Sarasota County Wins State FAFSA Completion Award

The Talent4Tomorrow Partnership is proud to announce that Sarasota County Schools has won four awards for highest FAFSA completion rate in the state from the 2017 Florida FAFSA Challenge, a campaign to increase the proportion of high school seniors completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Through leading local efforts made by the Talent4Tomorrow Partnership, 45.5% by Sarasota County high school seniors have completed the FAFSA. This is a 9.1% change over the previous application year, which equates to an estimated additional $513,180 in Pell grants awarded to Sarasota County students. Additionally, the Florida College Access Network (Florida CAN) has awarded Sarasota with the following honors:

• Sarasota County Schools–“MVP for Large School District” (Having the highest FAFSA completion rate through March 31^st, 2017)
• Riverview High School–“Biggest Boost for Large Schools” (Largest week-to-week change in percentage of students completing the FAFSA)
• “All-Stars”—(Achieving an increase of FAFSA completion by at least 5% over last year):
• Sarasota County School District
• Suncoast Polytechnical High School
• Sarasota Military Academy
• Booker High School
• Venice Senior High School
• Sarasota High School
• North Port High School
• Riverview High School

 

Talent4Tomorrow Partners and Sarasota County School District Officials accepting the award for “MVP for Large School District”

 

The Talent4Tomorrow Partnership is a community collaborative known as a “Local College Access Network”, and consists of CareerEdge Funders Collaborative, Education Foundation of Sarasota County, The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, Sarasota County Schools, UnidosNow, and United Way Suncoast. The Talent4Tomorrow Partnership seeks to increase career awareness and postsecondary attainment through increased college and career awareness, aspiration, and affordability initiatives. Kevin Cooper, President of The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce stated, “Every dollar counts when it comes to accessing post-secondary education.  When we come together, focus together, and lead together, it’s gratifying to see results getting our students one step closer to where they and we want them to be.  This is a truly great example of leadership through collaboration.”

The Talent4Tomorrow Partnership has spent several months planning and executing FAFSA awareness and support activities, including FAFSA completion assistance during community- and school-based events. Community volunteers as well as financial aid officers from Ringling College of Art & Design, State College of Florida, University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, and Keiser University assisted families of high school seniors in completing the FAFSA form at North Port High School, Booker High School, and Sarasota High School, as well as community-based FAFSA events and United Way Suncoast VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) programs.

According to the Florida College Access Network, less than half of all eligible Sarasota County high school students in 2012-2013 completed the FAFSA form, thus leaving over $2 million in Pell Grant dollars untapped. 59% of Florida students in 2013 were eligible to receive a Pell Grant, which awards up to $5,815 a year per student.

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For more information regarding the Talent4Tomorrow Partnership, contact Mimi Cirbusova at mcirbusova@sarasotachamber.com or (941) 556-4038.

Member Tip Monday: HOW TO FIND TIME FOR SOCIAL MEDIA

Build Your Visibility

Small business owners, especially those businesses with under 10 employees, find it extremely difficult to justify the time on social media because it doesn’t lead to predictable, measurable cost savings or revenue.

Social media and content marketing is about becoming an engaging resource for your customers. What’s the yield of a relationship? If you can figure out what a relationship is worth in revenue dollars, you should be blogging about it.

The truth is, we can’t. Not exactly at least. But we know people buy from people they know, like, and trust and that’s why it’s important to invest time in building these connections and affections.

Finding that time is easier said than done. Still here are a couple of suggestions on how to carve out some time to increase your efforts on social media.

Keep Content Handy

The first thing you’ll need is a place to keep content you find. Not all content will be applicable for sharing the moment you come across it. We’ve all seen people on Twitter who post 10 tweets at a time and figure they are done for the day. It is better to deal out your posts at multiple times than all at once. Often you’ll find content that you’ll want to share later so select a system in which you can easily access your content gems in the future.

Upload content to DropBox, use Evernote or keep a notepad handy (paper or electronic). Doesn’t matter if you keep fortune cookie messages in a shoe box. Never let what you deem to be a valuable piece of content escape. Keep it somewhere handy and build a cache of it.

Find a Scheduler You Like

There are many options to help you pre-schedule posts. Scheduling is important because you can’t spend your whole day posting, nor do you want to be that person who bombards others with a firehose worth of content once a day.

Find a scheduler you’re comfortable with. Many systems allow you to control when you post and often give you the ability to do it several days out. One of the most basic is Buffer. It allows you to schedule across multiple platforms. It offers a free and paid version, but even the paid is only about $10 a month.

The most popular is Hootsuite, and while I use it occasionally because it offers greater capabilities than Buffer, I do prefer Buffer’s minimalist design. Hootsuite’s interface is busy but allows you to monitor in real time. If you’re developing relationships, this is a powerful ability to have.

Multi-task

I’m not telling you to turn off the TV when you get home, but there is no reason if you’re “vegging out” that you can’t use that time to schedule a few posts for the next day. Don’t let mindless tasks, like television watching, steal your productivity.

“Steal” Time

We all have moments where we’re waiting – before doctor’s appointments, before meetings, on the phone, while the kids finish up with practice, you get the idea. Many of us fill this time with other mindless tasks like scanning pictures of our friends’ pets on Facebook. Instead, use this time to be productive by finding content, scheduling it, or responding to people on social media.

I am a firm believer in scheduling posts but the interacting cannot be scheduled, so use this stolen time to reach out and connect with people.

