Chillicothe Ross Chamber of Commerce

Weekly Update   November 15, 2002

 

SPRINT PCS HOSTING BAB: Make sure you and your employees have marked Wednesday on your calendars for the next Business After Business. It will be held 5-7 p.m. at the Sprint Store on North Bridge Street. You are asked to enter at the rear of the store. And don’t forget to buy a raffle ticket, the proceeds of which benefit the chamber’s Pathfinders program.

 

DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO … Not San Jose, but Chillicothe and Ross County? While we are in the middle of advertising sales for our new map to come out next spring, we’ve got maps available here at the chamber office for our members who have the need from time to time to give maps to their customers or clients. If you’d like a few, stop by and pick them up.

 

A REAL RESOURCE: Trying to fight through the maze of government can be daunting at times, but you might want to check out the federal Small Business Administration website of www.sba.gov/sbasolutions. It’s a monthly newsletter that might have some tips for you. This month’s edition has “Discover 11 Ways to Find New Customers” and a special article for owners of downtown businesses.

 

SPONSORSHIPS STILL AVAILABLE: If you’d like your company’s name associated with a class event, you might want to consider again being a sponsor for the chamber’s 90th anniversary bash on Thursday, Dec. 12. This will be the BAB for that month. Already signed on are Etched in our Memories and Horizon Chillicothe Telephone. The sponsorship is $500.

 

IS YOUR BUSINESS A MATCH?: Small business owners are being given a unique chance to do business with the federal government. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Small Business Administration are sponsoring 15 nationwide procurement conferences around the nation to help small businesses obtain contracts with the federal government. To learn more, sign on to www.uschamber.com/events/matchmaking.

 

MORE VISITORS SHOULD EQUAL MORE BUSINESS: Lissa Cleary, the new executive director of the Ross-Chillicothe Convention and Visitors Bureau, is outlining her goals. “Our number one goal is to increase tourism knowledge of the area by targeted marketing,” she wrote. She plans for bureau staff to join organizations to make more contacts for the convention market and for it to coordinate a committee of hoteliers and venue coordinators to customize travel packages for potential group bookings. The bureau “is here to help market our community and your product by ‘selling’ our area as a unique adventure, worthy of overnight status.”

 

FOR YOUR BUDGETING PURPOSES: One forecast says employers will be keeping pay raises for next year under 3.5% on average.

 

DOWNTOWN OPEN HOUSE NEXT WEEKEND: The Downtown Associates has big plans ready for its annual open house next Friday through Sunday. It will have a distinctive historic flair you won’t want to miss. It kicks off at 6 Friday evening.

 

STATE’S TAXES RETARD GROWTH: At least that’s what the Ohio Chamber of Commerce and Ohio Development Director Bruce E. Johnson told the Ohio Committee to Study State and Local Taxes, according to an article in the Columbus Dispatch. The message was simple: Simplify and reduce taxes or companies will shun Ohio. State Tax Commissioner Thomas M. Zaino, who heads the panel, said any reduction in taxes would have to be offset to make up for revenues lost by local governments and schools.

 

COMPLETED THE SURVEY?: If you haven’t already completed the survey on the Boston Pops concert, it’s not too late. Just print it from our website, www.chillicotheohio.com, complete it and then fax it to the number listed.

 

GOOSETOWN IN CONCERT: Just another reminder that the Goosetown Astonishers will be in concert at the Smith Middle School gymnasium Saturday night at 8 as part II of the Area Artist Series. Tickets can be bought at the door.

 

DID YOU KNOW: In a new feature for this newsletter, we’ll try to bring you a demographic fact or two you’ll find interesting and maybe even usable. This week’s tidbit: Did you know, from the latest figures available, that 303 people commute to a Ross County job from Franklin County? Conversely, 1,407 Ross Countians commute to Franklin County for a job each day.

 

 

This newsletter goes weekly to more than 350 of the chamber’s members for whom we have e-mail addresses. If you have an item you’d like to include, e-mail Executive Director Marvin Jones at mjones@chillicotheohio.com. If you’d like to be omitted from this mailing, reply and ask to unsubscribe. To stay abreast of chamber activities, make sure to visit www.chillicotheohio.com frequently.