The Chamber Connector March 2023

CONNECTOR

The Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce Monthly Newsletter

President's Letter

Dear Members:

Welcome to March in the Carlisle area and the subtle signs that Spring is on its way! The Chamber team is busy planning a multitude of Spring opportunities to help you and your businesses grow through education, networking and workforce development Spring will be filled with events like the Career and Job Expo, State of Carlisle, Business Women’s Forum (BWF), and our Annual Golf Outing Among the many events and mixers scheduled, we are also planning new opportunities for members to connect We remain committed to serving our membership and evolving to meet your needs.

As we mentioned in February, the Chamber Board and the Chamber Foundation Board of Directors embarked on the first of three strategic planning sessions They looked at our last strategic plan to see what was accomplished and what is still relevant Now we need to hear from you! You were recently sent an email with a link to complete a member survey This survey is an effort to capture your voices as we look ahead to the Chamber’s future Your responses will help dictate our strategic pillars

We recognize and respect your privacy and to ensure your confidentiality, your responses will go directly to our Strategic Planning Consultant, Dering Consulting Group We invite and encourage you to share your honest feedback No Chamber staff or board member will have access to your individual responses

For your planning purposes, the survey closes on March 10th and should only take about 15 minutes of your time The results will be analyzed and incorporated into our second strategic planning discussion in April.

Your insights and perspectives are invaluable We look forward to capturing your thoughts and suggestions in development of our new strategic plan We will continue to be transparent during this strategic planning process and share the results with you Thank you in advance for your participation and valuable time

Yours in Service,

Nicole Deary, President & CEO

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Aisha Singletary A Heart of Gold Home Care Agency www.aheartofgoldhca.com

Shawn Bernheisel Carlisle Professional Referral Exchange prenetworking.net

Tony Maggio Community First Fund communityfirstfund.org

Allison Earnst Dauphin Tile Co. dauphintile.com

Allison Earnst Home Imagined, LLC homeimaginedllc com

Cyndi Cutia Momma Spriggs Restaurant mommaspriggs com

Meg Brake Ralph Moyle, Inc ralphmoyle com

Bo Brabo RCM&D rcmd com

Members

Helping Members Marketing and Networking

At our last Member 2 Member Networking Luncheon, we asked our members to give us a marketing or networking tip that would benefit the group We wanted to share a few of those below so you could benefit, too!

"Take a photo today at an event, post and tag those at the event the same day,"

Doug Harmon, Hickory Ridge Restaurant

"Pitch your business and let them choose If you are confident in your product or service, you do not need to beg They will see your expertise and confidence and make the choice on their own, "

Terri Robuck, M&T Bank

"Ask customers to share testimonials and give google reviews. Personally make the ask and let them know how much it means to you and your business that they take the time to do that,"

Brian Shaffer, Doceo

"Utilize the resources you have like the Chamber and connections you have made through your business And when you make new connections, follow up right away, either through email or LinkedIn Don't take a person ' s business card and then do nothing with it "

Lori Renne, UPMC

Member Spotlight: ChamberPlus Business Insurance Program

Penn National Insurance offers Chamber members a unique opportunity through the ChamberPlus Business Insurance program, which pays dividends based on group loss experience and premium volume. Chamber members who placed their business insurance with Penn National Insurance earned a 12% dividend this year, and have collectively earned over $4 million

The all-lines dividend program is sold exclusively through your local, independent agent To find out more, contact one of these Chamber-member agencies today: Strickler Agency, Christian-Baker, Don Jacobs Insurance Services, Enders Insurance, Gannon Associates, Kingsley Blasco Insurance and Miller Carlisle Insurance Services. Contact information can be found on the chamber’s website.

Marketing Plan: How it helps a business thrive

by Jennifer Germain, Marketing Director

A marketing plan is an invaluable tool for a business to use Not only will it help you to project out your company ' s best practices, but it allows you to take a full scope of what your market consists It allows the business to develop strategies and campaigns that will inevitably sell your products or services Understanding your overall market will give you insights on the best ways to reach your target audience

Here are the typical elements of a marketing plan:

Establish Marketing goals

Conduct a marketing audit, as well as market research

Analyze the results of your market research

identify your target audience

Determine a budget that will fulfill your marketing goals

Develop marketing strategies that will achieve your goals

Implement a schedule for your strategies

The Chamber has great ways to market your business to our membership Contact me today to learn more about the opportunities are available

Member Spotlight: Cyber CIC, LLC

Carmine Cicalese is a former Army officer with a passion for helping small and medium sized businesses solve their cybersecurity challenges “I founded Cyber CIC to assist Federal and SLED customers, but the commercial market is more interesting and more in need,” says Carm

Recognizing SMBs don’t have the resources of large companies to deter cyber criminals, Carm advocates a tailored collaborative approach to each client’s needs “The cyber threat is real We work with the client’s existing team to reduce risk at the best value.”

Contact Cyber CIC, carm@cybercic com, and make better decisions for your business

Do you have a Chamber testimonial that you'd like to share? Or, perhaps a story of how a fellow member has helped you? We would love to hear those stories and feature them in the newsletter Contact Jen Germain at the Chamber office to be featured

CARLISLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

RENEWING MEMBERS

Ace ChemDry

AES Hearth & Patio

Brown Schultz Sheridan & Fritz

Camille Baughman & Associates Therapeutic Massage & Wellness Center

Carlisle Area School District

Carlisle Design

Central Penn Wellness

Central Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (CPTA) (dba)

rabbittransit

Claremont Nursing & Rehabilitation Center

Classic Drycleaners and Laundromats

Cumberland Valley Cleaning

Dan Collison State Farm

Deibler Insurance Assoc., Inc.

Demeter Financial Services

Denim Coffee

DeRock Electric Co.

Diakon Wilderness Center

Employment Skills Center

Energy Smart Home Improvement

Equus Workforce Solutions

FedEx Ground

Full Blast Pressure Washing

Gilded Door Oil & Vinegar Tap Room

Griffie & Associates, P.C.

Halo Branded Solutions

Harrisburg Senators Baseball Club

J. P. Wolfe Insurance, Inc.

Junior Achievement of South Central PA

King Tut1

Knisely's Pet & Farm Center, Inc.

Konhaus Print & Marketing

Law Offices of Peter J. Russo, P.C.

Lawrence Chevrolet

Letort Warehouses Inc.

Lindt Factory Outlet

Lobar Associates

LR Four Roofing

Members 1st Federal Credit Union

Midway Bowling

Molly Pitcher Brewing Company

MTC Excavators, Inc.

Navy Federal Credit Union

Partnership for Better Health

Penn Holding Group

Penn State Dickinson Law

Plant Site Logistics Inc.

PR Hoffman Machine Products

Rikore Hospitality

Saint Patrick Roman Catholic Church

Sherman's Messenger Service LLC

SmartMed Prescription Center

State Farm Insurance, Greg Lunde Agent

Synergy HomeCare of Mid Penn

January M2M got postponed for snow, but was back the next week on February 1st.

The Greatest Gift

The Sunrise Cafe

Tri-County Housing Development Corporation

Utility Rates Analysts

Waste Connections of PA

WHTM-ABC 27

Wilson Paving

Palmer's Sneaker & Apparel celebrated their ribbon cutting on February 13th.

The Saint Patrick School Evening Mixer on January 26th was a fun evening.

The Workforce Breakfast on February 9th sponsored by WellSpan Health