Serving the communities of Willoughby, Eastlake, Kirtland, Wickliffe,
Willowick, Willoughby Hills, Lakeline, and Timberlake
Thank you to our Premier Sponsor
WELCOME TO OUR
NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS
JOIN US FOR THE LAST NETWORKING EVENT OF THE YEAR!

Your ticket includes:
  • APPETIZERS
  • NETWORKING WITH 100+ EVENT ATTENDEES
  • PHOTO BOOTH
  • BEER SAMPLES
  • RAFFLE

THANK YOU TO OUR EVENT SPONSORS!
"SPOTLIGHT ON.... AMY GLADIEUX O'BRIEN"
Each month we introduce you to one of our dedicated board members who support our thriving business community. Learn more about the personal and professional lives of the people who lead the Willoughby Western Lake County Chamber of Commerce.
Q: What gets you out of bed in the morning?  
A: I am one of those people who makes their bed every morning because it makes me feel like I'm at least getting one thing accomplished 😊 but I just to take the attitude of "how can I do better today" to get me motivated and out of bed!

Q: What three words would you use to describe your role? 
A: Uplifting, Creative & Fun

Q: What is the best career advice your ever received?
A: My dad always told me to not sweat the small stuff....and it's all small stuff  

Q: What is a piece of advice for all of our chamber members and potential chamber members about getting the most out of your membership? 
A: Get involved and attend events! You'll get to know people quickly and it may not always turn into business for you right away, but it really doesn't take that much out of your day to commit to an event once a month or even once a quarter. Join a committee to get to know other members and expand your exposure!
SAVE THE DATE!
Sponsorship opportunities are now available for one of
our biggest events of the year. Don't miss out!
The 2019 Annual Awards will recognize some of the best in local Business:
Small Business of the Year: Lake County Captains
Large Business of the Year: CT Consultants
Business Leader / CEO of the Year: Bill Streb, Streb Electric
Showcase Award: Process Technology
NEW YEAR, NEW ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES WITH YOUR CHAMBER!
New Advertising Opportunities
As you start thinking about marketing for the upcoming year, we recommend using some of that budget for advertising through the chamber. Connect your business to active and engaged people in Lake County.

HOME & LIFESTYLE EXPO
March 2, 2019
* * NEW THIS YEAR * * ONE DAY AT THE MALL **
Reserve your sponsorship today!
The 2019 EXPO will be held at Great Lakes Mall on Saturday, March 2, 2019.
Click below to see all of the sponsorship packages available to give YOUR business visibility to potential customers!
LET'S TALK TECH!
In our 2018 Annual Survey, respondents said that they were interested in a lunch topic on technology. To make sure that we plan the RIGHT topic, we need some help from you!

Please take a moment to share more about what professional development your business needs!
JOIN THE CHAMBER'S SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE
Are you passionate about improving opportunities for workforce development in Willoughby and Western Lake County?
Bring your ideas, talent, and energy to our Scholarship Committee. Quarterly meetings take place to support businesses and workforce development in Lake County.

To learn more, contact:
Jim Levine, EDP Chairman,
Owner, Express Employment Professionals
P: 440-571-5185
NETWORKING ALL STARS 2018
NETWORKING is the #1 reason that businesses and business owners decide to join the chamber of commerce. Social media and a cool website are great, but being well-known in your community is priceless.

We looked at our records to see who attende the most networking events in 2018 and made a list on the chamber blog. These businesses are committed to showing up, making connections, and growing their business.
Great Benefit To Use During The Holiday Season!
FedEx recently announced that for the second year in a row, it will not apply additional residential surcharges during the holiday season, except for shipments that are oversized, unauthorized or necessitate additional handling. Residential shipments sent with other carriers could incur an additional surcharge during peak days in November and December.

This is good news for NOACC members who expect a significant amount of e-commerce orders over the 2018 holiday season. As a free member benefit, NOACC members have access to exclusive discounts with FedEx. Between the savings through the NOACC Chamber Shipping Program , and avoiding a peak surcharge on residential shipments, members have a clear advantage this holiday season.

If you’re not currently taking advantage of this free member benefit, enroll today . For more information, call PartnerShip at 800-599-2902 or email sales@PartnerShip.com .
The Lake-Geauga Fast Track 50 honors companies and individuals in Lake and Geauga counties who have shown growth and change to contribute to business success.

