Catalyst. Convener. Champion.
Chamber Connection SA NTA M A RIA VA LLE Y CH A MB E R MO NTHLY NE WS LE T TE R | M ARCH 202 1
Paving a Roadmap to Recovery
Santa Maria Valley Chamber Partners with Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber to Get Local Communities Back to Business It has been a year now since the pandemic began, and the impact on local businesses cannot be overstated. As an advocate for our business community, the Santa Maria Valley Chamber continues to look for ways to support our local businesses through reopening and recovery. As part of that effort, the Santa Maria Valley Chamber has partnered with the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber on their Roadmap to Recovery. The plan maps a course for local economic recovery based on efforts over the next 6 months and beyond, and as long as it takes for our businesses to recover. “Our Chamber has remained focused on helping businesses get back on their feet and thriving, and to offer resources wherever they are needed,” explained Glenn Morris, President/CEO for the Santa Maria Valley Chamber. “The Roadmap to Recovery adds to these efforts by establishing realistic goals for business opening, tourism growth, manufacturing output, customer visits, financial improvements, and the return of the workforce.” The Roadmap was created by the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce as a business-community focused plan, featuring tactics and milestones that will help local communities through and out of the current economic crisis. “We applaud the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber for putting in the work to
The Roadmap to Recovery was created by the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce and includes a timeline for reopening businesses, bringing students back to inperson learning, the vaccine rollout and resuming travel. develop this Roadmap to Recovery,” said Edgar Gascon, Chairman of the Santa Maria Valley Chamber Board of Directors. “The Santa Maria Valley Chamber’s mission is to be a champion for our local businesses, and the plan they have developed directly aligns with our goal of advocating for our business community. The Santa Maria Valley Chamber Board is proud to endorse
this effort and partner with the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber to present a unified, county-wide position on the issues related to business reopening and recovery.” By endorsing the Roadmap to Recovery, the Santa Maria Valley Chamber with partner with the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber in advocating for the principles Continued on p.2
WHAT ' S INSIDE : M ARCH 2021 ISSUE
Chamber Membership Corner p. 3
Chamber Month in Review p. 6
Upgrade Your Business Website p. 7
Chamber Board of Directors: 2020-2021 Executive Committee Chairman: Edgar Gascon, Hacienda Realty Chairman-Elect: Danny Deveraux, CalPortland Vice Chairman: Janet Silveria, Community Bank of Santa Maria Vice Chairman: Laurie Tamura, Urban Planning Concepts Past Chairman: Jean-Luc Garon, Radisson Hotel Santa Maria Board Members Mark Allen, Marian Regional Medical Center Ron Cossa, Tolman & Wiker Insurance Sandra Dickerson, Your People Professionals Donna Farrell, Santa Maria Town Center Karen Fothergill, Andre, Morris & Buttery Angelica Gutierrez, L & G Farms Doug Janzen, The Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center Emily Kitts, Naughty Oak Brewing Company David LeRoy, Toyota of Santa Maria Butch Lopez, V Lopez Jr. & Sons General Engineering Contractors David Merlo, Glenn Burdette Tere Paredes, Maya Restaurant Era Polly, Era Polly Real Estate Shannon Seifert, Santa Maria Valley YMCA Michelle Shipman, Searchlight Properties Kevin Walthers, Allan Hancock College Tim Williams, Digital West
Continued - Paving a Roadmap to Recovery Continued from p.1 and milestones that are outlined in the plan with local and regional elected officials. A major component of the Roadmap to Recovery is a recommendation that businesses utilizing the COVID Safety 5-Step Method (masks, sanitizing, social distancing, ventilation, plexiglass/ barriers) should be allowed to operate. Recommendations from the CDC and the County’s attestation process confirm these five steps have been determined as the most effective responses to operating safely. The plan also provides detailed goals and a timeline to get communities back to business over the course of the next 6 months. Components of the timeline include reopening businesses, bringing students back to in-person learning, the
vaccine rollout and resuming travel. “The partnership with the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber on this effort is another great example of how we can work more efficiently and have a greater impact by taking a regional approach,” explained Tim Ritchie, Chairman of the Santa Maria Valley Chamber Business & Government Roundtable. “A full reopening and recovery of our local businesses is something all of us want, and we look forward to joining the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber in advocating for the principles and milestones outlined in the Roadmap to Recovery.” Additional details about the Roadmap to Recovery can be found at goletachamber. com/advocate/roadmap-to-recovery/.
