Connecting with Waupaca, Iola, Scandinavia, Weyauwega, Fremont, Manawa, Amherst and Surrounding Communities.

(continued page 2)

April 2012 Newsletter

Staff President: Terri Schulz Operations Director: Kathy LeClair Tourism Director: Jeff Anderson Information Services: Lynn Tolle Sales Director: Tom Weiss

Officers Chair, Craig Kantos, Riverside Medical Center Chair-Elect, Paul Shrode, Fox Valley Technical College Vice Chair / Secretary / Treasurer, Kirk Kallio, ThyssenKrupp Waupaca, Inc. Past Chair

Directors

Chris Enslin, Recover Health Trey Foerster, Journal Community Publishing Group Allyce Lees, The Paint Store William Lipschultz, Alter Metal Recycling Mark Staniak, Cellcom Jerry Tiffany, Tiffany Complete Estate Planning Julie Thompson, Community First Credit Union Angie Wanty, First National Bank Bill Zimmerman, Office Outfitters

W a u p a c aW a u p a c aW a u p a c a A r e a C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c eA r e a C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c eA r e a C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c e

Contact The Chamber if your business is

interested in becoming a President’s Club

Sponsor. 715-258-7343

PRESIDENT’S PRESIDENT’S PRESIDENT’S CLUB CLUB CLUB SPONSORSSPONSORSSPONSORS

ThyssenKrupp Waupaca, Inc.

Making

Connections

Pinterest for Marketing and Networking By Pamela Vaughan, via Hubspot.com Over the past few months, you may have heard some chatter about a brand new social network called Pinterest. Not surprising. According to Compete, unique visitors to Pinterest.com increased by 429% from September to December 2011, and the social network already boasts a user base of 3.3 million. Pinterest is only growing in popularity as the hottest new social network, and in Decem-ber 2011, it made Hitwise's list of the top 10 social networks, currently sitting at #5 and beating out big names like LinkedIn and Google+. And as with any hot new social network that comes onto the scene, marketers are chiming in with, "Can I use it for marketing?" "...and, how?" The short answer? Absolutely. The longer answer? Read on to find out how. (And be sure to follow HubSpot's pins at http://pinterest.com/hubspot!) What is Pinterest, and How Does it Work? Pinterest is a social network that allows users to visually share, curate, and dis-cover new interests by posting (AKA 'pinning') images or videos to their own or others' pinboards (i.e. a collection of 'pins,' usually with a common theme) and browsing what other users have pinned. Using a visual emphasis, the social net-work is very much focused on the concept of a person's lifestyle, allowing you to share your tastes and interests with others and discover those of likeminded people. The social network's goal is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting." Users can either upload images from their computer or pin things they find on the web using the Pinterest bookmarklet. As with most other social networks, users can perform standard social network-ing functions such as following the boards of their friends, liking and comment-ing on other users' pins, re-pinning content to their own boards, sharing others' pins on Facebook and Twitter or via email, and even embedding individual pins on their website or blog. Pinterest Etiquette As with any site that is built around content curation, 'pinners' (Pinterest users) must be especially cognizant of citing the sources of their individual pins. And while Pinterest makes no direct statement that marketers cannot use the social (continued page 2)

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(continued from page 1) network for promotional purposes, the site does discourage blatant self-promotion: "Avoid Self Promotion | Pinterest is designed to curate and share things you love. If there is a photo or pro-ject you’re proud of, pin away! However, try not to use Pinterest purely as a tool for self-promotion." Couple this with Pinterest's lifestyle vision, and what its means is that marketers need to find creative ways to promote their brand on the network and truly jive with its vision and user base. In other words, businesses should use the social network to showcase the lifestyle their brand promotes. If you're a shoe vendor, a pin-board of the shoes you sell won't cut it. A pinboard of a few of your shoes interspersed with images of places those shoes could take you, however, is the direction you should be thinking. AARP's Pinterest account features a pinboard called 'Quotes to Live By,' which is a great example of a busi-ness using Pinterest to promote the lifestyle of its brand.

