How to Choose a Chamber of Commerce to Join - Palm Desert Chamber of Commerce Case Study

It makes sense to join your local chamber of commerce and it makes sense to do due diligence. What happens if you do not do your research prior to joining? Well, you end up wasting your money basically, and wishing you had never gotten involved in the first place. Let's discuss a recent case study and consider the ramifications of getting involved in a chamber of commerce in your local area.

Not long ago, our not for profit Think Tank joined several chambers of commerce in the local area. Although, we do most of our work online, it still made sense to tap into the expertise of the local business community. Business people know how to get things done and therefore they make great team members. Unfortunately, contrary to our own best advice, we did not do enough preliminary investigation on the chambers we joined.

We joined four local chambers of commerce, 3 were great and one, we can safely say was a huge mistake. You should never join a chamber of commerce until you attend a few functions and check it out first, talk to members, and if possible talk to all the many members who did not renew their chamber of commerce membership from prior years.

In considering all this and after joining the Palm Desert Chamber of Commerce, we have only ourselves to blame. It is for this reason that I can make a strong recommendation for you to go and meet the President of the Chamber of Commerce prior to joining, make sure they are not running a mini-fiefdom or micro-managing in a Machiavellian Way. You need to join a chamber of commerce that understands your needs and can assist you in growing your organization in the community.