The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is a catalyst for business growth, a convener of leaders and influencers, and a champion for a stronger Santa Maria Valley. Learn more about the Chamber by visiting www.santamaria.com. A major component of the Roadmap to Recovery is a recommendation that businesses utilizing the COVID Safety 5-Step Method (masks, sanitizing, social distancing, ventilation, plexiglass/barriers) should be allowed to operate. Recommendations from the CDC and the County’s attestation process confirm these five steps have been determined as the most effective responses to operating safely. 2
Santa Maria Valley Chamber Welcomes Angelica Gutierrez to their Board of Directors The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the appointment of Angelica Gutierrez, Project Manager at L&G Farms Inc., to their Board of Directors. “Angelica’s diverse background in banking and agriculture, as well as her impressive involvement in the community will be a huge asset for our Board of Directors,” said Glenn Morris, President/ CEO for the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce. “The Chamber found itself with a couple of open seats due to a couple of members moving out of the community. Given the critical issues we are working on right now, we were pleased to find an experienced leader like Angelica who would return to service on the board.” A full roster of the Chamber’s Board of Directors can be found at santamaria.com/ staff-leadership. A full biography for Ms. Gutierrez can be found below: Angelica recently retired from a 35-year banking career to join her family in the Agriculture business. She enjoyed a successful career working with Mid State Bank and Trust, Rabobank, and Mechanics Bank. In her last position she was responsible for a Retail Region of 20 offices from Paso Robles to Lompoc. She had the pleasure to build an amazing team that provided full-service personal and business banking needs to their customers. She credits her success in banking to the dedicated and committed employees and loyal customers. She established long lasting relationships
with her customers by understanding their needs and providing them with appropriate banking products and services. Angelica is putting her knowledge and experience in banking to support her new role as Project Manager with L & G Farms Inc. Farming just like any other industry has changed over the years. She is learning a lot about Regulations, Compliance and Labor in Agriculture. Farming has been her family’s way of life. She credits her parents for teaching her the value of hard work at an early age. She and her siblings all learned to work in the farm. They learned the importance of lending a hand and helping others. The company is proud to employ many hard- working individuals in the community that feed the country beautiful and delicious strawberries. Angelica enjoys serving her community by volunteering in a variety of organizations. Her current and past organization are as follows: • Allan Hancock College Bond Oversight Committee Member • Santa Maria Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Commission • Past Marian Regional Medical Center Hospital Chair and Board Member • Rabobank Community Leadership Group Coordinator • Rabobank Diversity and Inclusion Council Charter Member • Past Marian Foundation Chair and Board Member
Angelica Gutierrez, L&G Farms •
Past Board Member: Santa Maria Chamber of Commerce, Nipomo Chamber of Commerce, Guadalupe Kiwanis, Catholic Charities, Financial Literacy Spanish Interpreter, St Joseph High School Advisory Council, Hispanic Business Committee, North Broadway and West Main Business Improvement Committee and participation in various other organizations Angelica has lived in the area her entire life. She attended St Joseph High School, Allan Hancock College and Santa Barbara Business College. She is married to Victor, a Fire Engineer with the City of Santa Maria. They have two daughters, son in law and two adorable grandchildren. In her spare time, she loves spending time with family and traveling.
Chamber Welcomes Two New Ambassadors to Chamber Ambassador Committee The Chamber Ambassador Committee continues to meet monthly via zoom. The committee assists the Chamber with spreading the great news of the Chamber in our community along with conversing with non-member businesses explaining why they should join the Chamber. The Chamber Ambassador Committee also assists in welcoming new members, encouraging them to engage in Chamber networking meetings/events and to take advantage of their member benefits. During the January Ambassador Committee meeting, we welcomed two new Ambassadors who have joined the committee.
Karen Edwards Laurus College www.lauruscollege.edu "The Chamber is bringing people and businesses together at a time when we need it the most. As an Ambassador, I can help connect businesses and individuals with resources that will help our region recover and thrive."