How to Create a Pinterest Account Surprisingly enough, user access to Pinterest still operates under an invitation-only basis. That being said, you can request an invitation, and Pinterest doesn't exactly seem to be very stingy about granting requests. Visit www.pinterest.com, click 'Request an Invite,' and enter your email address to be notified when you have access to create your account. Or you can ask a friend who already has a Pinterest account to invite you -- this seems to be the speediest of the two methods. (Important Tip: Be sure to register your account with the same email address you use for your business' Twitter account so you can easily share your new pins through your Twitter account, too. Once you receive an invitation to sign up for Pinterest, you'll want to sign up through the Twitter option, not the Facebook op-tion. This will enable you to tie your Pinterest account to your business' Twitter account, not your personal Facebook profile. Currently, Pinterest doesn't offer a connection to Facebook business pages.) Once your account is activated, optimize your Pinterest profile under 'Settings.' Choose your company name as your username and complete your profile information, including a company description, logo, and a link to your website. Be sure you keep 'Hide your Pinterest profile from search engines' checked to 'Off' so your pro-file can get indexed in search. Build Your Following on Pinterest Once you get started, you'll want to create a few pinboards before you start trying to build your Pinterest fol-lowing (check out the list in the next section for some great ideas!). This way, new followers will have a rea-son to follow your pins; it's the same reason why you would populate a brand new blog with a few posts be-fore you start promoting it. Unfortunately, because the 'Find Friends' feature on Pinterest leverages a personal Facebook profile (not business page), this tool won't be very useful for your business. Therefore, you'll want to promote your presence through other means to jumpstart your Pinterest following: Add the Pinterest follow button to your website.  Promote your presence on Pinterest through your other social networks by encouraging your followers/fans on Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and Twitter to follow your pins! Consider launching your presence with a Pinterest contest (see below), and write a blog post to promote it. 

Start following users you think would want to follow you back. Read more: http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/31147/The-Ultimate-Guide-to-Mastering-Pinterest-for-Marketing.aspx#ixzz1qEEWtSCB

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AT&T: Launchs a Quarter-Billion-Dollar Campaign to Boost Workplace Readiness. Between now and April 18th they are encouraging Wisconsin eligible

organizations to submit applications to pre-qualify for possible funding opportunities through the Local High School Impact Initiative RFP’s. They are most interested in funding local programs that have strong evidence-based practices grounded in ‘What Works Clearinghouse Dropout Prevention’: A Practice Guide, as well as other data-driven outcomes to improve high school graduation rates. More information on the RFP process and eligibility requirements is available at www.att.com/education-news.

First State Bank: First State Bank president, Harry Radix, recently announced the addition of Michael A. Morse to the bank’s management staff. As vice president and business banking manager, Morse will be working with

business clients throughout the communities that First State Bank serves. He will also oversee the business banking department. Morse joins business bankers, Peter Kurth and Tim Pritzl, and Ag banker, Tod Severson  

 City of Waupaca: Reminder that South Main Street construction will begin on April 2nd. A signed detour will be established on Washington Street to Lakeside Parkway. City of Waupaca: Recently published the 2011 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report. The report states that the

drinking water is safe and has again met and exceeded all regulated federal and state requirements in 2011. The water source is seven shallow wells located around the City which utilizes the local shallow ground water aquifer. If interested in more detail the Water Department has the complete report and a source water recharge reports.

Fox Valley Technical College: Congratulations to FVTC on their 100th

anniversary. Follow this link for more information on ‘Celebrating 100 Years of Knowledge That Works’ http://www.fvtc.edu/public/content.aspx?ID=2182&PID=1

FVTC has proposed a referendum that will be up for vote on Tuesday, April 3. For more information visit their website www.techworksfvtc.com

UWSP Continuing Education and the College of Fine Arts & Communication (COFAC) will offer a weeklong summer music and studio art camps on campus for students in grades 9 through 12. Instruction will be by UWSP faculty and guest artists, June 24-30. They are also offering a Studio Art Camp, June 24-30. Campers will work with

university art faculty and guest artists in daily studio workshops as well as an optional evening life drawing workshop. For more information or to register, please contact UWSP Continuing Education at (800)898-9472 or go to www.uwsp.edu/campcofac .

