Chamber matching restaurant gift cards

Program benefits local eateries and nonprofits that get the extra cards

With most area businesses closed down due to coronavirus concerns, other organizations are stepping up to help them stay afloat.

The Chamber of Commerce for Greater Montgomery County has kicked off a “Small Business Strong” gift card matching program they hope can make a difference for struggling businesses and nonprofits.

“It had been a great year. What I was hearing was, some people saying their pipeline was really getting full, others were saying they were having their best year,

or continuing a successful cycle, and then it’s just kind of a dead stop,” said Chamber CEO Pam Kelly.

“It’s nobody’s fault, but here we are,” she said.

The basics of the program are simple: The chamber will match any purchase of a gift card from a local business or restaurant located in the greater Lansdale area. Restaurants don’t have to be chamber members, and suggestions are available in a member directory posted on the chamber’s website www.ChamberGMC.org.

Once you buy that gift card, share the business name and amount on the chamber’s Facebook page, or email details to info@ chambergmc.org and the organization will match the purchase.

All gift cards, of any amount, submitted via those channels will be matched by the chamber up to $2,500 total, and those matching gift cards will be donated to local nonprofits.

“We wanted to be able to get the business community some help, and secondarily we know our nonprofits are really taking a hit as well,” Kelly said.

“For every gift card that’s bought, that business has the ability to use that to cover whatever bills they have, or things they need to do right now, while they may be shut down, and we can help them keep going,” she said.

If you’re looking for other options to shop, Lansdale Borough and local nonprofit Discover Lansdale have developed an interactive online business map listing those that remain open and their hours and services.

“It’s a fine line to ask people to go support businesses, but also make sure they abide by the governor’s health and safety requests,” said borough Economic Development Committee chairwoman Carrie Hawkins Charlton, who said she thought the chamber program was a “really great” idea.

For those stuck inside, the chamber also has several other suggestions for how you can still help local businesses. Likes, shares and comments on social media can help customers stay connected and learn about what businesses offer, while the posts help extend the reach of the business to new customers and raise their visibility for when they’re back open.

If you know of businesses that are offering online options, like live-streamed courses, webinars, or delivery or pickup, spread the word via social media, since those programs can help make a big difference to a local business in need.

“There is no minimum on this. If you want to buy a $10 gift card, if that works for your budget, that works for us. It all adds up,” she said.

Use the hashtag #SmallBusinessSTRONG to get the word out, and Kelly said the gift cards donated via the matching funds may be used for any number of purposes, so your purchase or donation could help stretch even farther.

“What they could do is then put them in as part of some type of auction they’re doing, raffling them off, use them to give to clients — it depends on the nature of their business, but they would have that to use, however they choose,” she said.

With the campaign just started, Kelly said Wednesday, the chamber plans to start contacting larger businesses

to see if they’d be willing to donate to raise that $2,500 match.

“If we can get that number higher, the impact is more to the businesses, and it’s a greater amount we can give to the nonprofits,” she said.

“There’s nothing in this for the chamber. We’re just buying the gift cards — it’s just about getting people to contribute.”

Other tips for helping local businesses during the coronavirus closures include using delivery or pickup options so you can maintain proper distance, while leaving positive reviews can help raise the profile of a business, and shopping online can help customers find details on things they might not see in a storefront.

Kelly said Wednesday that the chamber has already postponed several events planned for this spring, including a women’s conference scheduled for April 2 that has been rescheduled for Oct. 30.

The annual chamber business expo that had been scheduled for June 4 has now been bumped back to July 22, according to Kelly, and will now likely include a job fair component and be located at the Montgomery Mall. Chamber staff continue to help local businesses identify who is considered essential and lifesustaining and how to apply for aid, Kelly said, and more information is available on the chamber’s website.

Indian Valley

Closer to the Souderton area, the Indian Valley Chamber of Commerce has also posted links to COVID-19 information on its website.

“The first part of this was becoming a compiler and

source of trusted information for our members,” said Executive Director Steven Hunsberger.

Synopsis and updates were also provided, he said.

“I think we’re moving into the next stage now where we need to provide more resources for members,” he said, “utilizing technology to do that since we can’t meet face to face anymore.”

Member businesses are already using methods such as telecommuting and virtual meetings to spread information, he said. The chamber has scheduled its first one for March 31.

“It used to be done in membership meetings and it’s gonna be done virtually now,” Hunsberger said.

Webinars are also being compiled and developed, he said.

The chamber continues to encourage the community to use local businesses as much as possible, he said.

We are all in uncharted territory with a steep learning curve, he said.

“We’re learning new ways of doing business and that’s not a bad thing,” Hunsberger said. “It’s just the anxiety is compounded because of the situation that we find ourselves in.”

It’s important to remember we’re all in it together, he said.

“All of us are figuring this out – government, private sector, big business, small business, mom and pops – and it’s different. The good thing is the banking system still is intact and we need to figure out what parts of the system are still working so that we can use those to everyone’s benefit to move forward,” Hunsberger said.

“We’re gonna get through it,” he said, “and we’re gonna be better on the other side.”