Why are you still doing ribbon cuttings? 

Lots of chambers are talking about the fact that they are tired of talking about ribbon cuttings. They are great public relations and awareness for your growing businesses but the problem is it seems we have attracted members who join just for the ribbon cutting and then drop. 

Here are three ways chambers are addressing this.

1. Charge for ribbon cuttings, member and non-member rates.

2. No more ribbon cuttings. Call another chamber. You can be their problem. 

3. Treat Ribbon Cuttings as evidence that you're winning. 

In this third option, chambers are owning ribbon cuttings as content rather than an event or a service. It's proof that our community is getting better and stronger. Rather than lamenting yet another ribbon cutting request from a new member who will likely drop their membership next year, be honored that a business has invited you to celebrate with them. 

Here are a few suggestions: 

1. Spend less staff time on a ribbon cutting. For execs, this means being there 1 minute for every person who is in attendance 30 people? 30 minutes. Some of you are there for an hour with the same 12 people. Be smart about your time investment. 

2. Put this growing business into your economic development or advocacy narrative. People want to back a winner and if businesses are growing, you're winning. 

3. Have two or three different versions of ribbon cuttings. You can have regular itty bitty shitty ribbon cutting, or you can choose that Premium Ribbon we invite VIPs or do a Facebook Live of the event and we write a story about your growing business for a fee or it's built in to one or more of your higher membership tiers.