February 2014 - Ripon Chamber of Commerce

Ripon Chamber Bi-Monthly Newsletter
National Historic Landmark page 2
Chamber Calendar page 2
What’s Going On? page 4
The Back Page page 5
February 2014 / Volume 29 / Issue No. I
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The Ripon Chamber of Commerce and Ripon
Main Street will be hosting their first ever Ripon
Annual Dinner. The event will be held on
Wednesday February 19th in the Heritage Room
at S.N. Pickard Commons, on the Ripon College
Campus. The social will begin at 5 p.m. with
heavy hors d’ oeuvres being served at 5:30 p.m.
Around 6:15 p.m. presentations from the Ripon
Chamber of Commerce, Ripon Main Street Inc.,
and the Green Lake Country Visitors Bureau will
occur. Following the presentations guests are
welcome to network and socialize until around
8:00 p.m. Cost to attend is $20 and can be paid
at the door. We will be accepting cash, check,
and credit cards that evening. To pre-register
please contact us by calling 920.748.6764 or by
logging onto http://goo.gl/F3NxwH or you can
scan the QR Code below. We certainly are
looking forward to a great time and hope you can
join us for this new event.
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What a morning Wednesday December 11th was for the entire
community of Ripon Wisconsin. An early morning blaze on the west
side of the 300 block of Watson Street destroyed buildings and
businesses in Ripon. Thankfully due to the quick and heroic actions
of the Ripon Police Department, Ripon Fire Department, Emergency
Personnel, along with other fire departments, no injuries were
encountered by the tenants or by those fighting the fire. In the
coming hours, days, and weeks, citizens from Ripon and beyond
stepped up to help the families that were displaced. The Watson
Street Fire Recovery committee has been working and continues to
work with those affected by the events of that morning. Sincerest
thank you’s to those people and businesses who also helped in some
way, shape, or form. Thank you again.
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th
In March we will recognize the 160 anniversary of the
events that took place in Ripon at a historic schoolhouse.
Ripon’s National Landmark is sure to offer those who visit a
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Board of Directors, Noon, Jorgenson Room
Ripon Annual Dinner, 5pm-8pm Heritage Room
Green Lake Country Visitors Bureau 9am MUGS
Retail Committee 9:15am Jorgenson Room
Marketing Committee, 9:15am, Jorgenson Room
glimpse of what not only became a new political party, but
more importantly the beginning of the anti-slavery
movement. This moment in history has predicated civil rights
movements that continue to exist to this day. Please make a
point to visit our National Historic Landmark during 2014 to
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Septemberfest Meeting 12:00pm Jorgenson Room
Business Connection @ CHN 5:00pm
Board of Directors, Noon, Jorgenson Room
160th Anniversary of Birthplace of Republican Party
Marketing Committee 9:15am, Jorgenson Room
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Board of Directors, Noon, Jorgenson Room
Ripon Home Show @ Royal Ridges 11am-4pm
Marketing Committee, 9:15am, Jorgenson Room
Retail Committee 9:15am Jorgenson Room
celebrate the 160th Anniversary of this important moment
not only in political history but in the history of America.
Daily hours will begin Memorial Day.
Please note that we will be scheduling regular committee
meetings for Cookie Daze, Septemberfest, and Dickens for
2014 soon.
If you would like to serve on any of our committees please
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contact our office at your earliest convenience.
March 11: Community Health Network (Hwy. 23 West)
April 08: CALL IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HOST
April 12 | 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.|Royal Ridges - Ripon
Please contact the Chamber office, 748-6764, for more information.
to the following members who paid their 2013
Ripon Chamber of Commerce membership investment. Consult
with your accountant to see if this investment is tax deductible
as an ordinary and necessary business expense.
Membership Investments
as of December 31st 2013
st
1 National Bank
91.9/101.7 The Family Radio
A&W Restaurant
A.C.C.
Action Reporter Media
Adeva Salon & Spa
Ads That Care
ADVOCAP, Inc.