Below are our chamber members who made the list this year:
2018 FT50 Emerging Companies
Essentialware — Global , Willoughby 
Moving Ahead Services , Willoughby
Neothink, LLC,  Willoughby
Blackbird Digital , Willoughby

Game Changer Award
Christine Blake, CEO of  Cardinal Credit Union
Get into the holiday spirit and join us in Downtown Willoughby for the annual Holiday Lighting Celebration on Thursday, November 29th at 7 pm. Before the main event, enjoy sounds of the season from Edison Elementary 3rd graders, South High Quartet and the South Rebels Marching Band. Santa will also be coming to town for the season!
This indoor holiday tradition continues at Penitentiary Glen Reservation! Candy Land comes to life as a giant game board that takes you on a journey highlighting nature’s gifts through all four seasons. Each Saturday, enjoy an outdoor campfire with s’mores from 1 to 3 pm. Each Sunday, meet live animals from the Kevin P. Clinton Wildlife Center up-close and personal. Enjoy holiday shopping at The Nature Store with unique nature-themed gifts.
Join us this Christmas season for our annual nativity exhibit. With nearly 1,000 nativities from all over the world on display, you won’t want to miss it! We will be closed Christmas and New
Year’s Day.

November 26, 2017 to January 2, 2018
Get ahead of the holiday rush & bring your group to the most spectacular display of festive cheer in Lake County. Treat your senses to over 70 beautifully bedazzling trees. Find one-of-a-kind gifts & stocking stuffers from local crafters and in Mistletoe Marketplace. Join a tour of our current exhibits and hear the pleasing Magical Musical Machines from our unique music box display.

This vibrant band returns with a wonderful array of holiday music sure to delight the entire family!

Saturday, December 8, 2018
Fine Arts Association
38660 Mentor Avenue
Willoughby, OH 44094
TIPS FOR CAPTURING HOLIDAY SALES
What is a Call to Action and Why Do You Need One On Your Website?
A Call to Action (CTA) on a website is an instruction to the visitor in order to encourage them to take some kind of action. A Call to Action might be simple instructional text, such as “call us now”, “find out more”, or “subscribe to our Newsletter”.

After devoting time, effort, and money into creating a website to promote your services and products, the last thing you want is your visitors to leave without taking any action. By encouraging the visitor to take action, rather than merely reading and leaving your site, Call to Actions are simple and effective ways to generate conversions and ultimately boost sales.
The simple task of placing concise and easy-to-read CTAs on your website comes with a number of benefits to your business.
Other Tips For Your Business:
  • Monitor Visitors Into Deeper Engagement
  • Boost Conversion Rates
  • Grow Your Email Subscribers
  • Encourage People To Purchase Your Products or Services
  • Encourage Customers to Add To Their Cart
  • Persuade People To Share
  • Learn More About Your Products or Services
SCOTT ANDREW MILLS RECOGNIZED AS NOACC BRIGHT STAR 2018
The Chamber Bright Stars for 2018 were recognized on Thursday, October 25th    at the semi-annual Chamber Leadership meeting and eleventh annual Chamber Bright Star Awards presentation of the Northern Ohio Area Chambers of Commerce (NOACC) .

About 40 chambers of commerce across northern Ohio nominated a person from their chamber as their “Bright Star,” to recognize a chamber member who has “made a significant impact on the chamber through membership, retention, sponsorship, economic development, operations and/or education.” Each Bright Star is an active chamber member for no less than two years and is likely to be an unsung hero or a dedicated behind-the-scenes volunteer.

Scott Andrew Mills, Maverick Insurance , accepted his plaque, trophy and pin from Cindy Holzheimer, NOACC Executive Director and John Sobolewski, NOACC Vice Chair and Executive Director of the Fairview Park, North Coast, North Olmsted, West Shore Chambers. 
  From all of us in the Willoughby Western Lake County Chamber of Commerce - Thank you and congratulations to Scott Andrew Mills!
Ohio Workers’ Compensation Update
2019 Experience Rating Changes for Private Employers

Over the last several months, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) and their actuarial consultants have been reviewing how rates are calculated for private employers in an effort to better match premium with costs.

Based on the actuarial consultants’ analysis, the BWC Board of Directors recently approved the following changes in regards to how BWC premium is calculated for private employers effective with the July 1, 2019 rating year:

1.       Maximum claim limit reductions for smaller employers: 
Employers that are small in size with expected losses below $15,000 will see a reduction in their maximum claim limit. This is in an effort to reduce the impact of one “large” claim to a small employer’s premium rates.

2.       Experience Modification Rate adjustment factor: 
BWC has introduced a factor that will be applied to an individual employer’s Experience Modification Rate (EMR). An employer’s EMR is a number used to gauge both past cost of injuries and future chances of risk. The lower the EMR for your business, the lower your workers’ compensation premium will be. Employers with a better than average EMR (EMR of 0.90 and lower) will see a 5% reduction, while employers with the worst EMR’s in the state will see a 5% increase.

