Midland Area Chamber of Commerce: Small Business Workshop - Quickbooks Essentials For Small Business Owners; Virginia Peninsula Chamber Leadership Forums in July; Geneva Chamber of Commerce Announces New President; Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce 2017 Community Profile Guide; Dozens of Wisconsin companies give millions in raises, bonuses, because of federal tax reform; Welcome New Town Square Chamber Partner: Appomattox, VA Chamber We love being part of your business strategy!; Craft beer drives tourism to the Gulf Coast; Indiana Chamber Scores State Legislators on 2018 Voting Records; The Prairie du Chien Community Guide: MAC meeting focuses on leadership, veterans; 2018 ACCE Award Communications Excellence Winners; Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.

Happy Friday, #ChamberWorld! Have a GREAT weekend!

Midland Area Chamber of Commerce: Small Business Workshop - Quickbooks Essentials For Small Business Owners

Do you feel like Quickbooks is a pit of quicksand that buries you alive every time you open up your Company file? If you love numbers or hate them, this workshop will empower you be your own CFO using Quickbooks Desktop.

We will cover an array of important topics especially for owners and managers of small businesses and non-profits using Quickbooks Desktop:

· Not Just Bean Counting: Optimizing Your Chart of Accounts

· Apples to Apples: Preparing Reports with Meaningful Parameters

· Death to the Shoebox: Reconciling Your Bank Accounts

· Translating the Greek: Making Friends with Your CPA

Presented by: Kristi L. Kozubal, Regional Director for the Michigan Small Business Development Center – Great Lakes Bay Region at Delta College Corporate Services

When: Tuesday, July 10

Time: 3:30-5:00 p.m.

Where: Herbert D. Doan Building, 3417 W. Main Street, Midland, MI 48640

Early Bird Registration: $10

Registration After July 3: $15

Future Member Registration: $20

This workshop will give you the confidence and tools to understand your financial information to make great decisions, minimize accounting expenses, and maximize your business performance.

Register now!


Virginia Peninsula Chamber Leadership Forums in July

July 12: Women’s Leadership Forum

Speakers: Amy Carrier, Bon Secours Virginia Health Systems. Captain Sara Harper, Joint Base Langley-Eustis. Beth Moore, CPA, Beth Moore & Associates, CPAs.
Moderator: Michele Benson, The Boys & Girls Club
Location: 21 Enterprise Parkway | Lakefront Plaza, Suite 100 | Hampton, VA 23666
Time: 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM (Lunch and Check-In from 11:30 AM - Noon)
Fee: $25 (Includes Lunch) | Sponsorship Opportunities Available!
Registration: http://www.virginiapeninsulachamber.com/events/details/women-s-leadership-forum-7-12-2018-9181

July 17: Peninsula Executive Leadership Forum

Speaker: William B. Downey, Riverside Health System
Location: Thomas Nelson Community College | Peninsula Workforce Development Center | 600 Butler Farm Road | Hampton, VA
Time: 7:30 AM – 9:00 AM (Breakfast and Check-In from 7:30 – 8:00 AM)
Fee: $25 (Includes Breakfast) | Sponsorship Opportunities Available!
Registration: http://www.virginiapeninsulachamber.com/events/details/2018-peninsula-executive-leadership-forum-with-william-b-downey-071718-9182

Geneva Chamber of Commerce Announces New President

The Geneva Chamber Board of Directors is pleased to announce the selection of Paula Schmidt to be the President of the Geneva Chamber of Commerce beginning July 9, 2018. She was selected after a selection process that began in April of this year and included interviews with many applicants over the last month and a half. She will follow Jean Gaines who announced her retirement in February after serving as Geneva Chamber president for 40 years.

Paula Schmidt has been employed with the Kane and McHenry Medical Societies since July 2008. She began her medical association career as the Assistant Executive Director and become the full Executive Director later in 2008. She also administers for the Will-Grundy County Medical Society since May of 2014. The three medical societies are the membership associations for county level MD’s and DO’s in the Kane, McHenry and Will-Grundy counties. It is her responsibility to help organize learning and CME events, practice management education events along with the everyday administration of a membership organization.

Prior to her employment with the medical societies, she managed office staff and finances for two technology consulting and sales businesses she owned with her husband.