AFK Corp.
Affinity Medical Group
Agnesian HealthCareFDL Regional Clinic
Alibi’s Dining & Spirits
Alliance Laundry Systems
Alliant Energy
Alling Enterprises
AnchorBank
Anytime Fitness
Appearances Unlimited
Associated Veterinary Clinic
Aurora Health Care
Autumn Bay
B-104 Radio/Martini Media
BMO Harris Bank
Badger Mining Corp.
Baird Chevrolet Buick GMC
Beechwood Corn Maze &
Wagon Rides
Berlin Journal Newspapers
Bluemke’s, Inc.
Boarders by Cobblestone
Inn & Suites
Butzin-Marchant
Funeral Home
Camera Case Wireless
Campus Cinema
Casual Living Outfitters
Cedar Ridge Stable & Lodge
Center for Creative Healing
CENTURY 21
Properties Unlimited
Chief Industrial Services
CHN Medical Center- Ripon
CHN Rehabilitation - Ripon
Choice Rental Properties
Chris Miller Building & Design
City of Ripon
CJ’s at the Wayside
Cliff’s Tire & Battery
Comfort Suites at
Royal Ridges
Community Thrift Store &
Food Pantry
Condon Companies
Condon Total Comfort, Inc.
COUNTRY Financial
Creative Enterprise Center
Crop Paper Stickers
Culligan Water Conditioning
Culver’s of Ripon
DD Associates
D.R.B. Fire Extinguishers
Diedrich Agency
Diverse Options
Divine Passage Funeral Home
DJ’s Personal Touch
Property Care
Dornfeld Financial Services
Edward Jones Investments
Extreme Auto Body
& Towing
Fat Bruce’s Bakery & Eating
Kitchen
Flowers by David
FABOH
Fond du Lac County
Economic Development Corp.
Fond du Lac County
FDL Habitat for Humanity
Fountain View Care Center
“Golden Rule” Community
Credit Union
Golden’s Chimney Lining, LLC
Good Impressions
Grace Lutheran Pre-School
Grant Pack n Ship
Graphic Point
Graphic Sign & Letter Co.
Grasee Electric
Green Lake Area Animal
Shelter
Green Lake Festival of Music
Green Lake Real Estate
Green Lake Magazine
Guaranty Title Services
Hair Today
Herman Leitz Agency
Hillside Dental Associates
Holliday Food & Sport
Hometown Broadcasting
WISS/WAUH Radio
Horicon Bank
Hounsell’s East Side
Country Market
Huberty & Associates
Imagineers
i.t. Interactive
Indoors Out Landscaping
Integrity Lawn
Service & Supply
Jackson Glass - Ripon
Jackson Kahl Insurance
JJ Rikkers Properties
JM Smucker Company
Johnson Insurance
Kenwood Senior Living
KFC/Taco Bell
Kmart, Ripon Big
KSF CPA Services
Kwik Trip East
Kwik Trip West
Liska Law Office
M.P. B. Builders, Inc.
Maplecrest Manor
Marigold Yoga
Marine Credit Union
Mascoutin Golf Club
McDonald’s Restaurant
Memory Photography
Michalene’s
Miller’s Tavern
Modern Overhead
Door Corporation
Modern Rentals
Moraine Park
Technical College
Mugs Coffee House
Natasha Ing – American Family
National Forensics League
Network Health Plan
OnEdge Photography
Only Her
P.E.N.N. Travel Services
P.M. Maintenance
Palenque Coffee House &
Doomsday Donuts
Paralegal Professional
Services, LLC
Parkview Storage, LLC
Pastimes Pub & Grille
Phone Directories Co.
Pick’n Save
Piernot Family Dental
Pluribus, Inc.
Pollesch Construction, LLC
Prairie Place
Prellwitz Produce
Quality Plumbing
Race Office Products
Radio Plus – WFDL/WTCX
Ridgewood Inn Motel
Ripon Area Builders
Ripon Area School District
Ripon Children’s
Learning Center
Ripon College
Ripon Commonwealth
Press/Express
Ripon Community Church
Ripon Electric
Ripon Historical Society
Ripon Land Surveying
Ripon Main Street, Inc.
