Viewpoints

Columbiana Alabaster Wilton Chelsea Montevallo Helena Vincent Wilsonville Indian Springs Calera Pelham Harpersville

Westover Hoover

Shelby County ViewPoints

January 2011

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Welcome New Members

Brooklere Pharmacy

Johnny Brooklere

205 Buck Creek Plaza

Alabaster

Pharmacies

Buck Creek Stained Glass

David Schlueter

4114 Helena Rd

Helena

Custom Stained Glass

Business Electronics

Rhett McCreight

219 Oxmoor Circle

Birmingham

Office Equipment

Hampton Inn & Suites 280

Deanna Jones

6220 Farley Ct

Birmingham

Lodging

Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic

Scott Meinberg

2001 19th Street

Birmingham

Education - High School

McGruff Safe Kids

Ginger Mankus

3560 Brookfield Road

Hoover

Education - Recreation/ Enrichment

Pay In Sync, LLC

Rick Norris

4778 Highway 25

Montevallo

Payroll Services

PC Rescue

Mark Goldstein

2552 Hwy 31 South

Pelham

Computer Services & Solutions

The Tutoring Center

Isaac Zeidan

2804 John Hawkins Pkwy

Hoover

Education-Training and Tutoring

To find out more about any member listed or other Chamber members, visit the online Business Directory at: www.shelbychamber.org.

Chamber Membership Renewal Invoices to be Mailed this Month

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estimonial

Thank you for your membership in the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce. We appreciate you and want to continue to promote your business throughout our communities.

Historically, membership renewal invoices have been sent in December for new year renewals. However, to allow us to keep most of our income and expenses within the same operating year, we will now send annual renewal invoices in January. Please renew your Chamber membership at that time.

Note: If you joined the Chamber in 2010, you will receive your first year renewal invoice during your anniversary month.

This invoice will be a prorated amount for renewal through the remainder of the calendar year.

Please feel free to contact Melanie Goodwin at (205) 663-4542 or melanie@shelbychamber.org with any questions or concerns you may have.

It’s awesome to see how the GSC Chamber grows and grows. Congrats to all of you all.

You all work so hard! And it surely shows!

Ann Marie Boyd Yeager & Boyd LLC

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Member Tip of the Month

Heat It Up with a

“Hot Deal” It seems everyone is coupon-clipping, searching for sales, and seeking “Hot Deals” when purchasing products or services. What is a Hot Deal? It’s a coupon, discount, incentive, or savings on products or services that is posted online by Greater Shelby County Chamber members only ... for FREE! When searching for products or services do you think of your Greater Shelby Chamber family first? You should.

Being a member of the Greater Shelby Chamber means you have access to like-minded business professionals at your fingertips. This is the time people are shopping so get your name out there! Visit the online Business Directory on the Chamber’s website first at www.shelbychamber.org and add your sales items today.

Are you having a sale? Do you have discounted items? Are you currently offering special savings on services? Heat up your business “deals” for FREE by adding a Hot Deal. Use your Member Login and password to add a Hot Deal today.

Need your Member Login and password? Call or email the Chamber: 663-4542 or info@shelbychamber.org.

Ambassador Spotlight Ambassador of the Year

Ambassador of the Month

Kendall Williams

Gabrielle Lamb

Congratulations to Kendall Williams for being recognized as our Ambassador of the Year. Kendall is very active in the Ambassador Program and is an asset to our Chamber! Kendall serves as Community Liaison with America’s First Federal Credit Union. Their website states, “As a member of America’s First Federal Credit Union, you are an important part of a financial institution that focuses on providing a level of service that exceeds your expectations. We are dedicated to providing you with the latest products, services, and information to make your life easier.” For more information about America’s First Federal Credit Union, please call (205) 716-3379 or you can visit their website at www.amfirst.org.

Gabrielle Lamb has been serving as an Ambassador of the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce since 2007 and as Chair of the Ambassadors since 2009.

She is an Account Executive with PAETEC, a Fortune 1000 company specializing in personalizing business communications for medium and large businesses. She is currently a senior at UAB pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Health Information Management. Gabrielle is proud to be a resident of the City of Pelham where she lives with her husband Brad and daughter Savannah. For more information about PAETEC, contact Gabrielle at Gabrielle.Lamb@PAETEC.com.

Interested in advertising in ViewPoints?

Contact Molly Alexander, (205) 669-3131, at the Shelby County Reporter for exclusive member pricing.

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Access Your FREE Online Member Benefits and Features!

Use your member login and password to access your FREE online benefits. Using your member login will allow you to add and update your online business listing from any computer that has an active connection to the Internet -- anytime -- day or night!