Paula has lived in the Fox Valley area since 1997. She is the proud mother of three daughters Lauren, Andrea and Kimber and is happily married to husband, Mark, for 32 years.

Paula has always been involved with the Fox Valley community through church and volunteer organizations. Today she is the president of the St. Charles Breakfast Rotary Club and will take over the duties of their foundation in July. She has always loved Geneva and hopes to become involved in the Geneva Rotary group as well.

Paula graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder with a journalism degree.

Contact: Laura Rush, Communications Coordinator, 630-232-6060, lrush@genevachamber.com - www.genevachamber.com - www.visitgenevaillinois.com

Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce 2017 Community Profile Guide

The Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce 2017 Community Profile Guide & Membership Directory is available at the Greater Belleville Chamber! Thanks to Wendy Pfeil and the chamber team for their help and direction putting this together!

Belleville IL Community Profile Guide

Town Square Publications  (www.townsquarepublications.com) can help you accomplish your chamber's gloss map, directory, community profile or publication needs at no expense to the chamber. Please email John Dussman at jdussman@tspubs.com or call (847)-427-4633.


Dozens of Wisconsin companies give millions in raises, bonuses, because of federal tax reform

More than 30 companies in Wisconsin have given raises and bonuses to their employees, donated to local charities, invested in new equipment, hired new employees, enhanced benefit packages, and reduced rates, all citing the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act that President Donald Trump signed into law last December.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce created an interactive tax map and Americans for Tax Reform compiled a comprehensive list of businesses giving raises, bonuses, and other savings to employees and customers in Wisconsin. The U.S. Treasury Department projects that the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act will result in 90 percent of wage earners receiving higher take-home pay.

Tax reform unleashed “a new era of growth for the American economy,” the chamber said. It notes that business leaders are already “investing back into their companies, rewarding their employees, and hiring more American workers.” Read more: Watchdog.org



Welcome New Town Square Chamber Partner: 
Appomattox, VA Chamber
We love being part of your business strategy!



Craft beer drives tourism to the Gulf Coast

When the state legislature allowed craft breweries to sell their beer on site, they opened the doors to a new form of tourism. 

"More than half of the customers that come through the brewery are actually tourists," said Melia Christensen, the owner of a local brewery. 

By cashing in on its growing popularity, the craft beer business has the potential to be more than just a tasting experience. 

"There is a strong movement around craft beer nationally. There's a lot of people when they travel, it's just a thing. They just go visit the local brewery," added Christensen.  

The Craft Beer Festival in MGM Park saw visitors from the area and beyond. Those who love craft beer and traveling say it's great. That the two can be combined. 

"We recently just went on a trip and checked out a couple of the local breweries, so I really do. That's something I look for when I go into a new city, where can we check out the local breweries," said Jordan McQueen, a festival-goer. 

Since the law was changed last year, craft brewers have been enjoying seeing the fruits of their labor. 

"We love going out throughout Mississippi and seeing our cans on store shelves. It's a great feeling," said Christensen about her brewery. 

The beer drinkers get to enjoy the variety of more than 50 breweries and distributors the state has to offer. 

"I've been there in New York, North Carolina, Colorado, just wherever I am. I do a little research, and if it's in that area, I'll travel if I have some free time and check out a little craft beer action," said Andrew Peterson, a festival-goer. 

Festival organizers say they are expecting the event to grow, and more breweries may be opening their doors, meaning the Mississippi Gulf Coast could be the next big travel spot for millennial beer connoisseurs. 

This was the second year the Biloxi Chamber of Commerce put on the event. Read more: WABC 5

Indiana Chamber Scores State Legislators on 2018 Voting Records

Each year, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce holds state lawmakers accountable for their voting records on pro-jobs, pro-economy legislation. Today, the 2018 results were revealed in the organization’s annual Legislative Vote Analysis, with voting scores ranging from 47% to 100%.

“Employers and citizens alike should seek to have a clear, objective understanding of how their legislators vote on vital issues and in turn, how that impacts their individual prosperity,” states Indiana Chamber President Kevin Brinegar.

“This report makes evident which lawmakers were supportive of bettering Indiana’s economic climate and which were not.”