Look for Content Everywhere

Content ideas are everywhere – airplane magazines, overheard conversations, commercials, popular TV shows, as well as all over social media. Use the many messages that bombard you daily to find gems you’d like to share. Retweets are only the beginning.

Take Pictures

Along that line, take pictures of everything that moves you and some ordinary things that don’t. Pictures you take can be used in blogs, memes, and image quotes without concern over cost or copyright. Links with pics are more likely to get shared and clicked. Encourage staff to do the same.

You don’t need huge chunks of time to make connections on social media. The key to success in this area is the same in most business- or relationship-building. Give people what they want/find valuable; do so without expectation. Become a resource for them and help them. Be consistent in your efforts so they know they can count on you. This takes minutes a day. Schedule good content and steal time for interacting. Then watch your relationships grow as people share your resources with others.

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Christina R. Green teaches small businesses, chambers, and associations how to connect through content. Her articles have appeared in the Midwest Society of Association Executives’ Magazine, NTEN.org, AssociationTech, and Socialfish. She is a regular blogger at Frankjkenny.com and the Event Manager Blog. She’s a bookish writer on a quest to bring great storytelling to organizations everywhere.

Meet Our Members: Greater Sales Growth

Give us a brief history of your business/organization.

Greater Sales Growth is the product of almost 30 Years specializing in Sales and Business Management. I have sold $30+Million in Products and Services. Along the way, I perfected many strategies that consistently produce explosive sales results. Using these methods I have repeatedly helped businesses grow 10% – 25% annually.

What are your business/organization’s core values, goals, and overall mission?

We help Small Businesses achieve financial success, peace of mind and a bright future.

How long have you been in business in the Greater Sarasota Community?

16 MONTHS

In a nutshell, what does your business/organization provide its customers/clients?

Greater Sales Growth | The Sales Experts | We Increase Sales Fast

Complete this sentence: “When a customer/client walks into my business/office, they can expect…”

The Most Experienced and Accomplished Sales Experts.

What makes your business/organization unique?

Greater Sales Growth is unique because of its primary focus on Small Businesses. We give Small Businesses, Big Company Resources. We use the same strategies that Fortune 500 Companies have used for decades. Using our methods any business can achieve DOUBLE DIGIT ANNUAL GROWTH

What benefit attracted you to The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce?

The Chamber does a great job supporting small businesses. Since our primary clients are Small Businesses it just made perfect sense for me to join.

Is your company/organization involved in any community/civic activities?

Giving back to the Community is a very high priority. We offer FREE SERVICES TO many SMALL BUSINESSES that are seriously in need providing expert guidance, mentoring and support.

Where do you see your organization in five years?

A Book is in the works. I also hope to add more experts to our Team. We want to help 50 – 100 small businesses in the next 5 years

What are three things your business/organization can’t live without?

No Business can live without (People + Process + Planning) As well as… (Tools + Tactics + Training). We make all of these critical business components work together seamlessly. That is our focus every day!

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For more information about Greater Sales Growth, visit their website, follow Show Management on Facebook and Twitter.

Your business or organization could be featured in The Chamber Buzz. “Meet Our Members” is a member spotlight feature on The Chamber Buzz blog and e-newsletter, showcasing our member businesses, their products, and services. To be considered for the spotlight, simply complete this form.

Welcome September 2016 New Members!

The following local businesses joined The Chamber during the month of September in 2016. Please join us in welcoming these members at your next networking event.

Accredited Pet Care, LLC

Aerotek

Anderson York Inc.

Autumn Leaves on University Parkway

Direct Auto & Life Insurance

Ear-Resistable Hearing Centers

Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute

Hawk’s Flight Partners, LLC

Hunter, P.A.

Jonathan Herbert Studio LLC

Massage and Lypossage

Overture Grand Oaks

RSVP Sarasota

SensibleTec Solutions, Inc.

Shapes Fitness for Women Sarasota

The Coolinary Restaurant & Bar

THG Consultants

White Oaks Wealth Advisors, Inc.*

Windstream*

*Bold denotes trustee.

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Interested in learning more about membership? Contact Matt Gower, at mgower@sarasotachamber.com  for more information.

Learning how to maximize your membership? Visit us at our next Chamber 411, new member briefing and information session on Tuesday, November 15 from 3 – 4:30 p.m.

LEAP to Louisville: a Recent Inter-County Visit with Local Leaders

In late-September, 35 community leaders traveled to Louisville, Kentucky as part of the Leadership Expedition to Accelerate Progress (LEAP). The trip, hosted by The Chamber’s Sarasota Tomorrow Initiative in partnership with the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County, serves as an opportunity for area leadership to learn more about the successes of peer and aspirational communities that might be emulated locally. As in years past, the Sarasota delegation included elected officials, City/County staff, local for-profit and non-profit CEOs, key education leadership, and other key civic and business stakeholders.

Insights gained from past trips have helped local groups collaborate to create the successful Precision Machining program at Suncoast Technical College, explore new public art efforts, launch the Talent4Tomorrow initiative to improve our region’s educational attainment and workforce development outcomes and create the Sarasota Bayfront 20:20 effort to maximize that key area of our community.

In the sixth iteration of the inter-city best practice visit concept, Louisville was selected for the strides made in education & workforce development, waterfront reimagining, targeted cluster incubation and acceleration, place making, and tourism branding. While its economic output, unique assets, and population make the area more of an aspirational city, as opposed to a peer community, these types of areas still offer insight to numerous themes that could be adjusted to fit Sarasota’s local scale.