Ripon Medical Center
member of Agnesian
HealthCare
Ripon Pickle Company
Ripon Printers
Ripon Rotary Club
Ripon Technology
Roadhouse Pizza
Rosendale Dairy, LLC
Royal Ridges
Save-a-Lot Grocery &
SaveMore Liquors
Sally Carlson
SECOND Look
Home Inspections
Security Finance
Sodexo Catering Service
Spaulding Chiropractic
Health Center
Surface & Surroundings
Taylor’d Taxidermy
The Carley House
Thomas M. Keuler, CPA
Thrasher Opera House
Town of Ripon
Triarch, Inc.
Trinity Evangelical
Free Church
USBank
Veterinary Clinics of
Ripon/Berlin
Video Age Productions
Vines & Rushes Winery
VisionCare Associates
Watson Street Tea & Treats
Watson Streetwear
WellSpring Farm
Willowbrook Apartments
Women in Management
Wrightway Home
Improvement
WRPN-AM – Radio One
Wurtz Law Office
Yellow Book USA
Yellow House Realty
Yeomans-Edinger
Chiropractic Center
Z Wireless
Zacherl, O’Malley,
Endejan & Parks
Zuzaks’ - Big John’s
Fine Divery
Ripon Chamber of Commerce 2014 Board
Members & Standing Committees
Dear Chamber Members,
PRESIDENT
Another Hornblower! Where does the time go?
Seems like just last week we were putting one of these
together. Since the last Hornblower a lot has happened.
Dickens of A Christmas was held and despite the cold the
events went well. The following Wednesday after Dickens
the fire occurred in Downtown Ripon. Such a tragic event
for the downtown and the businesses that were impacted
and those that continue to be impacted because of it.
While the road may be closed all businesses are open in
Ripon. Construction is set to impact Hwy 23 west of Ripon
near Arcade Glen Road. We are working with the DOT to try
and determine their plan of attack for detours, road
closures, and more so we can notify our business
community as well. Hopefully that information will come in
sooner than later. Our 2014 Ripon Home Show will be held
on Saturday April 12th at Royal Ridges in Ripon. The cost to
be an exhibitor will be $80 for Chamber members. Your
cost includes: 10’x10’ spot, table, two chairs, skirting,
electricity, and wireless internet access. We are limited to a
certain amount, so send in your forms as soon as possible.
We are looking forward to our first ever Ripon Annual
Dinner in collaboration with Ripon Main Street Inc. We are
excited to bring you a night full of great networking
opportunities, and a chance to learn about things going on
with both entities. We certainly hope you can attend.
Finally let me say THANK YOU to the Board of Directors,
Chamber Staff, Ripon Main Street, and our incredible
Chamber members for your help in 2013. It certainly was a
year that I can only describe as “eventful”. We are looking
ahead to an exciting 2014 with new ideas and new
approaches, while still providing Chamber members with
the support and promotion that you expect from us. We
think it’s a great time to be a member of the Ripon
Chamber of Commerce. Thanks for your time and all the
best. #riponwi
PRESIDENT-ELECT
Jason Mansmith
Executive Director
920.748.6764
chamber@ripon-wi.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/RiponWisconsin
Twitter: @riponwi
Joan Karsten, CENTURY21 Properties Unlimited
Joel Spaulding, Spaulding Chiropractic Health Center
PAST PRESIDENT
Joan Karsten, CENTURY21 Properties Unlimited
TREASURER/SECRETARY
Greg Dragolovich, Edward Jones Investment
DIRECTORS
TERMS EXPIRE 2014
Al Schraeder, Diverse Options, Inc.
