The Chamber Today eNewsletter May 2010

The Chamber Today is an electronic newsletter, published monthly by the Boulder Chamber with a distribution of more than 3,000 members each issue. It provides a snapshot of upcoming networking events, public affairs and green business issues, seminars, and educational programs for Chamber members.

Become a sponsor today. Contact Jan Berg at (303) 786-8076 or jan.berg@boulderchamber.com.

Advocacy Outlook
By Dan Powers

Creating A Strong Regional Economy: Keeping the
"Green in Green"
Now, more than ever, reducing expenses is a great way to strengthen your business. As part of our effort to support the health of the Boulder area economy, the Chamber provides numerous ways for our members to pursue best practices in energy efficiency.

Participate in programs that can help boost your company's energy efficiency efforts. Read more

Boulder Economic Council's 2010 Summit

The Boulder Economic Council and the University of Colorado at Boulder present the 2010 Boulder Economic Summit, Boulder in 2035: Opportunities & Insights. This unique cross-industry event designed for academic, business, and community leaders will be held on Wednesday, June 2 from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at CU-Boulder. Click here to register.

Hear about new opportunities presented by changing technology, challenges from increasing competition, economic implications of emerging trends, and the industries likely to play a key role in Boulder's future.
Read more

Member Spotlight: Roche Colorado
By Stephanie A. Milliman

Roche Colorado giving back to the community through the 7th Annual Regional Science Fair "Science Connects"

Conversations with John Tayer, director of public affairs and communication, Roche Colorado and Jenn Barr, advanced academic service coordinator, Boulder Valley School District. Click the iTunes podcast icon to hear the podcast of my interview with John.

This year, the 7th annual Roche Colorado Regional Science Fair was held at the University of Colorado's UMC on February 23. More than 200 middle school and high school students represented their schools with over 150 projects at the regional level. Displayed at the event were outstanding science projects-covering subjects from physics and microbiology to animal sciences. Read more

Recap of Social Media 2010 - The Business Edition

Ramonna Tooley of Ground Floor Media at the 2010 Social Media event.This year's popular social media event held on Friday, April 30, featured an interactive panel discussion on trends and Issues Management and Controlling a Crisis Using Social Media. Moderated by Ramonna Tooley of GroundFloor Media, expert panelists included Kevin Kaufman, Daily Camera; Misty Montano, CBS4 News; Phil Smith, Alta Colleges; and Derek Olson, Foraker.

Trends and hot topics for the breakout sessions consisted of building strategic communications plans for social media strategy for companies and start-ups to using the Flip camera for your company's marketing campaign. Breakout session speaker Erin Blakemore, founder of VOCO Creative, discussed ways to align your social media plan with your business goals in a "Four-Point" style social media plan comprised of strategy, roll-out, content creation, and metrics/maintenance. She also spoke of new styles for companies to access resources and contractors online where they can take advantage of the talent of the public, saying, "crowdsourcing is tapping into the power and potential of your audience."

In another interactive session, Getting Started with SEO, Booyah Advertising founder and CEO Steve Swoboda talked about methods in which Google evaluates websites. He said blogs work best on your company's domain as opposed to using a third-party platform because it's placing fresh new content for search engines to index. He also touched on article spinning and keyword techniques for better search engine optimization ranking purposes.

Check out more event conversation on the Twitter hashtag #bscm2010. Also see the event photos on Flickr by clicking here.

Anthem Healthfair Bus @ the Chamber

Do you know your blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, and body mass index (BMI) numbers? The Anthem Healthfair bus is coming to the Chamber on May 12 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. to give a free health screening for members. To reserve your place, you may either call 866.792.7932 or visit site here. From here, click on Corporate Event Sign-up on the left, then enter the event code - 63218 and select your time. Hurry and reserve today, space is limited. Sign up now!

Get the goods. Get the customers. LET IT FLY!

This workshop series takes you through three power-packed mornings in one week that will allow you to take your business to the next level! The series goes through the science of bringing in merchandise; the art of attracting and retaining customers; and the steps behind the fun of each and every successful sale!

3-part Breakfast Series:
Monday, May 24; Wednesday, May 26; and Friday, May 28 from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. (light breakfast served) at the Chamber Center, 2440 Pearl Street. Chamber Members: $60; non-members: $75; Downtown Boulder retailers: $45.

For Kerry's secret shopper visit and 1-on-1 meeting:
- Series attendees only: $30 additional fee
- Downtown Boulder Retailers: No charge as part of DBI/SBDC consulting program

Register at www.bouldersbdc.com. To register for Series and Secret Shopper/meeting, please email sharon.king@boulderchamber.com.

Announcements

Boulder Startup Week: May 4-8
This event will be full of co-working, hackathons, hikes, rides, parties (Ignite Boulder), brewery tours, companies hiring new employees, and even a few hosted dinners. Get involved: click here to check out a sampling of the events.

Are you a climate leader?
If you have a sustainability story, click here and you could be invited to speak on one of our next panels! The Chamber's 2010 Climate Leaders series is sponsored by the city's ClimateSmart program.

BWLG in May - Understanding Customer Loyalty
Customer Loyalty is used to describe a behavior of repeat customers or customer advocates who can act as promoters for your products and services. Hear from these amazing women on Wednesday, May 12 from 8:00 to 9:30 a.m. at Stratford at Flatirons - 400 Summit Blvd. in Broomfield: Carol Steinbrecher, Style Solutions; Lindsay Shaw, Lindsay's Boulder Deli at Haagen-Dazs; Bella Weber, ReMax Real Estate; Kristina Rose, GrafX Group; Rachel Weinberg, Wright Kingdom Real Estate; and Deb Kolaras, BizCoachDeb. Pre-registration is required.

2010 membership survey
We value your opinion! Last month we sent a survey to our members about how the Boulder Chamber can help support your business.

Good News!

Kutak Rock LLP Attorney Named to Governor Ritter's Advisory Board
Frederic H. Marienthal, a senior public finance partner at Kutak Rock LLP, has recently been appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to the Colorado Municipal Bond Supervision Advisory Board.  Marienthal has served on the board since 1993 having been previously appointed by Governors Roy Romer and Bill Owens.

Wink Optical Receives Several "Best of" Awards
For the second year in a row, Wink Optical was selected for the "Best of the West" awards from Yellow Scene Magazine in both the Readers' Choice and Critics' Choice categories for being the best Eyewear store in Boulder County and North Metro areas. In addition, Wink was voted by the Colorado Daily as CU and Boulder's Best Eye Care Provider and also voted as runner-up for Best Eye Care Store in the Camera's Boulder County Gold awards three years running! Congratulations to the staff at Wink! Read more