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HOW ARE WE DOING?
BRIGHT SPOTS
Did you know that a book on Charlie Chaplin edited and published by Ohio University Zanesville professor Lisa Stein Haven recently received accolades from American film critic and historian Leonard Maltin? Learn about this and other bright spots in our community by visiting our Zanesville & Muskingum County BRIGHT SPOTS website, and check back frequently to see new content.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AWARDS
The annual ACES awards nomination process has begun, and we encourage you to let us know about your business successes in 2014 so we can recognize your efforts (or maybe those of one of your loyal customers or suppliers). Read a little about the ACES program and submit your nomination today. This program is an important part of our economic development program; a community that wants to cultivate growth must celebrate the achievements of its businesses. Please help us be that kind of community and show our gratitude to you and to other businesses for your investments and improvements.
YOU ARE THE EXPERT
Trying to build your reputation and establish yourself as a subject matter expert? Then consider submitting to the new "Chamber Experts" section of our website. It will feature instructional articles and columns written by members about topics in their areas of expertise. Audio and video recordings are welcome, too. This service provides members with a way to establish their qualifications and knowledge in their professional field and promote their business. It also provides other Chamber members with a valuable resource they can use to improve their own business and enhance their personal knowledge. To submit a column or how-to article of approximately 500 words (or a video or audio file of about 2 minutes in length), email tpoorman@zmchamber.com.
BUSINESS "SHARK" EVENT
Roughly 200 people are planning to attend this fun and interesting event. You can still buy a ticket but it's almost sold out. It's being held on January 22, 2014 from 6-9pm at MCBI. Tickets are $10 per person. You can buy tickets online at www.mcbi.info or call 740-453-3649 for more information.
DIGITAL BUYERS GUIDE
The Chamber publishes a digital buyer's guide and member directory and a link to it was recently sent to all members. All members are listed in this e-magazine format guide, as well as in the searchable online directory at zmchamber.com. The online guide receives thousands of hits each month.
FUN WINTER MONTHS
There a lot of great things to see and do in Muskingum County during the winter months. For example, daily tours of the Wilds are available with advanced reservations. In addition, there are first class community theater shows taking place, big name acts coming to Secrest Auditorium and also great programming at the Zanesville Museum of Art. For ideas on what to do during the winter and a complete listing of events dates and times go to www.visitzanesville.com or contact kashby@zmchamber.com to sign up for a weekly "What's Happening" email.
TOBACCO AND YOUR HEALTH
Join us next week on January 28 to hear a presentation on the dangers and impacts of tobacco use. Jennifer Hiestand from the Muskingum County Health Department will be addressing the members of the Safety Council on this topic. All chamber members are welcome to attend for networking and educational purposes. Roughly 80 local business people attend these monthly meetings, which are part of the statewide safety council program organized by the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. Admission is $10 per person which includes breakfast, and meetings are held from 8 am to 9 am at Zanesville Country Club.
STATE COMMITTEE CHAIRS NAMED
The Ohio Chamber has supplied a list of new committee chairs in the Ohio General Assembly. The list includes the chair, vice chair and ranking member for each of the 19 committees. Representative Brian Hill, whose district includes most of Muskingum County, is chair of the House Agriculture and Rural Development Committee. The Ohio Senate will appoint committee members in the next week or two.
PERFORMANCE REVIEW WEBINAR
If you want some help on how to conduct employee performance reviews, here's a free webinar on the topic. The webinar, presented by Kushner and Company, will be presented on January 28 at 2 pm. Kushner says of their program: "Our webinar will explore how tracking employee performance can be transformed into a much more timely and relevant process - with feedback and open dialogue between managers and team members occurring almost daily."
$25,000 GRANT COMPETITION
FedEx is offering up to $25,000 in business grants to small businesses around the country. Ten such grants will be awarded nationwide. Small business owners have until February 12, 2015 to enter. Business owners may apply online by submitting a profile of their business along with four photos, including a company logo, that best represent their products or services. They must also describe how their business benefits their community and how they would plan to use the grant money to enhance their business. To enter the competition, visit http://smallbusinessgrant.fedex.com.
EXPAND INTO EXPORTING
Getting into exporting might be a viable expansion strategy for your business. But how do you get started? The US International Trade Administration offers excellent resources to help.
- LEADS - The Export.gov Trade Leads Database contains pre-screened, time-sensitive leads and Government Tenders gathered through U.S. Commercial Service offices around the world.
- MARKETS - If you're just beginning to sell internationally, narrow your focus by concentrating on no more than two or three best-prospect markets. Use the Step-by-Step research guidelines to get started.
- E-COMMERCE - The U.S. Commercial Service manual Preparing Your Business for Global E-Commerce provides the information you'll need to complete international sales and how to integrate that information into your business operations from the very beginning of the sales-and-fulfillment process.
SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING
Using paid advertising - in addition to simply posting - on social media platforms can be effective but it takes some work to understand what you are doing. Hubspot has produced a free e-book to help you plan out a strategy and better understand how to make it work. The book will help you learn how to best incorporate Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn into your advertising plans.
    
  
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