TERMS EXPIRE 2015
Shelby Schiller, JM Smucker Company
Rebecca Wahoske,
Boarders by Cobblestone Inn & Suites
John Maczuzak, Save-a-Lot/Save More Liquors
TERMS EXPIRE 2016
Katherine Vergos,
Ripon Medical Center, member of Agnesian HealthCare
Ken Schmidt, Hometown Broadcasting
TERMS EXPIRE 2017
Amanda Przybyl, Ripon College
Jane Schueler, PolyOne
STAFF
Jason Mansmith – Executive Director
Judi Liveris – Executive Assistant
COMMITTEE CHAIRS
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Joan Karsten, CENTURY21 Properties Unlimited
FUNDRAISING
Joel Spaulding, Spaulding Chiropractic Health Center
RBA-RETAIL COMMITTEE
Kristi Cram, Campus Cinema
COOKIE DAZE
Laurie Kasuboski, Ripon Area Builders
SEPTEMBERFEST
Jennifer Aither, Aither State Farm
 Congratulations to the Fond du Lac County Economic
Development Corporation as they celebrated their 25th
Annual Dinner on January 30th.
 CHN has announced their intent to affiliate with
ThedaCare.
 Horicon Bank has recently purchased the Green Lake
State Bank. With the acquisition Horicon Bank now has
holdings of around $600 million dollars with 11
locations including Ripon.
 Welcome home PFC Ben Benton of Ripon who recently
returned home on leave from Korea to surprise his
family by showing up as the Tiger Mascot at a recent
RHS Basketball game.
 Congratulations to the Ripon High School Boys
Basketball team for earning a spot in the Top 10 for
Division 3 Basketball teams in the state of Wisconsin.
 Thanks to all those who dedicate their time and efforts
for the ice skating rinks located at the Village Green in
Downtown Ripon. A great thing for the City of Ripon.
If you have a notable business achievement to share with our
members, please email the information to chamber@riponwi.com.
Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Fond du Lac County
Boys and Girls Club of the Tri County Area
Do you have social media accounts? If you are new to the social
media game here a few starting points from Chris Marentis from
SureFire Social:
Start With The Four Horsemen
• Facebook Today, Facebook’s not-so-secret sauce is not only its sheer
number of active users but its ability to engage. Facebook is the most
powerful social marketing platform on the planet for local businesses right
now and should not be ignored. It has some of the highest engagement
numbers of any social media platform today, so it yields inordinate
opportunities for local businesses.
With Facebook’s recent news feed algorithm changes, local marketing
experts need to keep followers more engaged with original content,
photos, and videos, which tend to generate more likes and comments
than text with links posts.
• Google+ While Google+ has seen growing numbers in terms of users,
the real benefit in establishing and promoting a local business here is pure
and simple SEO. Coupled with Google Authorship, Google is about
attaching a personal reputation to viral engagement of content, resulting
in links back to a local brand or business. Google+ indexes videos and
reviews quickly, often resulting in prominent placement in long tail
keyword searches.
Google+ also facilitates businesses’ ability to drive high quality; earned
links versus old school SEO (managed links). Businesses can also claim
their local businesses on Google, which then distributes their name,
address and phone number (NAP) throughout the local search ecosystem.
• Twitter With the introduction of Vine and other apps that have made
Twitter a more contextual social platform, Twitter is becoming more
relevant and effective for local marketing efforts. Embedded tweets and
capitalizing on trending hashtags can increase engagement and
connections with a potential targeted audience.
• LinkedIn For local businesses, LinkedIn is an easy-to-use social media
channel that serves as a credibility checkpoint. While engagement is often
lower on this channel, prospects visit LinkedIn to determine the validity of
one business over another; thus, failing to have a profile here may raise
some negative perceptions.
Multimedia Channels LLC
Local social media marketing is all about getting the name of your
company exposed to more people, and LinkedIn is a great vehicle to make
that happen.
New Hope Family Life Church
For Facebook, particularly, but really any social platform, local businesses
Pinnacle Plumbing
have a great opportunity to create and share content that is engaging to
Rauch Family Dentistry
their target. The silver bullet is developing the content that is relevant to
your local community about your business or services.