Tom and Barb retired to the Chain O’ Lakes in July of this year after living in New Jersey for the last 30 years. Both are native Wis-consinites having grown up in Mil-waukee and meeting at the Universi-ty of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.

For over 45 years Tom and Barbara have been vacationing at the Chain O’Lakes. Tom, Barb, and their two daughters have always considered the Chain O’ Lakes and the Waupaca area as their second home. Tom’s great grandfather was mustered out of the famous Civil War Wisconsin Iron Brigade in 1865 and Barb’s relatives made their homestead in Weyauwega around the 1870’s.

Tom’s background has always been in sales and sales management in the logistics supply chain manage-ment field. He has worked for a number of companies such as Fed-Ex Supply Chain Services and American President Lines.

Tom feels very fortunate to join the Waupaca Area Camber of Com-merce and be able to not only net-work with the wonderful people in our area, but also be in a position to make a positive contribution to a community he and his family now call home.

Chamber Welcomes Tom Weiss as Sales Director

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Brahmsteadt Advisors, LLC Dale Brahmsteadt 416 High Street

Waupaca WI 54981 (715) 256-4955

Finding solutions for businesses to keep costs

down, meet their needs, will research to find the best

solution and will give the full story. Dealing in telecom, security and credit card

China House Xi Chen

113 N Western Avenue Waupaca WI 54981

(715) 258-8680

Enjoy the great taste of China! China House has 35 fresh

items on the buffet.

Feature Play DVD

Jim Kirk PO Box 24

Waupaca WI 54981 (715) 942-6432

DVD rental kiosk, rent DVDs, Blu-Ray and video games.

Welcome New Investors

Discover Tuscany

The Waupaca Area Chamber has teamed up with the Fox Cities Chamber and Heart of the Valley Chamber to of-fer a trip to Italy, Nov. 4-13, 2012 through Passport Travel via Collette Travel*. The trip is 10 days with 13 meals included. Attend an informational meeting, with beverages and cheese and crackers on Wednesday, April 18 at 5:30 pm at the Chamber Conference Room. For complete details visit this weblink http://www.collettevacations.com/link/500138 *This is a preferred provider program which provides a return back to the Chamber for each trip booked.

The LEADS Network may be your ticket to success. Attend a meeting and see how the network works. It turns Referrals to Riches; It is easy to participate; It can benefit your business and others; You will make new friends who will help promote your business. It is just that easy.

Network #1 meets 1st & 3rd Thursday at 8am; Network #2 meets 2nd & 4th Thursday at 12:30pm. To attend a meeting contact Terri: Terri@WaupacaAreaChamber.com, 715-258-7343.

LEADS Network

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May 31, 2012 8-9:30am Farmers State Bank lower level meeting room

Find out how the new Obamacare will affect your business. David Radke, Willis, will give a high level overview of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - what it means from an employer's per-spective. He will focus on the components of the law that already went into effect, and will go into ef-fect in the next several years. He will also discuss many areas that are still ambiguous in the law and how that affects employers.

The Speaker: David Radke has 23+ years of experience in the planning, design and administration of employee benefits. He consults employers throughout the Country and serves as an advisor to man-agement on a wide variety of employee benefit and insurance issues. He has been with Willis of Wis-consin since 1985 and directs the organization’s large group consulting and brokerage efforts. He has a B.A. in organizational communication from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Travel Green Wisconsin presented by Shelly Allness

April 24, 2012, 8:00 am & Noon, Crystal River Inn Bed & Breakfast

In the spirit of Wisconsin's deep heritage of environmental stewardship, the Department of Tourism initiated Travel Green Wisconsin in 2006 to promote smart, environmentally friendly business practices. The program is the first state-sponsored sustainable travel certification program in the nation and has become a model for sustainable travel efforts both nationally and internationally. As more and more travelers look to make life a little greener, we hope you'll become one of the tourism businesses that works hard to reduce environmental impact.