Your membership includes: FREE Listing on the Chamber’s Online Business Directory • 200 character Business description • Hours of operation • Driving directions • Personalized keywords FREE Advertising • Hot Deals - Enter ads or coupons that display prominently on the Chamber’s website • Job Postings - Post job openings for those actively seeking employment • Events - Submit events for consideration on the Chamber and Community Calendar Real-time, Up-to-Date Access • Keep the Chamber’s Database current • See the categories where your Business is listed • RSVP for Events Once you’ve received your personal login and password follow these simple steps to open the door to your online benefits: • From the Chamber’s website, www.shelbychamber.org, select Member Login at the top right of the home page • Enter your login name • Enter your password • Use the menu on the left hand side to access your online benefits • Always remember to click SAVE if you make any changes!

Greater Shelby Chamber Annual Meeting!

The Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce will host its Annual Meeting on January 26th at the Pelham Civic Complex. Highlights about the upcoming 2011 events and programs will be featured. Networking begins at 11am with the seated program beginning at noon. The cost is $17 for Greater Shelby Chamber members and $20 for all others. Reserve your seat online at www.shelbychamber.org. Look for more details in an upcoming GSC E-news.

Grow & Go Workshops The Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce will partner with other area chambers for a series of Grow & Go workshops in 2011. You’ll want to send your employees (and register for yourself) for these workshops, which also will offer additional networking components as well. Look for details soon.

Online Business Directory With the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce implementing search engine optimization with our online business directory, member listings are showing up in online search engines, i.e. Google, Yahoo, Bing, that links them directly to the members website.

Greater Shelby Chamber members may use their login and password on our website (www.shelbychamber.org) to put in up to eight keywords for keyword searches using our online business directory. Members may also choose more than one category for their online directory listing.

2011 Continual Sponsors A.C. Legg, Inc. Alabama Power Company Alabama Telco Credit Union America’s First Federal Credit Union AT&T Business Telephones, Inc. Cahaba Valley Computer Services Carr & Associates Engineers, Inc. Charter Business FastSigns First Commercial Bank ITT Technical Institute Jefferson State Community College

Legacy Community Federal Credit Union Lemak Sports Medicine & Orthopedics M&F Bank Minuteman Press of Alabaster Neil Bailey Insurance & Investments PAETEC Regions Financial Shelby Baptist Medical Center Shelby County Reporter Sirote & Permutt, PC St. Vincent’s Health System Stewart Organization Susan Schein Automotive Group

Snapshots

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Catch more photos of Greater Shelby Chamber events online at:

shelbychamber.org

shelbychamber.org

Albritton & Ardovino Family Dentistry in Alabaster held a ribbon cutting event to announce their grand opening.

The Tutoring Center in Hoover celebrated its grand opening with a joint ribbon cutting between the Greater Shelby County Chamber and the Hoover Area Chamber.

The Prayer Breakfast was a tremendous success with the founders of Grace’s Kitchen telling us about their mission to feed the homeless and the hungry. Guests left with care packages to give to someone in need.

Congratulations to Brooklere Pharmacy on the grand opening and ribbon cutting of their beautiful facility in Alabaster.

OxyMed LLC recently celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting.

The Chamber’s first-ever Sporting Clay Shoot was fabulous fun! Even if you’ve never participated in a clay shoot before, you will want to be there next fall.

Thank you to the Townhouse at Mt. Laurel for hosting the recent Mt. Laurel Focus meeting. Contact them at www.thetownhouseatmtlaurel.com.

Paul Petro of Paul’s Diamond Center hosted a Business After Hours recently.

Visit Paul’s Diamond at the Colonial Promenade for incredible deals on one-of-a-kind jewelry items.

New Member Orientation is always informational for the wonderful new Chamber members.

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Membership Database Benefits Are You Marketing by Mail or Telephone to Your Customers?

What about Your Fellow Chamber Members?

Be prepared for the new year by reaching out to your customers and keep them informed of your products and services. Independent studies have shown that those companies that continue to advertise consistently provide a unique window of opportunity for investment purposes to: 1) Build equity; 2) Solidify your customer base; 3) Gain new customers; and 4) Make inroads on your competitors who have cut their advertising during what may viewed as a “slow” period in the economy. This window of opportunity is created by the understanding that advertising is an investment, not an expense.

The Chamber can assist in expanding your advertising and marketing efforts ... inexpensively! As a member, you have the opportunity to purchase the Greater Shelby Chamber membership database for only $100. This list contains our current Chamber members, their respective representatives, physical and mailing addresses, telephone numbers, and websites. And, upon request, you’ll receive quarterly updates for an entire year. The membership database can easily be emailed in an Excel spreadsheet straight to your Inbox. It’s that simple!

To receive your membership database, contact the Chamber office at 663-4542 or info@shelbychamber.org and expand your marketing outreach today!

