Five Secrets of Chamber Membership

By Alex Held, Membership Engagement Manager, Arlington Chamber of Commerce

While many members are aware of benefits of Chamber membership such as business advocacy, networking opportunities, and educational opportunities, which are regularly communicated through our weekly e-newsletter, many are not aware of the Chamber’s fringe benefits offered to members – until now. 

1. Meeting Space: With 33 percent of our membership encompassing solopreneurs, it’s no surprise that the Arlington Chamber of Commerce offers its meeting space to members at no cost. Members are able to utilize our office's boardroom, which holds about 20 comfortably, or our small conference room, which holds eight comfortably, once a month at no cost to the member. Our office is conveniently located in the Courthouse area, just steps away from the Courthouse Metro. Looking for a place to book your next leadership retreat? Visit our boardroom guidelines for more information or contact Hannah Dannenfelser at chamber@arlingtonchamber.org.
2. Discounts on goods and services: The Chamber staff has long promoted the fact that members are able to upload coupons to our website. Lately, we have received a number of great coupons. Curious about those little blue and white Smart cars parked around Arlington? Here’s your chance to give Car2Go a try with $10 in free drive time. In need of printing services? Enjoy this coupon from Minuteman Press. Additionally, thanks to the work of the Chamber’s Education & Workforce Development Committee, members are able to receive discounts off IT/ Information Security certifications, foreign language classes, and in some cases university tuition.
3. Job Bank: With the launch of our new website, the Arlington Chamber included a job bank feature as a benefit of membership that has proven to be quite popular among some of the members.
4. The Chamber Blog: Despite serving as one of the Chamber’s most popular fringe benefits, many members are still unaware of the opportunity to establish themselves as a thought leader on a particular topic by contributing to the Chamber’s blog. In addition to educating readers about your industry or a specific topic, blog authors will have their post promoted on the Chamber's Facebook and Twitter, as well as in our e-newsletter, which is sent every week to over 3,000 people across the business community. To learn how to contribute to our blog, contact Caroline Taylor at communications@arlingtonchamber.org.
5. The Community Calendar: Long a popular option for gaining visibility for your event, the Chamber’s community calendar is a great opportunity not only for members looking for additional networking opportunities, but also for members who are looking for exposure for their event. 

With so many benefits available to members and communicated on a regular basis, we wanted to make sure these excellent features of Chamber membership were not kept a secret. No matter your needs, we are here to help however we can. Please feel free to contact us at (703) 525-2400 to let us know how we can assist you.