Over the past 5 years, Small Business owners have really understood that Social Media is a new way of doing Marketing in a non-threatening, non-intrusive environment. And, for various reasons, currently, Facebook has come to be the biggest channel one can pick in that arena.
 
However, while more and more businesses are getting a Facebook page, how well does yours work? And more importantly, what have you been doing with it?  

Last week the City of Oceanside along with the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce, Visit Oceanside, and Oceanside Sister Cities hosted 12 visitors from Oceanside's Sister City, Fuji Japan. Included in the visiting group were the Mayor of Fuji City and the President and C.E.O. of Fuji City Chamber of Commerce.

The visit included a reception at Hello Betty's recognizing the 25th anniversary of the Oceanside and Fuji City Sister City program. Long time chamber members Jim Schroder and Marti Farris who helped start the Sister City program were there to help celebrate, along with Mayor Jim Wood and Oceanside City Council members. 

Oceanside Chamber member, Sally McKay, owner of MG Travel, is currently traveling in Cuba and will be sharing her experiences via this blog. We hope you'll enjoy.

by Scott Ashton

Nestled in the quaint Cape Cod style village of the Oceanside Harbor is one of the community’s treasured establishments, Harbor Fish and Chips. Terry Cross, owner, will tell you that
there is no one in Oceanside more passionate about fish than he is.

Cross was born at Oceanside General Hospital and raised in the same Oceanside home his entire childhood. His dad taught him deer hunting and fishing; and his father-in-law,
Doug McWha taught him how to run a commercial fishing boat when Cross was 20 years old.

By John Moore, SonicSpider, LLC

​Small businesses really struggle with getting their services and/or products in front of potential customers. Part of that struggle is that, in our modern fast paced and attention overloaded world, it seems to take more and more to overcome the din and dross of that world and somehow, stand out.
 
The way around this is to stop chasing and start attracting.. in a sense, by standing under "THEIR" street light!
 
You do this by being the business your customer wants to find...
 
Hmm.. that sounds like a cat chasing its tail, funny but not productive. So what do I mean here with this "being the business your customer "wants" to find"?
 
You start by knowing your customer, then purposely craft what you present (i.e. your website, your brick and mortar site), what you do and how you do, it so that it intersects with that customer, their world, their needs, their desires. Being visible means standing under the same street light that "your" customer is standing under, not under some random street light or shouting from the shadows . 

by Kristi Hawthorne, Oceanside Living Magazine

During the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established a works program in 1935 to help millions of unemployed Americans by creating building projects to provide jobs. The Works Progress Administration (or Works Projects Administration) was commonly known as the WPA. Throughout the U.S. these jobs put over 8 million people to work by building 650,000 miles of roads, thousands of parks and bridges, hundreds of airports, and over 100,000 public buildings. In addition, The Federal Arts Project employed artists to create public art.

In Oceanside the WPA was responsible for building Oceanside’s first permanent Post Office building in 1935. This historic building also contains two projects commissioned by the Treasury
Section of Fine Arts, which like the Federal Arts Project, provided murals and other art forms to decorate public buildings. A beautiful 16' x 6' mural of the San Luis Rey Valley and its Mission,
entitled “Air Mail” by Elise Seeds hangs in the lobby. A carved wooden eagle and grille over the front entrance was done by Stuart Holmes.

Last Thursday marked the Oceanside Chamber’s 11th Annual North County Health Fair at the Oceanside Civic Center Plaza. Hundreds of residents, along with visitors and members of the local business community came together to enjoy a beautiful day in the sun.

The event, presented by Tri-City Medical Center, offered community members an opportunity to get connected to the wide variety of health care resources that are available in Oceanside and surrounding communities. Dozens of exhibitors were on hand to provide information about the services offered by their businesses. Event sponsors included Scripps, Kaiser Permanente and Primary Care Associates/Cassidy Medical Group, Part of OptumCare.

On October 13th, the Chamber’s Oceanside Senior Expo event will take place at the same venue. For more information on the Chamber’s upcoming events, visit our Special Events page.

​Oceanside’s restaurants and craft breweries are more than just a place to get a hot meal and a cold beer. They’re where we celebrate special occasions with friends and loved ones, experience new taste sensations, and where we satisfy our cravings by exploring San Diego County’s diverse cultures.  Restaurants and craft breweries are also where many of us work to support our families, and they are a key driver of our region’s thriving economy. San Diego County is home to more than 2,500 restaurants from fine dining to fast casual, and 126 craft breweries from nano to internationally distributed brands.  And there is one thing they all have in common – natural gas is essential to their current and future success. 
 
There’s been a lot of talk about natural gas lately, but what hasn’t been discussed is how important it is for San Diego County. After all, it’s a clean energy source that is responsible for generating more than half of all the electricity used in our region. But it’s especially critical for the local restaurant and brewing industries. That’s because natural gas not only keeps the lights on, it also fires the brew kettles, cooks the food properly, keeps beer and food cold and the breweries and kitchens sanitary – all of which are crucial to highly functioning brewing and food service operations. 

by Jyotika Chand, RN
 
As a member of the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce you have some great perks.
The chamber provides a variety of benefits for members to maximize their membership and one of them is the Plates for 8 events. They are hosted by a chamber member and at a member’s venue. This is a great opportunity for the company hosting the event to market and network with everyone attending! You get to eat some delicious food and get to know other chamber members in a casual environment. No pressure. No big crowds.