How do you decide where to shop? Is it strictly a matter of convenience, price, service or selection? Most likely, it is a combination of all of these, uniquely weighted to suit your particular style and interests. And I would like to suggest that your best chance of finding a mix that you like will be with a locally owned, independently operated business. Local owners have the flexibility and community interest to respond to their customers’ requests and emerging markets.

The Corvallis Independent Business Alliance would like to request a little grass-roots help in something that will go a long way in determining the health and vitality of our business community. We are beginning our annual membership drive and want to increase our diversity and depth. Over the next month or so, whenever you visit your favorite independent business, please ask if you could have a moment of the owner or manager’s time. Then ask if they are members of CIBA. If they are, please thank them. If they are not, please let them know how important local ownership is to you and suggest that they join CIBA. If they are busy, please leave them a short note and check back next time you visit.

One of the most valuable characteristics of local owners is that they really do care what their customers think. If they understand that supporting an association that serves as a strategic partner to other area business organizations is important to their customers, they will look closer to what we have to offer them. There are many other benefits we offer, but we need the opportunity to discuss them with a broad range of services and businesses. That is where you, the customer, are so important!

For CIBA to increase its effectiveness as a voice for independently operated businesses, it is important for us to represent as broad a spectrum as possible. For us to effectively serve our members as an educational and networking resource, we need a deep penetration into key service and business categories. And to represent our community in all its wonderful richness, we need to continue increasing the diversity of our membership.

Good news! We have just completed a five-month application with Corvallis’ Economic Development Funding Committee to help build stability and reliability for our key projects. A key reason for our application was to learn how we are perceived and to understand the process.

I am pleased to say that CIBA was generally well known and respected among the business and government leaders on the committee; however, we probably have a fair distance to go before our message is clearly understood by the general population.

We are very thankful that a significant portion of our request was granted. We will be able to continue improving our educational and promotional efforts. We will work hard to focus our efforts to correct the misunderstandings we discovered during the hearings. And we will be able to spread our basic message of the benefits to the local community when money is spent with locally owned businesses: more than 3½ times the economic benefit of money spent at national retailers.

For all this to happen, we need help reaching potential members. Please ask your favorite businesses to contact us for more information. Membership forms and other material are also available on our Web site: www.CorvallisIBA.org. This is also a good place to browse our directory of member businesses, catch up on our news and activities or send us a note.