Join us on April 24th , 8:00 a.m. or 12:00 Noon to learn how going green can benefit your business' bottom line. Green, or sustainable, business has moved into the mainstream of tourism and many businesses are capitalizing on the triple bottom line benefits. Shelly Allness will share insightful information about the Department of Tourism's Travel Green Wisconsin initiative. Learn how your business and community can become more sustainable while gaining marketing power from the Department of Tourism. Shelly Allness is the Travel Green Wisconsin, Program Manager & Liaison.

Advance registration is required by Tuesday, April 17th: This event is FREE and all are welcome. A box lunch is available for the Noon session, cost $10. Please indicate with your RSVP. Email: jeff@waupacaareachamber.com. Phone: (715) 258-7343. Register online at: http://www.waupacaareachamber.com/chamber-of-commerce/chamber-events/

Congratulations Lynn! Lynn Tolle celebrates her 9th anniversary with the Chamber this month!

Thanks Lynn for all you do!

Obamacare Informational Session

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WHS Entrepreneurs Invade Rec Center More than 150 Waupaca High School Juniors invaded the Waupaca Recreation Center at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 20th. The occasion was a one-day version of the popular program, Business World, presented by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) and the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce.

Business World or, more accurately in this case, Mini Business World, is an intensive, exercise in entrepreneurship. Sixteen teams, each comprised of six - ten randomly assigned students, formed for the competition. They were welcomed by WMC’s Steve Benzschawel who outlined the schedule for the day: name your company, invent a product, elect a CEO and other company officers, design a logo, prepare marketing materials, write a mission statement, vision and value statements and then make a presentation to the entire assembly. (Insert deep breath here) This will not be a problem as you have until 2:00 to finish. Oh yes, we’ll also have other contests like, “The Smartest Guy in the Room” and “The Price is Right’ and, don’t forget – a half hour for lunch!

Guidelines limit the students to the ‘Sports & Recreation’ industry which proves to be not at all limiting. Products ranged from high-tech sunglasses to multi-purpose athletic shoes with interchangeable soles to vitamin enhanced sun block cream that provides rejuvenating properties to athletes via their pores. There are improved balls, gloves, underwear and photo equipment for sports ranging from ping-pong to fencing. Some of the products are amusing, some inspirational, but all are very creative. The students’ ability to become a cohesive, productive unit so quickly is no surprise to the WMC staff but is awe-inspiring for the chamber staff and volunteers.

Under the auspices of the non-profit WMC Foundation, Business World has taught enlightened and trained college-bound young people for over 30 years and boasts over 14,000 alumni from the 4-day summer programs. The one-day ‘mini’ programs began in 2011.

The purpose of Business World is to educate the future workforce about business and the state of Wisconsin and its products. Students learn about different business models such as luxury, mass merchandising and analytical merchandising. They learn the importance of matching company communications and marketing decision to product category and company image. The finance department analyzes data dealing with the cost of doing business and communicates with other departments. They see the importance of environmental responsibility, charitable giving and community involvement. Department heads have regular strategy meetings and every student is involved in developing their product and the presentation to the whole group at the end of the day.

A regular part of Business World fun includes “The Smartest Guy in the Room”; a game conducted by Foundation Director, Jim Morgan. A series of questions about our state’s economy, employment picture, manufacturing, agriculture and tourism industries eliminates incorrect answers and culminates with a prize for the last person standing.

The whole assembly also participates in a game of “The Price is Right” also featuring many Wisconsin products. The two games are so much fun that few are aware that they are learning as they play.

Lunch for the students was provided by Chain Bar & Grill, the Wheel House, Weasel’s, Pizza Hut, Little Caesar’s, The Filling Station, Mama Z’s Bakery & Java Hut, Piggly Wiggly and Pick ‘N’ Save. Soft drinks and refreshments were compliments of the Chamber.

The Mini Business World was the first such effort in Waupaca but, according the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce president, Terri Schulz, “We are hoping to make this a regular event. It is a wonderful opportunity for the kids. It’s such a great way to learn, we want everyone to have this opportunity.”

Ms. Schulz explained that the program has some cost involved and was possible only due to the generosity of local sponsors including ThyssenKrupp Waupaca, Farmers State Bank, 1st National Bank, Klismet’s Three Squares, Neuville Motors, RE/MAX Shambeau & Lyons, United Country-Udoni & Salan Realty, Waupaca Economic Development Corp. and the Chamber Ambassadors.

