Did you know that nearly 95% of the members of the Greater Hartsville Chamber of Commerce have 100 or less employees and that 76% percent have 10 or less employees?
That is a lot of small business!
At the chamber, we have tried to really shift our focus to bringing valuable opportunities to our small businesses. Not only do we promote them like crazy on social media, through our eblasts, on our website, and anytime someone with a heartbeat walks through our doors, but we also give them opportunities to expand their networks. Connecting people to resources is my favorite thing in the world to do and I love watching partnerships form. For example, Coker College’s softball coach Travis McCall was in the Leadership Hartsville program when he learned about Carolina’s Kids. He was so impressed with the work of Carolina’s Kids, he began volunteering with his players every week to pack food bags for the children in Darlington county who are less fortunate. Travis graduated three years ago but the players continue to give their time to help the community.
We have a really great Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) group at our chamber. The team of retired business leaders set aside two days a month to counsel entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes in the Pee Dee. We are also blessed to have Eddie Watson from the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) on our team. He also counsels entrepreneurs twice a month, right here at the chamber. We also partner with other organizations like the Small Business Administration (SBA) and SC Works to ensure our members know about all the resources available
to them. Earlier in the year the SBA hosted “Tools to Starting a Small Business” and joined forces with SC Works to host a “Veteran Employment and Entrepreneurship Workshop.”
In addition to those organizations, we have members who are extremely talented and give of their time and talents to help other businesses and this community. Recently, Chamber board member Jamie Kelly hosted a workshop “Social Media for Your Business.” Based on the feedback of the 30 participants, she plans to expand on the topic by offering six sessions to help elevate our members’ social media presence. Also, Travis Blayton of Palmetto Mortgage Group hosted a seminar “Buying a Home in Four Steps,” in which he broke down the homebuying process for individuals thinking of entering the real estate market.
Finally, our small businesses benefit from the exposure our events and programs offer. From fun, community-oriented events like the Taste of Hartsville and the Hartsville Community Golf Classic, to professional development opportunities like our Women’s Leadership Symposium, Leadership Hartsville, and HR Manager’s meetings, the opportunities to actualize a return on an investment in the chamber abound.
Our chamber in Hartsville is amazing, but so are all the chambers in our communities in the Pee Dee. If you are a small business owner and not a member of your local chamber of commerce, I encourage you to check out the benefits available to your business. You won’t regret the investment!