Bills included for examination in the Legislative Vote Analysis can be traced back to the Indiana Chamber’s economic development plan, Indiana Vision 2025. The plan contains 36 goals in the four driver areas of Outstanding Talent, Attractive Business Climate, Superior Infrastructure, and Dynamic and Creative Culture.

Among the bills included in the report are: enhanced water resource management (courtesy a taskforce), a computer science course offering in all schools, better alignment of the state’s various education and workforce programs, as well as tax clarity for the software-as-a-service industry and reconciling the state tax code with the federal one in wake of the new tax law.

Brinegar acknowledges these are important wins, and all are Indiana Chamber priorities, but stresses that more work needs to be done in several key areas. Specifically, two Indiana Chamber priorities are not included in this analysis because no floor votes were taken due to leadership decisions. Those were measures to raise the smoking age from 18 to 21 and township reform for the smallest townships in the state.

“For this exercise, it means that two critical pieces of legislation never came into play, so ‘tough votes’ weren’t taken and overall vote scores are higher as a result,” Brinegar offers.

All scores and the full report are available on the Indiana Chamber’s web site at www.indianachamber.com/lva.

The Prairie du Chien Community Guide  

The Prairie du Chien Chamberr of Commerce Community Guide is available today at the Chamber of Commerce! Thank you to Bob Moses and the Chamber team for their help and direction putting this together! 

Prairie du Chien Community Guide

Town Square Publications  (www.townsquarepublications.com) can help you accomplish your chamber's gloss map, directory, community profile or publication needs at no expense to the chamber. Please email John Dussman at jdussman@tspubs.com or call (847)-427-4633.

MAC meeting focuses on leadership, veterans

Christian County Chamber of Commerce had its monthly meeting on Wednesday, discussing several issues and wrapping up the tenure of MAC chair Michael Felts.

The guest speaker of the month was Tere Kangas of the American Red Cross and Americorp Points of Light. Kangas spoke briefly about the Points of Light projects, which allow military members and their families to create projects to benefit their communities.

“It’s a volunteer leadership training,” Kangas said. “It goes throught seven modules. Through those seven modules you learn to do community assessment, how to garner your volunteers, how to use your media, how to basically plan that project from A to Z and hopefully get so inspired and energetic that you go out there and do these great projects in the community.”

Kangas gave the example of one veteran, who made stockings out of old battle dress uniforms, stuffed them with candy and other items and delivered them on Christmas day to children in hospitals and firefighters. Read more: Kentucky New Era

2018 ACCE Award Communications Excellence Winners

Presenting this year's ACCE Communications Excellence winners! The Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives today announced winners of its Communications Excellence awards program, sponsored by Golden Openings, Inc. In June 2018, six marketing and communications leaders from Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington, D.C. gathered at #ACCEHQ to carefully review more than 150 award submissions. These entries highlight some of the freshest and most innovative marketing and communications work coming from ACCE member organizations of all types and sizes. Each submission was organized by type — advertising and marketing, campaigns, digital and publications — and by the submitting organization’s total annual budget range: under $1 million, $1 to $3 million and above $3 million. In addition to awards listed below, three “Best in Show” awards will be announced during the #ACCEAwards Show on Wednesday, July 18 at #ACCE18 in Des Moines, Iowa.

Grand Awards

Advertising and Marketing

Champaign County Chamber of Commerce (lll.)
Chamber Zone

Salt Lake Chamber
Utah Tax Modernization

Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce (Mo.)
Springfield Region Digital Brochure

Campaigns

Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
Preserving Public-Private Partnerships in the Chamber Industry – Legislative Advocacy Campaign

Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce (Mo.)
A Better KCI

Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce (Ark.)
Love, Little Rock Campaign

Wilmington Chamber of Commerce (N.C.)
Choose Cape Fear

Digital

Greater Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce (Ind.)
Valpo Chamber Video Newsletter Highlights

Indy Chamber
The New IndyChamber.com

Round Rock Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
Skilled Trades Image Campaign


Publications

Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce (S.C.)
Quarterly Report Series

Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce (Colo.)
Northern Colorado Prospers Quarterly Report

Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
2018 Membership Directory, Relocation & Island Guide


Awards of ExcellenceAdvertising and Marketing


Lincoln Chamber of Commerce (Neb.)
Lincoln Beer Tour


Lincoln Chamber of Commerce (Neb.)
YP Week

Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce (Va.)
Superhero 5K 2018 Marketing