For more information about Business World, call the Business World office at (888) 276-7953 (Ext. 2) or online: www.WiBusinessWorld.org. The Waupaca Area Chamber can be reached at (715) 258-7343 or their website: www.WaupacaAreaChamber.com.

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Waupaca County Nutrition & Activity Coalition (NuAct) has scheduled a Community Meeting for the Waupaca Eating Smart (WES) Program, Friday, April 13, 2012, 2-3:30 p.m. at the Waupaca County Courthouse, Room LL43 (basement level). The WES Program has been active in Waupaca restaurants for the past year. NuAct is pleased to offer this informational meeting to other restaurants. If you are a restaurant who is already offering at least 3 different vegetables on your menu and would be willing to serve at least 1 cup of fruits and/or vegetables with a “WES approved” entrée, we hope you will join us and hear what WES can offer you.

The meeting will offer discussion, time for questions, and an opportunity to complete a brief business plan, with the help of our staff, that will show how WES can work in your business. We will be offering a limited number of $100 mini-grants to businesses who submit a completed plan and have the plan approved by WES.

Please RSVP to Bev Hall by Friday, April 6th at bev.hall@co.waupaca.wi.us

NuAct Mission is to enhance the health of our children and families through improved nutritional choices and increased physical activities.

NuAct  

Waupaca County Nutrition & Activity Coalition

Shop Waupaca First keytags have been delivered. Additional keytags can be purchased at the

Chamber office. Employees of a member business can purchase the keytags for $2. Employers must make the purchase for their employees. Keytags are available to the general public to purchase for $10 each.

Click here for a current list of offerings in the keytag program. Please contact the Chamber office to list your discount offer. 715-258-7343.

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE!!

Contact Tom at the Chamber office. 715-258-7343 or

Tom@WaupacaAreaChamber.com

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Congratulations to these Member Investors on their March Anniversaries.

WDUX AM 800/FM 92.7 1956

Heritage Homes, Inc. 1979

Larry & Jan’s Resort 1976

Framing By Preston, DeHamer Taxidery Studio 1996

The Paint Store 1998

PawPaca 2008

Spine and Sport Physical Therapy of Waupaca, LLC 2008

ABC Marketing Consultants LLC 2010

Send your Anniversary date to Kathy@WaupacaAreaChamber.com to be recognized.

Congratulations

Thank you to our sponsor Chain O’ Lakes

Bar & Grill for a great evening!

April BUSINESS AFTER 5

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1

2 Strawberry Fest Committee Meeting 4:00 pm Chamber Conference Room

3 Directors Meeting 7:30 am Chamber Conference Room

4 Golf Outing Committee Meeting Chamber Conference Room 8:00 am

5 LEADS Network 1 7:30a Breakfast 8:00a Network Comfort Suites

6 Member Support Committee Meeting 7:30 am, Chamber Conference Room Chamber Office closed 12:00 p.m. Good Friday

7

8

9 10 Political Strategies Committee Meeting 8:00 am Chamber Conference Room

11 12 LEADS Network 2 12:30 pm Chamber Conference Room

13 Business Welcome Waupaca Speakeasy 2:00 pm

14

15 16

17 Business Enhancement Committee Meeting 7:30 am Chamber Conference Room

18 19 LEADS Network 1 7:30a Breakfast 8:00a Network Comfort Suites

20 21

22

23

24 Business After 5 After Park Vista

25 26 Tourism Promotion Committee Meeting 7:30 am Chamber Conference Room LEADS Network 2 12:30 pm Chamber Conference Room

27 28

29

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Reminders: 1. The deadline for the newsletter advertisement submission is the 15th of each month. 2. The Board of Directors usually meets on the first Tuesday of each month. 3. Business After 5 usually takes place on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Note: The Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce is a non-secular organization. Holi-days listed are legal holidays and are posted for business convenience only.

April 2012 Office Hours: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Monday - Friday

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Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce 221 S. Main Street, Waupaca, WI 54981 - Phone 715-258-7343 - Fax 715-258-7868

Happy

Easter