Fife Chamber sees growth on all fronts

It's been a very positive first quarter of 2019 for us here at Fife Chamber. We are delighted to say we have seen growth in membership, while export document certification, e-shot usage, event attendance and social media followers all higher than the comparable period in 2018.

Our membership has grown with 27 new members joining between January and March. Paul our Membership Executive said “It is great to see all the hard work that has been done over the last couple of years evolving the Chamber’s services gaining traction with such a diverse range of businesses both in terms of sector and scale, and to see those businesses actively engaging with the services whether with other members through the Chamber Directory, entering the Fife Business Awards, or sharing their news stories with us to feature on the website and the fortnightly newsletter.”

One of our specialised services is Export Documentation. These certificates include Certificates of Origin, ATR and EUR 1 and are available for members and non-members alike. Our Financial Administrator Marjory has processed more certificates than she did in the same period in 2018 and said "It is uplifting to see that exporting has continued to grow despite all the uncertainty over Brexit, and it has been reassuring to see our current exporters securing new customers over this time as well."

With regards to our events, Lynda has been working hard to confirm the biggest programme ever in 2019. We have already seen three Fife Socials, six Fife Learns and two Fife Showcase events in this quarter, with an increase in attendance at all our events. This is so encouraging that we are providing events that are important to Fife Businesses. The Fife Social programme is now conformed for the rest of 2019, as are the remaining Fife Showcase events, while our Fife Learn Programme is growing continuously thanks to the willingness of more members to share their ideas and experiences with each other. Speaking on the events Lynda said "For me it been amazing not only to organise these events but on a personal level to be able to visit venues and meet their staff, which I would never have had the opportunity to do without this job.

Our e-shot service has also grown in popularity, with some members mounting campaigns spanning several months to reinforce their message to the membership. Speaking about the recent changes to the e-shot service Cheryl said: "It has been great to engage with members and encourage then to create their own template publication and by doing so provide them with an additional marketing tool."

Lastly we have seen a jump in our followers across all our social media platforms - Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Commenting on our social media uplift Cheryl said "I know from first-hand experience the difference even just a small but consistent presence on social media can make to a business or organisation. It is rewarding to take time to speak to members and give them tips and advice on how they can reach a wider audience. We certainly reached a wider audience ourselves when #fifebusinessawards trended worldwide on Twitter."