Albany Herald

Photo by Casey Dixon

ALBANY, Ga. -- Dougherty County Commission Chairman Jeff Sinyard and Albany Mayor Willie Adams signed proclamations Monday declaring May 24-28 as Small Business Appreciation week.

"Small businesses are the backbone of Albany," Adams said. "Seventy-five to 80 percent of new jobs in the community are created by small businesses. They often are taken for granted, but their importance cannot be overly emphasized."

Today's signing ceremonies kicked off a week of Albany Area Chamber of Commerce activities designed to promote small business in the area.

"We want our small businesses to know how much we rely on them and how much we appreciate them," Chamber Director of Communications Director Rachelle Bitterman said. "We want them to know that (the Chamber) is here for them, to help them grow and prosper."

After the morning signing, the Chamber held a "Drop In" event for small businesses to learn how to take advantage of their membership and get more information on the workshops and resources available throughout Small Business Appreciation Week.

According to a Chamber handout, the week's remaining activities include:

* 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday -- Business Resource Fair, Chamber Board Room

Information will be available from the Georgia Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Labor, the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center, Georgia Tech Procurement, Albany Community Together, Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission and the Dougherty County Small Business Office. Tuesday and Wednesday the displays will be static and on Thursday there will be a representative from each agency to answer questions.

* Noon-1 p.m. Tuesday -- Social Media Workshop, Chamber Board Room

Chamber employee Meghan Duke will be teaching attendees how to harness the power of social media and amp their presence to meet new challenges of this marketplace in a variety of ways.

* Noon-1 p.m. Wednesday -- Mastering Your Online Presence, Chamber Board Room

Glennette Goodbread of Premium Web Design will facilitate the event.

* 7:30 a.m.-8:30 a.m. Thursday -- "SNL" Speed Networking & A Latte, Elements Downtown coffee

Participants can learn an effective way to make a lot of initial connections in a different environment from the standard business networking events. Through the guidance of a facilitator, attendees introduce themselves, swap business cards and chat about how each could help the other.

Please note: Chamber space is limited for workshops and speed Networking. Reserve a spot by contacting Duke at (229) 434-8700 or mduke@albanyga.com.