The NEW Chamber Brand!
The NEW Chamber Brand!We’re excited that the Chamber’s long-awaited “The Chamber Is” advertising and messaging program have been launched.
“The Chamber is” ad program is designed to help tell the story of today’s chamber of commerce, an organization that isn’t “old and stodgy” and, instead, if it plays to its strengths, can be more relevant than ever before.
Birth of the 3Cs
The campaign is a result of the “Defining the Promise of the Chamber of Commerce in the 21st Century” study that was released by BrandBirth at the 2017 W.A.C.E. annual conference. (W.A.C.E. conference is a national meeting of chamber CEOs.)
According to the study, chambers exist to be the Catalyst for business growth, the Convener for leaders and influencers, and the Champion for stronger communities. This was the birth of the 3Cs. Subsequently, in early 2018 the board of directors of the Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce changed it’s mission statement and set into motion a series of changes and strategic initiatives to move the Chamber on this new path.
Much like any organization that has performed a mission and focus change, the next question revolved around how best to communicate this change to the public and a new generation of business owners. This need to communicate about the new chamber resulted in the creation of an ad campaign that would help chambers live the 3C brand and communicate it to their members and the public at large. More importantly, the campaign was designed to create a consistent brand for chambers industry-wide.
Courage
My favorite of the ten ads in the campaign is the one on Courage: We stand up for what we believe in, and we are willing to fight for what’s right, so our businesses can grow and our community can thrive.”
This message, when coupled with the other ads from the campaign, can help project a VERY different image for our organization… and as a Chamber, we will need to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. The Chamber has already hired a lobbyist and stepped up its advocacy efforts as fundamental reshifting towards achieving this new role in the community.
Undoubtedly some chambers will you stay the course that’s dominated by ribbon cuttings, mixers, festivals, and monthly breakfasts. But the Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce and its visionary board were an early adopter of this change.
The Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce has led the charge for this new direction and is going down the “road less traveled” that has included controversy, confrontation, and VERY heavy issues that deserve bold, catalytic leadership from the business leaders in our Chamber.
Survival of the Fittest
The years ahead for chambers of commerce could end up being “survival of the fittest,” with some chambers thriving while others, often located right “next door” might be barely holding on or could even fade away. A question I like to ask chamber leaders is “What do you want to be known for?” The choice, and it’s an important one for our industry, and many chambers have decided going down the road less traveled and doing what it takes to be a 3C chamber.
Raoul Sada is the president and CEO of Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber serves the business communities of El Mirage, Sun City, Sun City West, Surprise, and Youngtown
Respectfully,
Raoul
President and CEO
Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce (A 3-C Chamber*)
Serving the Business Communities of El Mirage, Sun City, Sun City West, Surprise, and Youngtown
16126 N. Civic Center Plaza
Surprise AZ 85374
Main Number: 623-583-0692
Email: raoul@surpriseregionalchamber.com
www.surpriseregionalchamber.com