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Chamber Blog

Keeping our members informed on the region, best business practices, and marketing. The Garrett County Chamber of Commerce is now accepting articles from members to post as blogs on the Chamber’s website. These should contain useful information relevant to your industry and might solve a problem member companies may be having or alert members to and describe a new trend. You will get by-line credit for writing the article and we encourage you to include a brief bio about yourself and your business or organization. These are not intended to be a sales pitch. All articles must be approved by the Chamber staff before they are posted to the website. Depending on the number of submissions, we reserve the right to schedule articles for later postings. If you have questions or would like to submit an article contact Nick Sharps at nick@garrettchamber.com or (301) 387-5237.
Monday, December 5, 2022
4 Psychological Techniques for Increased Sales During Small Business Season

It's a noisy world out there and there's lots of competition. If you want to stand out, you must provide excellent value and persuasive copy. Without these two things the holiday season will not be the boon you are hoping for. Luckily, creating copy that drives your audience to action is very easy during the holiday season. While many people have a strict budget this year, they want to provide a nice holiday for their friends and family. That means they are looking to buy. Here's how you can help them

Christina Metcalf

Monday, November 21, 2022
US Chamber Advice for Small Businesses This Holiday Season

A new report from Intuit Quickbooks shows a unique opportunity for small businesses during Small Business Season. Based on survey results from 5,500 consumers and 1,500 businesses, consumers are planning to spend “over 40% of their holiday shopping budget at small businesses” — an estimated total of $88 billion! Because of this, the US Chamber suggests, “it’s the perfect time for small businesses to lean heavily into their holiday marketing campaigns and possibly even launch a new product in time for the

Christina Metcalf

Monday, November 14, 2022
An Effective E-mail Nurture Campaign for Small Business Season

It's small business season and if you're part of a small business you're probably looking for ways to make the most of your Q4. While mega retailers and big business are slashing prices, that's not the best way for you to be competitive. Small businesses often operate on smaller reserves and slashing prices to the point of taking a loss decreases the revenue you're bringing in. You need something that builds on connections. That’s the small business superpower. One of the best ways to do this is through an

Christina Metcalf

Monday, October 24, 2022
Sprucing Up Your Website for the Holidays

Most people research online before they purchase. That could take the form of looking up prices, options, or educating themselves on the product or service they’re in the market for. Many buyers also use a business website to verify hours, availability, make reservations, etc. During the holiday season people are busier than ever and it’s common to check things out online before getting in a car. If your website isn’t easy to navigate, with important information front and center, you may be missing out on a

Christina Metcalf

Monday, October 3, 2022
How to Build Untiring Customer Loyalty

Customer loyalty is essential to strong sales. After all, it’s easier to get repeat sales than it is to convince a new consumer to buy from you. But customer loyalty is something grown and nurtured, not bought or ordered. It takes time. That time investment is worth it because it means more revenue and sticking power. Bill Zinke, Senior Vice President of Marketing at BELFOR Franchise Group said, “One of the key lessons from the pandemic has been [that], in good times, building customer loyalty can help you

Christina Metcalf

Monday, September 26, 2022
Gearing Up to Capture the Holiday Dollar

This week MasterCard announced its prediction that holiday spending by customers would increase by 7.1% over last year. This is good news for businesses that were thinking inflation may quell holiday spending. But how did they decide on this and what does your business need to know to make the most from holiday shoppers?

Christina Metcalf

Thursday, September 15, 2022
Using Existing Facebook Groups to Grow Your Business

If your town is like most, there are several Facebook groups that have formed around living, working, and/or playing in your area. Some are private and you’ll need to request to join. Others are public. Some groups are loosely veiled business generators for community leaders or professionals (often real estate agents) who recognize how important it is to insert themselves into conversations about the community. Facebook groups are an excellent way to grow your business. Here are a few ways to do this in an

Christina Metcalf

Monday, September 12, 2022
Is It Time to Join Forces with Another Business?

As a child of the 80s, I remember the excitement when the Wonder Twins would join forces and utter those magical words “Wonder Twin powers activate!” Sure, there were often comical results but both characters used their strengths to save the day. The same is happening with business these days. We’re seeing a lot of it among big brands, unlikely partnerships to sell additional products or services. Some of them are umbrella situations where the companies are owned by the same parent organization, but others

Christina Metcalf

Monday, August 15, 2022
What’s Your Biggest Marketing Challenge?

When a business operator finally decides they need someone focused on their marketing, and they resolve to hire for the position, it usually goes something like this: “This position will be in charge of posting to our social media channels.” But if that’s all you’re doing, you can put that in the hands of the nearest thirteen-year-old. If you’re contemplating stepping up your business marketing, you need more than a scheduler. You need someone who understands the different kinds of marketing, your audience,

Christina Metcalf

Monday, August 1, 2022
Are You Ready for These 3 Workplace Trends?

Workplace trends come and go like snack carts, but these trends may very well revolutionize the way we work because they are just so darn appealing to most employees. But before we go into these workplace trends, know that they are not for everyone. Your business may not be able to function if you put them into operation. There are some businesses that simply require employees in seats, seats that are customer-facing in a central location. But if you do have the flexibility to adopt some of these, you may

Christina R. Metcalf

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