Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce to offer free business programs March 23 and 30

LACONIA — The Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce (LRCC) will offer two free business programs during the month of March.

"The Social Media Advantage" will be held from noon — 1:30 p.m. at the Woodside Building in the Taylor Community on Wednesday, March 23. This seminar will demonstrate how any business, non-profit, or municipality can use internet marketing tools to develop strong connections with potential clients, volunteers, or partners. Business owners, head executives, non-profit directors, or government/municipal managers will leave the seminar with simple and actionable techniques they can immediately put into practice to help them increase leads, bring new customers into their stores, increase awareness, and more. This program includes lunch and will be presented by Ryan Barton & Ryan Robinson of Mainstay Technologies — a statewide leader in IT service and support.

An interactive seminar focused on the development of the Lakes Region's future workforce will be held at the Woodside Building from 11 a.m. — 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30. This is a collaborative effort between LRCC, Lakes Region United Way, NH Works, the Belknap County Economic Development Council, Lakes Region Community College, the J. Oliva Huot Technical Center, and the Laconia Shared Youth Vision Team. Sponsored by Meredith Village Savings Bank, the program will include an overview of the 200 x 2020 initiative led by the Lakes Region United Way followed by a business panel of successful school-to-work partnerships from kindergarten to college.

The goal of 200 x 2020 is to have a minimum of 200 local businesses signed on by 2020 to give local students access to a full range of vocational, technical, and occupational experiences throughout the school years and support the long-term workforce demands of the Lakes Region. Special guests will include Cynthia Flynn from the NH Department of Labor and a representative from Primex to discuss liability and risk management. The program, which will include a free lunch, will end with small roundtable discussions networking educators and business leaders followed by questions and answers.

For more information, call LRCC at 524-5531 or visit www.lakesregionchamber.org.