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce | March 2021
Kelsi Fitzgerald Phoenix Property Inspections/ Veritas Innovative Pest & Termite Solutions phoenixpi.com www.vippestsolutions.com "The reason I decided to become an Ambassador because I want to make my presence known in our Community that both our businesses are here to help, encourage and unify our City." 3
Chamber Membership Corner New Members: December 2020 & January 2021 The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is proud to welcome these new members joining the Chamber. We appreciate their vote of confidence in our ability to add value to their business and to create a strong local economy together. We highly encourage individuals and businesses to support Chamber member businesses. Premium Province Land Company 706 E. Haley Street, Ste. 101, Santa Barbara (805) 963-1244 www.prolandco.com Taft Electric Company 2310 A Street, Unit A Santa Maria, CA 93455 (805) 642-0121 taftelectric.com
Vernon Construction 706 E. Haley Street, Ste.101, Santa Barbara (805) 963-1244 vernonconstruction.com Member Weddings by Roberta Central Coast Santa Maria (805) 608-9955
Member Upgrades: December 2020 & January 2021 The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce thanks the following companies for upgrading their membership by stepping up their commitment to our Chamber Investor Program and to the communities of the Santa Maria Valley. American General Media Armando’s Autobody & Paint Inc. BBSI Babe Farms, Inc. Black Bear Diner - Santa Maria Boys & Girls Clubs of Mid Central Coast CALM Cat Canyon Resources, LLC CenCal Health Certified Freight Logistics College and Career Readiness, Santa Barbara County Education Office Comcast Community Bank of Santa Maria Community Carpenters Diani Companies Family Care Network, Inc. FUEGO 97.1 Hot Hits/La Buena Golden State Water Company Innovative Produce J. Wilkes Wines Jack's All American Plumbing Morris & Garritano Insurance Moxie Cafe New Life Painting/Bath & Kitchen/Restoration NKT Commercial I, LLC Orkin Central Coast PCPA - Pacific Conservatory Theatre Phillips 66 Pipeline LLC Phoenix Property Inspections/ Veritas Innovative Pest & Termite Solutions Plantel Nurseries Safran Cabin Santa Maria Santa Barbara Foundation Santa Maria Bonita School District Santa Maria Country Club Santa Maria Joint Union High School District SCORE San Luis Obispo SESLOC Federal Credit Union Smith’s Alarms & Electronics, Inc. SM Tire SunOpta Testa Catering Tileco Distributors, Inc. The Towbes Group, Inc. Trojan Petroleum, Inc. Urban Planning Concepts/ Rural Planning Services VTC Enterprises Wave Business Wells Fargo Bank Wine & Design Orcutt World Financial Group, The Altergott Strategic Focus Team WSPA Xtreme Electronics The Y
4
Investor Level World Financial Group, The Altergott Strategic Focus Team naomialtergott@gmail.com (520) 250-9505
Renewing Members: January 2021 The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is excited to recognize these partners who strive each day to create jobs, boost our local economy and build a community of which we can all be proud. Thank you for your loyalty and continued support in renewing your commitment to the Chamber and to the communities of Santa Maria Valley. 65 Years: Dudley Hoffman Mortuary, Crematory
20 Years: Shepard Eye Center
SESLOC Federal Credit Union State Farm Insurance - Ed Kertis
51 Years: Nancy Stewart
18 Years: Jan-Pro Cleaning Systems Central Coast
5 Years: Orcutt Childen's Arts Foundation
41 Years: Industrial Medical Group of Santa Maria Valley Magner Maloney Funeral Home & Crematory SM Tire
17 Years: Images Screenprinting
4 Years: La Tradicional Ice Cream Shop PB & Associates Real Estate and Home Loan Services
40 Years: Santa Maria Ford Lincoln 39 Years: Lahr Industrial Welding, Inc. 29 Years: Curation Foods 26 Years: Altrusa International of Santa Maria, CA 24 Years: Babe Farms Inc. Westar Associates 22 Years: Community Partners in Caring 21 Years: Friends of the SM Public Library
16 Years: Santa Maria Energy LLC 15 Years: Dan Blough Construction, Inc 14 Years: American Self Storage 13 Years: Ever-Ready Electric Smith Mechanical Electrical Plumbing 10 Years: Children's Resource & Referral Excel Personnel Services Fortress-Secure Mini-Storage 7 Years: Edward Jones - Office of Jeremy Rich Financial Advisor 6 Years: AMF Media Group Hacienda Realty
3 Years: Dunkin' Donuts Naughty Oak Brewing Co. Rockin' Jump - The Ultimate Trampoline Park Santa Maria Properties, Inc. Sound on Sound/WilWooDuo Talley Farms Fresh Harvest Wave Business 2 Years: Cat Canyon Resources, LLC Innovation Retail Home Design Center Jim Bray Landkammer Consulting 1 Years: Natural Healing Center Pacific Petroleum California Inc. Terrain Consulting, Inc.
