Announcing a New Member Benefit Service - Discounted Web Services


Member Benefits of the Ottawa
Area Chamber of Commerce

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield - NOACC Chamber Plan
    Group Rating Services
         With Anthem's Chamber plans, small businesses can afford large group benefits at reduced prices.  You          can even have your choice of plans.  For more information call the office at 419-523-3141.


Compensation Consultants Inc.
   Group Rating Services
         This group plan is available to interested members of the Chamber.  For more information please call the          office at 419-523-3141.


Discounted Web Services
   Discounted Rates for Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce members
         Promoting the philosophy that every business needs at least a web presence, and sometimes, much more, the Ottawa Chamber is pleased to offer discounted web services for chamber members. There are four options: 1) Discounted Web Design Services;   2) ChamberWeb Membership -- the ability to have a  simple web page for a very low fee;  3) Discounted Web Site hosting;  4) Discounted Site Optimization  Services.

Learn more about discounted web services.


CertifiChecks.com
         A gift certificate program that keeps dollars in our local economy.  For more          information call the Chamber office.   View the Chamber's CertifiChecks          website at http://www.certifichecks.com/


Membership Directory
         The Chamber’s Membership Directory is kept up-to-date, published in office and distributed upon          request. This directory contains a complete listing and buyers guide for members and consumers to use          when seeking goods and services.


Networking Opportunities



Announcing New Member Benefit Service - Discounted Web Services
The Ottawa Ohio Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce a new member benefit service which designed to promote members through the World Wide Web. We have entered into an agreement with First Communications Group (www.firstgrp.com), in Findlay, Ohio, to offer the new member benefit services listed below to our members. Tim Hoehn, an Ottoville native and an Ottawa-Glandorf resident, will be coordinating all of these services.


1.  Discounted Web Design/Re-Design
Member Benefit: 15% discount ($60/hour) on all web site design/re-design services for Ottawa Ohio Chamber of Commerce members. First Communications Group's rates are among the lowest competitive in the web design marketplace.

The days of having a web site up "just to have a web site up" are long gone.

At First Communications Group, they believe in creating web sites that are not just functional, but serve as a real marketing tool. For more information, please read the article "Making Your Web Site a Valuable Marketing Tool."

Their goal is to design your web site so that it portrays the right unique visual image for your company or organization.

Web Site Re-Design
 Honestly, are you embarassed by your existing web site? If you have a web site but are not pleased with its look, effectiveness or findability, First Communications Group can re-design any aspect of it. This includes, but is not limited to, new layout, improved photos and graphics, improved written copy, and fixing general operational errors.


2.  Single Page Web Presence with ChamberWeb Membership
Member Benefit: The ability to have a web presence for a very low fee.

The Ottawa Ohio Chamber of Commerce is also proud to announce another new member benefit, ChamberWeb membership. Promoting the philosophy that every business needs at least a web presence, we are happy to offer the ability to have a simple web page on this web site for a very low fee. It will also a link on the Chamber of Commerce's membership directory page on the Ottawa city's site.

3.  Discounted Web Site Hosting
Member Benefit: Monthly hosting fee has been discounted to $20 for Ottawa Ohio Chamber of Commerce members.

Web Site Hosting includes: First Communications Group has a special lease agreement which allows it to upgrade whenever new technology is available, meaning money is not tied up in old hardware and limited bandwidth contracts. This ensures great prices for clients, without ever having to compromise on quality. First Group uses the most advanced technology because we recognize that your website must be fast and available. Our goal is that you never have to think about your web hosting account.

This plan is offered on a three-month pre-pay basis.


4.  Discounted Site Optimization Services

Member Benefit: 15% discount on all site optimization services, including search engine submissions, for Ottawa Chamber of Commerce members.

“The single most important thing for business web sites to achieve today is search engine visibility. If your web site doesn’t show up on the first page of the search results, it’s as though you don’t exist.”

-- Jakob Nielsen in “B to B Interactive Marketing Guide”


According to most search engines, there are several criteria that every web site has to abide by to be even considered “submissable.” These range from being “spiderable” (ability to go from one page to another) to having absolutely no indication of spamming. Some search engines do not consider any individual web page worthy of being submitted unless it has at least 200 words of text.

After that, every search engine has its own particular criteria. Yahoo, for example, puts great emphasis on having key words (words descriptive of the site’s services) repeated at least four times per page, and have those key words in the title, description, and keyword meta-tags of the site. According to Yahoo, you have to “prove” in your copy what your site is all about and then put these keywords into the “tags” of the web site code. Most search engines put importance on related out-going links and how “useful” your site is. Google puts great importance on in-coming links (links from other sites to your site). Every page of a web site should feature at least one related out-going link (to an association, organization, partner, etc.). The returns are even greater if those you link to link back to you.

It is important to note that some web sites feature dynamic graphics that flash across the screen, but these graphics are not findable by search engines. Thus any marketing keywords featured in these graphics would not be "readable" by these search engines, providing very poor search results.

Search Engine Service #1 - “Categorical and Qualified Search” Service:
This service puts your web site into sub-categories so it can be found even better. This service will not allow a page to be submitted until it meets 12 different criteria and ensuring that the site is “spiderable.” Your web site will be submitted once per month to the 21 top search engines.

One time setup of meta tags, including key words, title, and web site description, and configuring the site so that all 12 criteria are met: $128 (Discounted 15% for Ottawa Chamber members)
Annual Submission Fee: $42 (Discounted 15% for Ottawa Chamber members)

Search Engine Service #2 - “Direct Submit” Service:
This service automatically resubmits your home page, as is, to 1,425 search engines (including Google, HotBot, Yahoo, and MSN) every 48 hours.

One time setup includes research of the ranking of key words ranking and metatag analysis: $60 (Discounted 15% for Ottawa Chamber members)
Annual Submission Fee: $42 (Discounted 15% for Ottawa Chamber members)

You can choose either Service #1 or Service #2 or both.


For more information regarding the member benefits of the Ottawa Ohio Chamber of Commerce, please contact:

Mary Jo Bockrath
Executive Director
129 Court Street
P.O. Box 68
Ottawa Ohio 45875
Phone: 419-523-3141
Fax: 419-523-5860
Email: ottawachamber@earthlink.net










Development by First Communications Group, Inc.