Posted: 5/11/2016 12:06:47 PM EDT
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So my business partner and I attended our local chamber of commerce potential new member networking event and I'll say they had a lot to offer. We were going back and forth about joining, weighing the benefit vs the cost (minimal) and we were pretty set on joining.
Then a week later (Monday) we get an email asking if we'd attend a breakfast hosted at a local Google branch as the chambers honored guest. Anyone have experience working with a local chamber of commerce, networking, pros and cons, etc...? We were going to join regardless of being invited as honored guests (don't know why we were picked), but just wanted to hear if anyone had any insight or experience in this arena. |
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Quoted:
There is a huge difference between local Chambers and the National Chamber of Commerce. Just like between the politics of your local VFW and the National VFW that always supports the Dems. Good point. This is a local chamber of commerce. Sorry for any confusion. |
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I've been on both sides, ,as a member of the Chamber and working for it.
As much as I laugh about the "GOPe" label thrown everywhere and at everything by some people here, the US Chamber in DC is absolutely 100% not a friend of lower tax, less laws/restrictions conservatives and is truly a supporter of the DC Establishment. That being said, your local Chamber has little to do with the US Chamber, and can absolutely be a valuable tool for networking with other business owners, getting new business, and lobbying your local/state government for better pro business policies....but it really depends entirely on your local Chamber. Some are effective lobbying pro business organizations, some are just old boy networks, some are run very, very poorly and not worth the time or effort. If your local Chamber is backing initiatives you support and you can improve your business by being a member, I think it is absolutely worth participating in. There are going to be a lot of people chime in here with "fuck the Chamber" because of the US Chamber's behavior, with little to no understanding of how small Chambers work on the local level. |
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Quoted:
I've been on both sides, ,as a member of the Chamber and working for it. As much as I laugh about the "GOPe" label thrown everywhere and at everything by some people here, the US Chamber in DC is absolutely 100% not a friend of lower tax, less laws/restrictions conservatives and is truly a supporter of the DC Establishment. That being said, your local Chamber has little to do with the US Chamber, and can absolutely be a valuable tool for networking with other business owners, getting new business, and lobbying your local/state government for better pro business policies....but it really depends entirely on your local Chamber. Some are effective lobbying pro business organizations, some are just old boy networks, some are run very, very poorly and not worth the time or effort. If your local Chamber is backing initiatives you support and you can improve your business by being a member, I think it is absolutely worth participating in. There are going to be a lot of people chime in here with "fuck the Chamber" because of the US Chamber's behavior, with little to no understanding of how small Chambers work on the local level. Good to know. The "CEO" of our local chamber is a former lobbyist and has been working to push pro small business legislation in Richmond. He actually mentioned the disconnect between local and national chambers. They seemed to have a great culture. At first I was like, I'm not paying to be a part of this, but changed my views later. They do lead sharing programs, but businesses actually have to participate on different committees so there is no paying to be a "member" and not being involved. |