Frank J. Kenny's Chamber of Commerce Industry Blog

When someone leaves, it’s natural to want to know why. No matter what the relationship, leaving hurts. If you’ve lost a member (or more) this year, your chamber of commerce board may be asking you to conduct exit interviews of members who quit. With COVID, the why behind the departure may be more important than […]

We often get asked for ideas for increasing non-dues revenue. While there are many ways to create additional revenue streams for your chamber, we’re going to focus on non-dues revenue event ideas in this article. And not just any events. We’ve compiled the types of events that will get people talking. Fun, creative, unique and […]

As a chamber professional, your chamber board members can be lifesavers to you or they can make you feel like you’re drowning in problems.  Whether you inherited your board when you came on as president or you worked to recruit them, you need a high-functioning board to do your best. The first step is to […]

Your chamber events, especially the networking ones, are only as good as your “crop” of attendees. If your chamber represents a smaller town with a non-transient population, attendees may feel like it’s been the same faces since the 1990s. True or not, it can be hard to convince people your events are worth their time […]

Ready to start a coworking space? It can be profitable and certainly needed these days. With many people working from home and launching businesses, there is a big demand for both quiet spaces and professional locations. But can it be a lucrative form of non-dues revenue for the chamber? It can, but it all comes […]

COVID had many ripple effects on our economy that we’ll be feeling for a while. One of the most visible is the employee shortage. Business owners everywhere are asking, “where have all the employees gone?” They’ve gone freelance. Here’s how your chamber can tap into this fast-growing freelancer market as a source of new members […]

Remember the good ol’ days of in-person networking events? You picked a date, set up a venue, sent out some emails … and people showed up. Or maybe not. Maybe you’re trying to re-kindle your in-person networking and you’re getting a slow start. Perhaps your members are still concerned about safety or they’re now in […]

Many businesses have struggled for a couple of years now, but 2022 seems to be bringing things to a head with supply chain issues, inflation, and hiring difficulties. These are not new business trends – you’re familiar with these challenges by now. As chamber pros, it feels frustrating and disconcerting to know that many of […]