BRIGHT SPOTS - Did you know that the Zanesville Museum of Art is home to masterpieces and rare artworks from around the world? Learn about this and other bright spots in our community by visiting our This is Zanesville & Muskingum County, Ohio webpage, and check back frequently to see new content.

COST CUTTING - The Chamber manages the Ohio BWC sponsored Safety Council program, and July is THE month to save money through this program.  Companies that participate can save up to 4% on their workers comp premiums. In 2013 area employers saved a combined $45,000 by participating in Safety Council. The new year starts July 1 and you have to enroll by July 31 to be eligible for the rebate, so act now. For more information visit www.zmsafety.com.

CUT MORE COSTS - You can also cut your workers' comp costs by joining our group  rating program. Group rating spreads the risk and saves employers as much as 50% on their premiums. The average premium savings for companies in the Chamber's program is $3,100 per year. To request a no-cost, no-obligation premium savings estimate visit the group rating section of the chamber website.

JOB MARKET - The Business Insider website has an update for you on the state of our national economy. "The biggest takeaway here is that we seem to be turning a corner in all the jobs areas that have been lagging for more than five years, especially government and construction. However, some measures, like gross jobs gains by company size are still lagging. And there's one shocking statistic at the end about full-time versus part-time jobs. Click here to see the charts."

QUESTIONING YOURSELF? - How do other businesses solve this problem? Am I doing   everything I can to grow my business? How can I improve my business processes? If you are asking yourself these questions, we can help find the answers. A comprehensive Business Assessment is available via MCBI (www.mcbi.info) for just $99.  This is a special price for chamber members; the price is normally $135.  The assessment is a confidential and unbiased review of your business strategies and practices that results in a set of recommendations you can implement. For more information contact Wendy Edgar at MCBI at 740-453-3649 or wedgar@mcbi.info.     

CHRISTMAS IN JULY - A meeting is being held this Friday to continue planning Experience Christmas, a project started by coalition of area organizations to light up various locations in the area for the holidays. If you would like to help or just stay informed please join us at the Welcome Center on July 11 at 9 am.

CASH MANAGEMENT - Author Philip Campbell's blog is a great resource...."What happened to the cash last month? Managing the financial side of your business starts with understanding your cash flow every month such that you can answer that one question in a 2-minute conversation. If you would like to find out how to answer that simple question, take a look at my Complimentary Quick Start Guide." See more at The Single Most Important Question a Business Owner Must Answer

SUBMIT YOUR EVENTS - If you have an event coming up you should enter it in our online events and meetings calendar at zmchamber.com as a way to promote it. It's free to members and it's simple to use. There is a "submit new event" link on the right side of the calendar page. Click it and fill in your details. You can also find the calendar link at any time on the homepage of zmchamber.com. Events entered in our online calendar also automatically posted to the Chamber's Facebook page.

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