Stay Connected with Text Message Notifications from the Chamber! Did you know the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce offers text notifications? Receive timely event reminders, exclusive offers and more when you sign up for Chamber text messages! Simply text CHAMBER to 33222 to register. By receiving text message updates, you'll be able to easily register for upcoming events from your phone, and be reminded of exciting offers or networking opportunities you may want to attend! Sign up today!
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce | March 2021
5
Working Hard on Your Behalf: Chamber Month in Review The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is here for business. We are a catalyst for business growth, convener of leaders and influencers, and a champion for a stronger Santa Maria Valley. We continue to work hard to serve our members, local businesses and the Santa Maria Valley community. Here’s a glimpse at what we’ve been up to lately.
Catalyst for Business Growth • •
•
The Chamber and Visitors Bureau held the Great Santa Maria Valley takeout as part of restaurant month, and a way to encourage the community to continue to support our local restaurants, wineries and breweries. Santa Maria Valley Chamber Staff attended the virtual conference for the Western Association of Chamber Executives to continue their professional development and learn best practices and successful programming from others in the Chamber Industry. Santa Maria Valley Chamber’s Director of Member & Community Engagement Molly Schiff was accepted into the Western Association of Chamber Executive’s Emerging Leaders Council.
The Great Santa Maria Valley Takeout ran January 22-31.
Convener of Leaders and Influencers •
• • •
•
The Chamber’s Business & Government Roundtable met for their January 2021 meeting and received an update on local vaccine distribution from the County Public Health Department, and a presentation on the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber’s Roadmap to Recovery plan from Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce CEO Kristen Miller. The Chamber Ambassador Committee welcomed two new ambassadors; Karen Edwards of Laurus College and Kelsi Fitzgerald of Phoenix Property Inspections. The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors welcomed new board member Angelica Gutierrez. Santa Maria Connect Young Professionals produced a video of local leaders discussing how young professionals can do their part to make our society more just and equitable. Clips of the video are showcased on their social media throughout the monthly of February, and the full discussion is available to watch on YouTube. The Chamber continues to host their weekly Build Your Business virtual networking events to provide local professional the opportunity to network and hear from our Chamber Member businesses.
The Chamber's Business & Governement Roundtable met for their first meeting of 2021. The group helps guide the Chamber's work in political and regulatory advocacy.
Champion for a Stronger Santa Maria Valley • • • •
The Chamber continues to attend CalChamber’s monthly legislative update calls to stay at the forefront of legislation affecting our business community. The Santa Maria Valley Visitors Bureau Tourism Marketing District launched their stimulus campaign to encourage those nearby to safely visit the area. Local hotels offered a $100 visa gift card to those who booked a minimum two-night stay. Leadership Santa Maria Valley is still accepting applications for their Class of 2021, which will begin in March. The Chamber continues to add resources to their COVID-19 Business Recovery Toolkit (santamaria.com/COVID19-Recovery) and provide timely updates to community members on reopening. The Chamber's COVID-19 Business Recovery Toolkit provides upt to date information on reopening, financial assistnace and more. It can be found at santamaria.com/COVID19Recovery .