Online Networking is Where it’s Happening Online networking is quickly becoming the way to communicate business-to-business. The Greater Shelby Chamber invites you to join us on our sites as we share news, events, and posts from our members.

Social networking is certainly an invaluable tool to build an expanded audience for products or services. Integrate social networking into your existing marketing plan today It’s the wave of the future, and it’s here today! Embrace it by connecting with the Greater Shelby Chamber on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Plaxo. We’re here to help share your news too! Login or sign up today ... together we are building a greater Shelby County.

Shelby County Community and Chamber Friends

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Welcome to 2011 and ViewPoints, the monthly newsletter for the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce and the business community we serve.

We are excited about the plans we have for you — the people and businesses of Shelby County — throughout this year! We have many opportunities for you to get involved through the programs and committees, and embrace community involvement as the strongest resource that develops and protects the quality of life we enjoy in our area.

Even if you’re not currently a Chamber member (we hope that you will consider becoming a member soon), please use ViewPoints each month as a source of information, and let me know if there is anything we can do to address your own business needs. Check us out online as well at www.shelbychamber.org.

Thank you for your support of the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce. Together, we are building a greater network of opportunity in Shelby County.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Trammell President & CEO Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce jennifer@shelbychamber.org

2011 Board of Directors Terri Gualano Chair AT&T Keith Barfield Finance Chair Barfield, Murphy, Shank & Smith Phillip Heard Development Chair Alabama Gas Elizabeth Roland Governance Chair Attorney at Law Chris Bottcher Sirote & Permutt Tim Bowen Alabama Power Keith Brown Jefferson State Community College

Ken Collier BE&K Trent Cotton SourcePointe HR Dave Davis Legacy Community Federal Credit Union Jim Garner The Insurance Store Silvia Hoyos Hispanic Interest Coalition of AL Vivian Johnson Sam’s Club Bill Keller Regions Financial

Lisa McMahon Warren, Averett, Kimbrough & Marino David Nolen M&F Bank Tim Prince Shelby County Newspapers, Inc. Joe Sullivan Sullivan Communications April Weaver Shelby Baptist Medical Center Jennifer Trammell Greater Shelby Chamber

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Upcoming Events Find more details of what you can expect about any event listed by visiting the Greater Shelby County Chamber’s website at: www.shelbychamber.org.

Register for events online at www.shelbychamber.org, call the RSVP Line 663-8923, or the Chamber 663-4542.

2011

2011

January

February

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8:30 am – 9:30 am ~ Focus Meeting Pelham Johnny Ray’s, 309 Huntley Parkway, Pelham No RSVP required. No cost.

8:30 am – 9:30 am ~ Focus Meeting Calera Timberline Golf Club, 300 Timberline Trail, Calera No RSVP required. No cost.

8:30 am – 9:30 am ~ Network 280 Goodson Health & Wellness 140 Village St., Ste. 201, Birmingham No RSVP required. No cost.

8:30 am – 10 am ~ SpeedNetworking for Professionals Heart of Dixie Harley-Davidson HOG Room, 33 Cahaba Valley Pkwy., Pelham RSVP required by January 18th. No cost.

5 pm – 7 pm ~ Business After Hours Day Eye Center, 2122 Old Montgomery Hwy., Pelham No RSVP required. No cost.

11 am – 1 pm ~ Annual Meeting Membership Luncheon Pelham Civic Complex, 500 Amphitheater Dr., Pelham RSVP required by noon, Monday, January 24th.

Investment: Members $17, non-members $20.

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8:30 am – 9:30 am ~ Focus Meeting Helena Salon Touche’, 2600 Hwy 58, Suite B, Helena No RSVP required. No cost.

8:30 am – 9:30 am ~ Focus Meeting Chelsea Ekklesia Coffee House 109 Foothills Parkway, Suite 110, Chelsea No RSVP required. No cost.

8:30 am – 10 am ~ New Member Orientation Chamber, 1301 County Services Drive, Pelham RSVP required by February 14th. No cost.

4 pm – 6 pm ~ 280 Social The Pita Hut, 5361 Highway 280, Hoover No RSVP required. No cost.

5:30 pm – 7:30 pm ~ Business After Hours Jim ‘n’ Nick’s of Alabaster, 295 Alabaster Boulevard No RSVP required. No cost.

11 am – 1 pm ~ Membership Luncheon Pelham Civic Complex, 500 Amphitheater Dr., Pelham RSVP required by noon, Monday, February 21st.

Investment: Members $17, non-members $20.

CANCELLATION POLICY REMINDER If a reservation is made for the luncheon and you are unable to attend, you will be charged for the luncheon unless a cancellation request is made at least TWO business days prior to the event.