3.       Premium size factor: 
BWC introduced a second factor that will be applied based on the amount of premium an employer pays into the fund. Individual merit-rated employers with premium in excess of $5,000 will most likely see a reduction in premium.

The changes listed do not apply to public employers (counties, cities, villages, townships, schools, etc.), private employers participating in a group rating program or those employers enrolled in a Professional Employer Organization (PEO). This group of employers will not see any change to how premium is calculated.

In light of these changes, we recommend reviewing your 2019 program options closely as now is the time to enroll in these programs. Updates to the BWC premium calculations may impact which BWC program is most advantageous for your organization. Please contact our program administrator, CompManagement, at (800) 825-6755 and ask to speak to a Rate Analyst to learn more about these BWC changes and how they may impact your rates.
CLICK BELOW TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CHANGES FOR 2019
LAKE COUNTY CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE HONORS "TOP 4 UNDER 40" AT PASTINA RUSTIC ITALIAN KITCHEN
The Lake County Chambers of Commerce recently honored the winners of our inaugural "Top 4 Under 40", recognizing four of Lake County's best and brightest young professionals.

Winners were chosen based on leadership, community involvement, entrepreneurship, and professional achievement.

"We have an incredible network of young professionals living and working right here in Lake County. Our goal is to acknowledge and facilitate their success and involvement," explains Linda Reed, Executive Director of the Eastern Lake County Chamber of Commerce. "These awards give us the opportunity to recognize these young leaders in our community who are working hard to make Lake County a better place to live and work."

The 2018 Top 4 Under 40 winners include two of our chamber members:
Julia Schick, Director of Communications, Laketran
Amy Gladiuex O'Brien, Marketing & Recruiting Manager, Two Men And A Truck
OHIO BUSINESS FORWARD
OhioBusinessProfile.com is a monthly web feature highlighting a number of Ohio businesses in a common industry or or sector. Businesses are selected to provide a diverse geographic, industrial and size representation. Profiles are created based on information provided by each business. To submit your business for consideration, click here!
PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS FROM IDENTITY THEFT
Business identity theft happens when a business's identity is illegally used to transact business and establish lines of credit with banks and /or vendors. Similar to individual victims, businesses and those people associated with an enterprise can face potentially ruinous consequences.

To help Ohio businesses protect their identities, the Secretary of State's office has launched the Business Filling Notification System, a free service allowing businesses to track any filing changes or updates. Once subscribed to the filing notification system, a business will receive an e-mail the day after any document is filed with the Secretary of State. To sign up for this filing notification system, click here.
CONSTANT CONTACT - A CHAMBER BENEFIT
Why do I love using Constant Contact?
I create our monthly newsletters in Constant Contact.
This platform has tons of templates to help you create effective marketing campaigns year round.

Here's the best part of using this program - once I launch an email campaign, I can log in to review valuable data.
I can review:
-How many people opened my email
-What percentage of people viewed my email on a mobile device vs. desktop
-What people clicked on
I use this data to drive future decisions for my marketing.

Also, Constant Contact will send you monthly marketing plans.
If you are as busy as we are, you know how valuable it can be to have your marketing plan created for you.

If you want to learn more about using this for your business, click on the button below!
HALLUM'S HEROES
COLLECTING TOYS FOR LOCAL CHILDREN
Chamber member  C hris Hallum  and  Hallum's Heroes  will be collecting unwrapped toys between now and December 8th at any of our drop off locations listed below. You can even attend the FREE Willoughby Hills Winterfest on December 2nd between 5-7pm. Enjoy music, games, food, treats, and Santa!

Toys are donated to area families in need, Lake County Jobs & Family Services, and  Forbes House .
Visit these chamber members to drop off your donations:
WHOLE HEALTH CONNECTIONS -
Improve the health of your team with support from Anthem BlueCross!
Diabetes is most companies’ biggest health care cost. That’s because people with diabetes are more likely to have other health issues such as dental problems, which can be very costly for them and you. For instance:
  • 64.7 million Americans over the age of 30 suffer from gum disease — but people with diabetes who treat their gum disease have 39% fewer hospital admissions and 40% lower medical costs.3  
  • $64 billion in productivity is lost every year due to dental problems.
That’s why Anthem developed the Whole Health Connection program – to help lower diabetes-related costs and get your employees the support they need.