6
Upgrade Your Business Website for More Virtual Revenue Managing a business website can feel like a second job. However, it's more important than ever that your business has a digital presence that speaks directly to the problems your customers want to solve through your products and services. With the pandemic still slowing the pace of business for most of the country, now is the time to update your online presence. Optimize Your Website for Mobile Studies show that mobile is making up more and more of the online landscape, both in terms of web content and user searches. The most important statistic to know here is that 53% of mobile users will leave a website that doesn't load within three seconds. When you are optimizing your website for mobile users, speed and usability are the most important. Content needs to adjust smoothly to smaller screens, and it needs to load quickly. You can increase loading speed through a number of steps, such as: • Changing the presentation of highbandwidth content such as images and videos • Using a reliable web host • Choosing a suitable WordPress theme Create a Google My Business Listing If you've ever searched for a business and seen the helpful listing on the right side of the screen, that's a Google My Business listing. By creating your own, you will make your website much more visible and easier to find for online shoppers. What's more, they'll also be able to find the most important information about your business in one place. A Google My Business listing contains delivery/pickup options, hours, contact information, and all-important trust-
"
With the pandemic still slowing the pace of business for most of the country, now is the time to update your online presence.
"
Setting up social media accounts on Instagram and Facebook can go a long way in building your brand. You'll need to make sure you consistently manage these platforms, so starting with one and building from there may be a smarter approach. building testimonials. It also gives you a set of tools to manage and monitor your online presence. It shouldn't surprise you that most members of the Chamber have a Google My Business listing, and you should too. Invest in Local Digital Advertising Digital advertising can take various forms. Targeting social and search engines with pay-per-click (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO) are increasingly important. These techniques are quite different from each other, but they each operate by targeting certain strings of keywords. By tailoring the keywords to local communities, your business will have an easier time reaching potential customers. A PPC ad campaign works similarly to other types of advertising in that you pay a small fee for each click the ad delivers to your website. On the other hand, SEO might seem a bit more novel. By writing keyword-rich content that conforms to SEO guidelines, you'll rank closer to the top spot in relevant Google searches. Web users rarely look beyond the first page, so a high search engine ranking is a powerful
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce | March 2021
competitive advantage. You can learn and write SEO on your own but hiring a professional copywriter will be more convenient and effective. Run a Business Social Media Account Setting up an Instagram and Facebook account for your business can go a long way in building your brand. While Facebook has the greatest outreach, Instagram emphasizes visually engaging content and has far greater rates of response. While you should use both, one is likely to be a better fit for your business overall. By boosting your visibility in search engines and maintaining a mobile-friendly web presence, your business will cope much better with the rigors of the COVID-era economy. Does your business need assistance with improving your online presence? The Chamber has recently launched its "Get Your Business Online" program and may be able to help. Contact Alex Castillo, Events & Special Projects Manager at the Chamber, at alex@ santamaria.com to learn more.
7
Stay Connected with the Santa Maria Valley Chamber Visit: 614 S. Broadway, Santa Maria Call: (805) 925-2403 Email: info@santamaria.com
614 S. Broadway Santa Maria, CA 93454
Website: santamaria.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ santamariavalleychamber/ Twitter: twitter.com/SMVChamber Instagram: santamariavalleychamber LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ santamariavalleychamber Email List: bit.ly/SMVCCMailingList Text Message Alerts: Text "CHAMBER" to 33222 Chamber Connection is the official monthly publication of the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce. For questions about this publication or to be added to our monthly mailing distribution list, email molly@santamaria.com.
Mandatory Harassment Prevention Training: Deadline Passed But Discount Still Available! California employers with five or more employees must provide harassment prevention training to all employees and the deadline to do so passed on January 1st, 2021. Employers who have yet to provide the prevention training need to make sure their staff has this training as soon as possible. That’s two hours of training to California supervisors (and to out-of-state supervisors of California employees), and one hour of training to nonsupervisory employees in California. Training must take place within six months of hire or promotion and every two years thereafter. (Taking these individual-learner courses in a group setting will not satisfy the state requirements). The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of
Commerce is proud to partner with CalChamber and offer our local businesses a 20% discount on harassment prevention training for employees and supervisors. Simply visit their website at bit.ly/ SMVHPT select the training(s) you need, and enter the code SMVHPT at checkout to receive your 20% discount. We encourage all businesses who have not yet done harassment prevention training to take advantage of this expert training before the January 1st deadline.
Receive 20% off mandatory harassment prevention training using the code SMVHPT at checkout. Viist bit.ly/SMVHPT to register.
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau 614 S. Broadway, Santa Maria | (805) 925-2403 | santamaria.com | info@santamaria.com 8
