July 13, 2018

Member News


Welcome to the latest addition to the Door Doctor of Southern Illinois's fleet of vehicles.  Continuing to serve our community!

Member News


E.R. Brown will be hosting their Annual Tent Sale from Thursday at 9am to Saturday at 4pm.  Cardinals/Cubs baseball ticket drawing giveaway with Z100.  Come support this local business and fellow chamber member!

Shop & Play on Chamber Website

In May, we started our summer promotion in the Rend Lake Adventures newsletter.  In conjunction with that, we are developing a "Shop & Play" section of the website for our community visitors.  This is a place you can put special sales, food events, and event activities.  This feeds from our regular full community calendar, but these items are broken into genres and include a link to a printable list.

 Add to this page by using the Chamber Community Calendar.

Opioid Epidemic & Your Business


The United States is in the midst of an opioid overdose epidemic.
 Opioids (including prescription and illicit opioids) killed more than 33,000 Americans in 2015—which is nearly quadruple the number from 2000.

Learn how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is working to protect individuals and families—including your employees and your business—from this dangerous problem.
FOUR CRITICAL CHALLENGES FACING EMPLOYERS


Day Camp @ Camp Manitowa

New Opportunities!


Are you looking for new employment or volunteer opportunities?  Check out the Chamber Opportunity Board!  Start a new chapter in your community!

Generation Books


Generations of Memories Books are available for purchase at the Chamber Office, Flowers by Dave, Heartland Office Supply, and the Buzz.
Pick up yours today!

Contact Us!

Benton/West City Area Chamber of Commerce
211 N. Main St. Benton, IL 62812
P.O. Box 574 Benton, IL 62812
618-438-2121     info@bentonwestcitychamber.com
www.BentonWestCityChamber.com

8 East Steps to Attracting Your Ideal Customer and Improving Sales


One of the most common mistakes businesses make is wanting to be all things to all customers. Just as in life and friendships, you will never be everyone’s “cup of tea.”
 
That’s okay. It’s more than okay.
 
Understanding this and attracting your ideal customer is the one way to build loyalty among your clients and provide them with the services and products they need. In personalizing your sales approach you will gain more, not less.
Here’s how you can go about doing that:

You can use the 'Multipost' function in the ChamberNation portal to more effectively reach your social media followers.

Southern Illinois Made Expo: July 28 & 29th

How to Handle Scammers and Non-Payers


Recently, reports have been made of individuals not fulfilling business contracts or paying bills.  This was reported by the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce and local businesses have fallen victim as well.   But what rights do you have?  This article can provide some guidance, how to prevent non-payment, and what rights you have.

If someone states they are selling advertisements for an upcoming event or program, please contact the planning organization to confirm the partnership.  We have had reports of an individual who sold advertisements in the name of the Rend Lake Fireworks.  We found out about this on Wednesday, and none of the funds went to the event.  They were not affiliated with the event and weaseled their way onto the event grounds.  This is something we are going to be more proactive about in the future. But we need your help.

Please protect your community.  If you have been scammed, see a scam, or suspect a scam, please notify the chamber so we can alert the membership.  You don't have to do this alone.

Rend Lake Car Show: Sept 8th


Registration Forms PDF
Rend Lake Car Show Sponsorship Opportunities

The  first meeting of the Rend Lake Car Show Planning Committee will be Wednesday, July 18th at 5:30 at Jack Russell Fish Company.  Registrations forms will be mailed out next week, online registration currently available!

Kick off a Season of Reading


This week, the Benton Public Library kicked off their summer reading program.  Explore the following topics with your children:
6/25 - Science Day
7/2 - UofI Extension - Butterflies
7/9 - US Corps of Engineers - Birds
7/16 - Bicycle Safety Day
7/23 - Award and Prize Picnic

The Benton Public Library is also part of  “Illinois Reads”.  This program was introduced by the Illinois Reading Council in March 2013. The initiative encourages people to read books by Illinois authors. Each year, the program offers a new list of books at six different age levels. “Illinois Reads” kicks off in March and concludes in November with “Family Reading Night”.  The Benton Public Library is pleased to have these books in their collection and invites you to join in the fun! 

Childcare Assistance Resources

Too many low- to moderate-income, working parents are going without the child care help for which they qualify. Many might not know of its availability. Others might be aware of it, but wary after two years of turmoil related to the state’s budget impasse and sharp cuts in eligibility – cuts that ReadyNation and a bipartisan group of legislators and allies helped to reverse last August. So, to help increase working parents’ awareness of the child care program, we’ve developed a one-page flyer you can find at this link. It briefly describes the services available, and notes where parents can call or check online to see if they are eligible to participate.
 
If you are an employer or manager, please consider:
  • Posting this flyer in break rooms
  • Including it with “onboarding” materials for new hires
  • Sharing it with human resources execs
  • Publicizing it in employee newsletters

Member Events

Rend Lake Trivia Night
07/13/2018
Rend Lake College - Rec Center
468 N Ken Gray Parkway
Ina, IL 62846

Full House of Death
07/14/2018
Pheasant Hollow Winery
14931 IL-37
Whittington, IL 62897

Legos at the Library
07/14/2018
Benton Public Library
502 S Main St.
Benton, IL 62812

Heritage Woods; Open House
07/14/2018
Heritage Woods of Benton
1305 Bailey Lane
Benton, IL 62812

Rend Lake Visitor Center Public Paint Party
07/14/2018
Rend Lake Visitors Center 
11981 Rend City Rd
Benton, IL 62812

Day Camp @ Camp Manitowa
07/16/2018- 07/20/2018
Camp Manitowa
12770 North Benton Rd
Benton, IL 62812

Summer Reading Program Day
07/16/2018
Benton Public Library
502 S Main St.
Benton, IL 62812

Knit and Crochet @ the Library
07/17/2018
Benton Public Library
502 South Main
Benton, IL 62812

3rd Friday Music at Pheasant Hollow Winery
07/20/2018
Pheasant Hollow Winery
14931 IL-37
Whittington, IL 62897

Events in the Community

Check out other community activities and submit events here!

Share Your News!


Do you have a special announcement or product you would like to showcase?  Let us know so we can share it with everyone!  Email the chamber office information and a picture!
Chamber E-Newsletter - July 13, 2018