Blog
2023 Outstanding Service Awards
Community Members Honored for their Service at 151st Astoria-Warrenton Area Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting and Banquet sponsored by Pacific Power About 175 community members attended the 151st Annual Meeting & Banquet for the Astoria-Warrenton Area Chamber of Commerce on Saturday, January 27, 2024. As a chamber of commerce, we offer a variety of services…
Small Business Season: Returns and Exchanges
Turning Gift Returns and Exchanges into Business Opportunities You hate to see it coming-a customer with your bag in hand entering the door. You know where that’s headed. No matter how helpful you were or how great your products are, the holiday season isn’t complete without a wave of gift returns and exchanges. While it’s…
Small Business Season: Maximizing Momentum
Movie franchises, sequels, and prequels are all the rage in Hollywood these days-and for good reason. They make money. They’re a known commodity. If you’re an entrepreneur who’s thinking about launching a second business, a spin-off can be wildly popular. Before you decide to go after a brand-new market, consider the opportunities you might have…
Small Business Season: The Nice List
7 Things to Put Your Small Business on the Nice List As of this writing, there are about three weeks left in the largest retail spending season of the year. If you own a small business and you want to ensure you bring in the most revenue possible in the next several weeks, there are a…
Small Business Season: Harnessing FOMO
Harnessing the Fear of Missing Out During Small Business Season Years ago, when Black Friday was one day and not six weeks long, I suffered from fear of missing out (FOMO) when it came to bargains. I felt (which was indeed the marketer’s goal) that I had to buy at that moment or risk being…
Small Business Season: Acknowledge Various Holiday Celebrations
How to Embrace More Than Just Christmas in Your Business The holiday season is a time of joy, celebration, and increased consumer spending. For small businesses, this time offers a tremendous opportunity to maximize sales and connect with customers on a deeper level. But if you think of the holiday season as just Thanksgiving and…
Small Business Season: Meeting Sensory-Friendly Customer Needs
Inexpensive Sensory-Friendly Ideas for the Holiday Season The holiday season can be overwhelming with the twinkling lights, music, and crowds under the best of circumstances. For about 16.5% of the US population, overstimulation can be torturous. Over the last decade, sensory-sensitivity condition diagnoses, such as autism, have increased. Inclusion is now a mainstream topic that…
Small Business Season: 16 Questions to Prepare for Success
Do you find yourself wondering how you’re going to compete with larger, national stores with big marketing budgets and attractive loss leaders that bring in a crowd? How will you capture the attention of local shoppers, dinner, or service users? Well, we’re here to equip you with a set of insightful questions to ask yourself,…
Small Business Season: 9 Tips for Creating an Instagrammable Displays
The holiday season (and Small Business Season!) is upon us! It’s the perfect time to capitalize on the festive spirit to attract customers and boost sales. As a small business you also want to invite people to linger, especially if you’re in retail. According to the Wall Street Journal, sales could increase as much as…
Our Events Build Community (Directors Corner Nov. 2023)
Events are community builders. That’s the premise around here and if we ever needed reinforcement of that fact, the Great Columbia Crossing on October 8th really drove it home. Here’s what I’m talking about: Our major events (Great Columbia Crossing 10k and the Astoria Warrenton Crab, Seafood and Wine Festival) are off-season economic drivers, bringing…