How Whole Health Connection works
The Anthem Whole Health Connection program links your medical plan with your dental plan, helping doctors and your employees see how dental health is connected to overall health. When one of your employees is identified as having diabetes or being high-risk for it, Whole Health Connection proactively helps them by: 
  • Automatically enrolling them in extra dental cleanings or gum procedures.
  • Sending them diabetes-specific dental care alerts.
  • Providing wellness resources such as dental health education kits, Ask a Hygienist helpline, dental cost estimator, dental risk assessment and nurse coaches.
To find out more about how the Anthem Whole Health Connection program can help you lower costs and improve your employees’ health, go to https://www.specialtybenefits.info/oh
LOOKING FOR BUSINESS PROPERTY
IN LAKE COUNTY?
28707 Euclid Avenue in Wickliffe
KIDZBIZ UPCOMING EVENTS
HOLIDAY MIXER:
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
from 8:15 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
at The Matchworks Building in Mentor.
THANK YOU to all our chamber members who have renewed their membership for 2019!
A-1 Mr. Limo
A P I Pattern Works Inc.
Activities Press, Inc
Affordable-IT
Agile Sign & Lighting Maintenance, Inc.
Allpha/AXS Holding LLC dba Alpha Imaging,
Antiques & Uniques, LLC
Avanti Aerospace Inc.
AWT/ Alliance For Working Together Foundation
AXXON Technologies
Barbish Financial Group
Berkshire Golf Course
BEST WESTERN PLUS Lawnfield Inn & Suites
Bevcorp LLC
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Ohio
Billpro Management Systems Inc.
BOS Services Company
Bottom Line Accounting Solutions, LLC
Bud Industries Inc.
Cardconnect
Carl P. Kasunic Co., L.P.A.
Casa Di Vino Winery and Restaurant
Cast Nylons Ltd.
Cathy Walsh
Center for Advanced Vein Care
City of Painesville
City Of Willoughby Hills
Classic Lexus
CPP-Consolidated Precision Products
Craft & Antique Co-op
Craig Specialty Advertising
CT Consultants Inc.
Deepwood Industries, Inc.
Dempsey Auctions
Direct Marketing Solutions
Dollar Bank
Eagle Advertising
EFFtechnologies, LLC
ENPAC, LLC
Enpress, LLC
ERIEBANK
Family Eyecare Clinic Contact Lens Prof
Fiona's Coffee Bar & Bakery
First Baptist Church of Willowick
Five Star Trucking, Inc.
Floraline Display Products Corp.
Global Real Estate Advisors, Inc.
Hamm Agency & Associates, The
Heartland of Willoughby-
Holmbury, Inc
Home Savings Bank
Hudco Manufacturing Inc.
IEN
Ivy Batos DMD, Inc.
J D M Enterprises LLC
Jones Printing Services Inc.
Joseph L. Myers, Architect, Inc.
K&D Management, LLC
Keller Williams/Great Lakes Home Team
Key Bank-Eastlake
KeyBank-Willoughby
Kurt Law Office
La-Vera Party Center
Lake County ADAMHS Board
Lake County Board of Commissioners
Lake County Captains
Lake County Development Council, Inc.
Lake County Glass Company
Lake County Ohio Port And Economic Develo
Lake Erie Closets Inc.
Lake Health
Lake Metropolitan Housing Authority
Lakeland Community College
Lakeland Construction Group
Lakenetwork
Lantern of Madison, The
Legal Shield/Money Concepts
Lou Severino Construction,LLC
Lubrizol Corporation, The
M R D Solutions LLC
Marous Brothers Construction Inc.
Maverick Insurance
Meister Media Worldwide
Meritech
Milan Door Service
Monreal Consulting
MOVING AHEAD SERVICES
Mullarkey's Irish Pub
Nickleby's Roundbar & Kitchen
NRC, Inc.
Oakridge Landscaping Company Inc.
Oak Hill Village
P M C Gage, Inc.
PARTS PRO AUTOMOTIVE WAREHOUSE
Pat O'Brien Chevrolet
Paulich Specialty Company
Permanent Solution Staffing, LLC
PMC Industries, Div AjaxTocco Mag. A Park
Prime Lending
Raymond James Financial Services, Inc.
RE/MAX Results-Kristina Zeleznik
Red Roof Inn, Inc.
Refined Design Hair Salon
Regovich Catering
Renewal by Anderson
Reserved Network, The
RevLocal
Sharaba's Financial Services
Showstoppers School of Baton & Dance
Sol, LLC
Spence Technologies, Inc.
Stevenson Oil
Streb Electric, LLC
Subaman Auto Care
Tec, Inc.
The Carlson Agency
Time Warner Cable
Torva Local
USA Management & Development Inc.
VantageOne Software
Velotta Auto Service
Wickliffe City School District
Wickliffe Hospitality LLC
Wickliffe Lanes, Inc.
Willen Dental Associates Inc.
Willo Wash
Willoughby Brewing Company
Willoughby Eagles #2300
Z & Z Manufacturing Inc.