Plano Chamber of commerce (Texas)
Plano Chamber Story – Member Testimonial Campaign

Robins Regional Chamber (Ga.)
SOAR


Campaigns
Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montréal

Metro Cities Chambers for NAFTA 2.0

Detroit Regional Chamber
Detroit Regional Chamber Campaign for Civility

Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce (N.Y.)
Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce Rebrand Bash

Greater Des Moines Partnership (Iowa)
Economic Development and Talent Attraction Digital Marketing Campaign

Greater Des Moines Partnership (Iowa)
Maximizing Momentum 2022: Investor Campaign for the Greater Des Moines Partnership

Greater Oklahoma City
Safer Streets, Better OKC Campaign

Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce (Mich.)
Grand Rapids Chamber Rebranding Campaign

Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce (Fla.)
Minority Business Accelerator

Huntsville/Madison County Chamber (Ala.)
2017 School Tax Renewals

Jefferson Chamber of Commerce (La.)
LiveWell Jefferson Campaign


Lincoln Chamber of Commerce (Neb.)
Eclipse Seasonal Signs

One Acadiana (La.)
One Acadiana South Louisiana Branding Initiative

Sanford Area Growth Alliance (N.C.)
Prelude to Progress

State Chamber of Oklahoma
OK2030 Campaign

Tulsa Regional Chamber (Okla.)
Tulsa Regional Chamber Economic Development Campaign


Digital

Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce (Ala.)
Eastern Shore Elf


Edmonton Chamber of Commerce (Alb.)
Digital, Blog, Brand Lessons Learned from the City of Champions Debate

Fayette Chamber of Commerce (Ga.)
Video: 2017 Chamber Accomplishments

Garrett County Chamber of Commerce (Md.)
Deep Creek Virtual Reality Experience

Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce (Mich.)
Grand Rapids Chamber Breakfast with Legislators Social Media Campaign

Greater Aiken Chamber of Commerce (S.C)
AikenHasIt.com Digital Campaign

Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce (Ark.)
Small Business BingoFest

Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
New Website – www.IrvingChamber.com

North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce
Chamber Video Testimonial Digital Campaign

Northwest Metroport Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
Economic Development Video

Plano Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
Plano Chamber Building Blocks Emails

Round Rock Chamber of Commerce (Texas)
PRO Round Rock

Seminole County Regional Chamber of Commerce (Fla.)
Riverside Dash 5K & 15K Event: Influencers/Race Ambassadors Campaign

Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce (Ohio)
EPIC Toledo Website

Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce (N.C.)
Open for Business Podcast

Publications
Chandler Chamber of Commerce (Ariz.)
How We Stand – Chandler Chamber of Commerce

Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce (N.C.)
2018 Visitors & Relocation Guide

Fayette Chamber of Commerce (Ga.)
Fayette Community Source Magazine

Greater Macon Chamber of Commerce (Ga.)
Annual Report

Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce (Ga.)
Gwinnett Chamber Annual Report

Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce (Ark.)
The Good Life Destination Guide

Learn more about ACCE's Communications Excellence awards here.

Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.

Town Square Publications, a division of the Daily Herald Media Group, is a national chamber custom publishing group that specializes in developing partnerships by producing high-quality print and digitally integrated publications along with other added value programs dedicated to creating relevancy for local chambers of commerce and other membership focused organizations interested in raising non-dues revenues.

Town Square Publications parent company, Paddock Publications, has over 100 years’ experience of print product development and dedicated customer service in communities throughout the Midwest. Our experience allows Town Square Publications to offer you attractive royalty and non-dues revenue share streams, provide direct distribution of your custom designed printed publications, including digital and mobile integration, and all with the quickest turn-around times available in the industry. Town Square also offers multi-media maps in both print and online formats, both with our No-Cost guarantee. More information: Town Square Publications

Chambers of Commerce and member focused organizations serve as a valuable resource in the local marketplace. The networking opportunities and representation with a wide variety of diverse businesses in your community is the catalyst of a successful organization. For further information about Town Square's publishing partnership with chambers of commerce and our No-Cost guarantee and Earned Revenue Share Program, To request your chamber publication or map proposal, contact Town Square Chamber Proposal