5 Ways the Chamber Can Make Your Professional Life Easier

We’re all so busy these days. That’s part of the reason life hacks are so popular. But did you know one of the best professional life hacks is chamber membership? Here’s what you can get out of it to help you do more for your business or professional life with less:

Professional Advice

When you need assistance in business, either to take your business to the next level or maybe you’re thinking about selling your business, the chamber can help. There is no other better-connected business organization in your community. They know the professionals dedicated to your type of business problem and can place you in touch with them. The chamber can also provide assistance when you’re not even sure what kind of business acumen you need because it’s likely they’ve seen similar issues before.  

A New Job

Because the chamber is connected to so many businesses in town, they often know of openings before they are officially announced. They also are aware of businesses that are coming to the area. From job knowledge of what employers want to making introductions, if you’re searching for a job there’s no better place to get involved than with your local chamber.

Applicable Business Learning

If there’s a skill you’re interested in picking up, you can go onto the Interwebs and look around. Maybe you can find a teacher or a mentor virtually, but chances are they don’t know the economy of your town or the obstacles or positives in your community. Plus, when you’re using online learning you never know if it will be worth your time and money.

The chamber offers business learning that is personalized to your community. They offer reasonable rates and local expertise. Learning through the chamber is affordable and improves your networking as you’re doing it.

Building an Audience

Who has time to build an audience? Well, if you want to be successful in business, you need to find the time. But a chamber membership can almost be a life hack in this department because you’re getting exposed to a whole new audience when you connect with the chamber. For instance, let’s say you write a guest blog post for your local chamber. Now a whole new set of eyes is looking at your materials and seeing you as an industry expert. The same could be said if you speak at a lunch and learn session.

Engage with the chamber on social media. Chambers often have large followings and engaging with the chamber places your content in front of their audience.

Get by with a Little Help from Your Friends

Finally, if you’re a small business owner who doesn’t have many business owner friends, you may find you have few people to bounce ideas off of. You may long for a group that faces the same challenges and one that will celebrate your small professional victories, knowing that they’re much larger than they sound.

Joining the chamber exposes you to a whole different group of people, people who understand the importance of business in the economy and ones you can talk to about business without their eyes glazing over. Connections made through chamber membership do more than just cultivate sales for your business. They become lifelong friends and a staunch professional support network.

Don’t join the chamber because it’s an expectation for business success. Join it because of what it’s able to do for you and your business. Membership will make your life easier as it extends your marketing reach and their offerings increase your business knowledge.

Do it for you. Because sometimes, just sometimes, it’s okay to be purely selfish in your motivations.

Christina R. Green teaches small businesses, chambers, and associations how to connect through content. Her articles have appeared in the Midwest Society of Association Executives’ Magazine, NTEN.org, AssociationTech, and Socialfish. She is a regular blogger at Frankjkenny.com and the Event Manager Blog.

She’s a bookish writer on a quest to bring great storytelling to organizations everywhere.