Chamber's True Loyalty: Business Community vs. Government Pressure
Feedback from the business community highlights the Chamber's unwavering commitment to prioritizing the needs and interests of local businesses. While collaboration with government entities is essential, our primary duty remains advocating for and supporting the business community.
In 2017, two major research reports significantly impacted the entire chamber community. The US Chamber of Commerce released a landmark study on The Regulatory Impact On Small Business: Complex. Cumbersome. Costly (https://www.northwestvalleychamber.com/why-we-fight-for-small-business)
Around that same period, the Western Association of the Chamber Executives (WACE) published a landmark research study examining what the business sector expects from chambers. WACE called for a significant rebranding effort by chambers nationwide. A two-minute video explaining the research and the rebranding can be seen at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzrY3eT3uvQ. This study was crucial because chamber revenue nationwide had remained flat for the past 25 years. The findings led to a nationwide rebranding initiative.
Local Business Input Drives our Priorities
Alongside the Brand Definition Project release, our local Chamber engaged the business community in identifying the top concerns and asked our members to rank and rate our programs and activities. The survey results indicated that federal, state, and local advocacy was the top priority for business owners. Conversely, activities such as parades, parties, mixers, social events, and fundraisers consistently ranked as the least important.
In response to these findings, the NW Valley Chamber adjusted its mission and redirected efforts accordingly. While advocacy emerged as a top priority, other programs remained in place, except for mixers, which were discontinued due to poor attendance and low priority for the business community.
Top Three Chamber Priorities as Identified by the Business Community
Over the years, our local Chamber surveys have consistently identified the following top three priorities by the business community (in rank order):
- Advocacy (including less burdensome regulations, lower taxes, and a pro-business climate)
- Direct-to-consumer marketing activities.
- Advertising, marketing, and branding activities
On the other hand, social events, fundraisers, parades, and parties, including mixers, have consistently been the lowest priorities for the business community and our members.
Top Concerns of the Business Community
The top three current concerns of our members and the local business community also align with the findings of the US Chamber of Commerce and other chamber industry research:
- Inflation
- Labor and wage costs
- Government taxes, regulations, and red tape
This data underscores the Chamber's commitment to addressing the needs and priorities of the business community first and foremost. While collaboration with government entities is necessary, our primary obligation is to advocate for and support the interests of local businesses.
