Chamber seeks better connection

Jay County Chamber of Commerce launched a new website late in 2014 with hopes of being more user friendly and making a greater connection with the community.
The new site at http://http://www.jaycountychamber.com adds a more extensive member directory and jobs board, more prominently displays the chamber’s latest news and calendar and includes links to Facebook pages for the organization’s major events. Executive director Dean Sanders and his staff are also working on a project to help stay better connected with Jay County High School graduates.
“In the past … our website was great, but this allows us a little more flexibility to get more information on there and make it easily accessible,” said Sanders. “There’s just a lot more information we’re getting out to the public.”
The front page of the new site, which launched prior to WinterFest in November, features a rotating “Member of the Day”, latest news, upcoming events and a “quick link” to information about Jay County Community Awards. The “quick link” will change throughout the year to feature the next major event on the chamber’s calendar.
The top includes a variety of drop-down menus, and the bottom has links to Facebook pages, other community websites and the chamber newsletter.
The searchable directory of more than 270 chamber members was expanded to include a “notes” section in which each organization can offer a more extensive description of its services. And “relocation info” page gives new residents information, about water, electrical and gas services, among others.
Sanders also noted that unlike the previous version, the new site resizes to fit any device.
“Really you’ve got the chamber as well as our membership and referral resources at your fingertips no matter where you are,” he said. “We’re trying to make sure that we keep engaged with the community.”
With the new site up and running, Sanders and his staff are working on a related project he hopes will help the chamber stay connected with JCHS graduates after the leave the area and possibly entice them to return.
They are creating a database of email addresses for local graduates dating back to 2007 in order to send them messages about job openings at home. The site also includes a graduate survey, which offers the option to include a resume to be distributed to chamber members.
It’s a mission that’s especially close to Sanders, who returned home a year ago at age 47 to lead the chamber. A 1984 Jay County High School graduate, he had worked for Dayton Children’s Hospital, MCM Electronics, the Better Business Bureau of Dayton and Prevent Blindness Ohio before making his way back to Portland.
“It’s important that you return to your community,” Sanders said. “I had a great childhood here in Jay County. I love Jay County. Having the opportunity to come back and contribute was really important. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”
There are plans to continue adding more to the website, which includes background photos from Portland, Dunkirk, Redkey, Bryant, Pennville and Salamonia. The goal, Sanders said, is to try to make sure individuals and businesses are informed about what services are available and to keep those in the community connected.
“We’re trying to find ways to consistently upgrade the chamber when it comes to being able to provide more and more services to the community and more and more services for our members,” said Sanders of the site, which was developed by Craig Frazee of Dynamic Business Solutions in Portland. “The website is one of the first things someone sees when they come to a community or their looking at a community. We wanted to have a really good, quality website to really let them see what we have to offer.”