Council meetings, all of us were trying to think of some way we could get more small businesses involved in what the Chamber does. Our membership totals around 1144 members. Of this number 956 members employ 50 or less. Our First Friday Coffees and Business After Hours are great successes. However, we don't see very many of the small businesses because many of them just don't have either the time or manpower to do anything but work their business. So we decided to take the party on the road to them. At the time, our chairman had envisioned some type of "Oscar Meyer Weiner" mobile traveling around town visiting our members. Luckily for our membership, we have a great small business council who took the weiner mobile concept and turned it into Manic Monday (song by the Bangles).

Every month I draw from the hat of our small businesses. They have to employ 50 or less, and never have hosted a FFC or BAH, and I really try to make sure it's someone we don't see. I call the business and explain the program and see if they're interested. Most of them have been. We bring the food and the people. They just have to be prepared to tell everyone in attendance what they do....now who doesn't like to do that? If they agree, I assign the business to one of our SBC people. They have a questionnaire and go visit the business, making them feel more involved. Plus the business feels as if one more business person has taken an interest in what they do. The only people who know where we're going are: me, the SBC person, the place of business, the caterer, and a local radio station personality who travels with us and does a brief remote at the business.

Everyone who is going meets at the Chamber office no later than 7:45 a.m. At this time, the SBC person who was assigned the business tells everyone where we're going and something brief about the business. We load up in the Manic Monday Mobile with those driving their own vehicles travelling behind us. Since we've started, we have purchased flags that people place on their car windows that say "Manic Monday. " Besides our bus, we have about 8-12 vehicles following in a caravan effect behind the bus. It looks cool! We also have the bus wired to play both inside and outside the song, Manic Monday. We arrive at the business, and unload. The SBC person introduces the owner who proceeds to tell everyone about his business. We mingle for a short while, say our thanks, and head out. We usually stay only 20-30 minutes.

We then go and do what I consider the most fun: we make 3 unscheduled visits to other small businesses on our way back to the office. All of us get out and take either donuts or cookies to each business. The look on their faces is priceless. They have 20-30 other chamber members coming in to say, "Hi, we're glad you're a Chamber member and, we're here if you need us." Then we leave. These businesses don't know we're coming and so far have been SO surprised at our visit. The other day we stopped at a business which had been a member since 1978, and none of us had ever seen their people at anything!!!!!

Our visits are the 2nd Monday of every month. Based on the questionnaire that the SBC has completed by the business, a write-up is placed in our monthly newsletter. The program has been relatively easy to do. So far we've had about 20-40 people at each Manic Monday. This thrills the small business, and it's fun, fast and easy for the host business to do. It reaffirms to them that even though we may not get to see them at the networking events, we appreciate their membership and wish them the best.

Our board thinks it's an excellent idea and wants us to eventually do Manic Monday more than once a month. During small business week, we'll take the bus out every day. Our goal is to visit 10-20 businesses a day during that week.

Mary Pat Robbins, Small Business Manager, Joplin Area CofC.

(Ed. Note; Mary tells me that they even sell sponsorships for logos on the bus. If you have any questions, please give Mary a call at 417/624-4150. Retention works in Joplin!)

EVEN MORE RETENTION FROM JIMMY DEPT: The important word in the Chamber industry (and this issue,) is “Retention.” I truly believe that during the Events we facilitate, we need to focus first on the volunteer that brought in a new member, before worrying about retaining that new member.

I have heard people say in the past, “All I hear is retention of the new member. What about the existing member?” That’s easy! In a YCC Event, we focus on those working the Event as well as the new members they brought in.

How? In our Events you will see and hear the volunteers on the teams telling the Chamber story the correct way to potential members which is not just reading a prepared script like the telephone solicitors do when they call you at dinnertime. The correct way is with enthusiasm from a knowledgeable volunteer that is excited about his Chamber, the Chamber benefits he receives, and the Chamber benefits the potential new member could also receive. Our Event volunteers have a fun time during the Event, learn a lot about their Chamber, and pass on this knowledge and enthusiasm to the people they are calling. Our Event volunteers sell the Chamber the correct way (with no outrageous promises) and walk away from the experience of the dreaded membership drive excited about the Chamber organization and what it stands for.

That’s retention! Want to know more? Contact me at 214/789-9399, Lorraine at 817/909-0112, the office at 800/678-6241, or pull up our web site at www.chamberconnect.com/clients to talk to any of our Chamber clients.

OUR KIDS DEPT: A first grade teacher collected well known proverbs. She gave each child in her class the first half of a proverb and asked him/her to come up with the remainder of the proverb. It's hard to believe these were actually done by first graders. Their insight may surprise you. While reading, these keep in mind that these are first graders..., "6" year-olds, because the last one is classic!

>Better to be safe than...punch a 5th grader.

>Strike while the ...bug is close.

>It's always darkest before...Daylight Savingc Time.

>Never underestimate the power of...termites.

>You can lead a horse to water but...how?

>Don't bite the hand that...looks dirty.

>No news is...impossible.

>A miss is as good as a...Mr.

>You can't teach an old dog new...math.

>If you lie down with dogs, you'll...stink in the morning.

>Love all, trust...me.

>The pen is mightier than the...pigs.

>An idle mind is...the best way to relax

>Where there's smoke, there's.. pollution.

>Happy the bride who...gets all the presents.

>A penny saved is...not much.

>Two's company, three's...the Musketeers.

>Don't put off till tomorrow what...you put on to go to bed.

>Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and.....you have to blow

your nose.

>There are none so blind as...Stevie Wonder.

>Children should be seen and not...spanked or grounded.

>If at first you don't succeed,...get new batteries.

>You get out of something only what you...see in the picture on the box.

>When the blind leadeth the blind...get out of the way.

>And the favorite: Better late than...pregnant!!!!