APRIL 2011 THE LAS VEGAS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE MAGAZINE LVCHAMBER.COM Business Voice SPRING CLEAN BUSINEss PURGE YOUR PAPERWORK SCRUB YOUR MAILING LISTS DITCH YOUR OLD DATA POLISH YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE REFRESH YOUR MARKETING SOCIALIZE YOUR NETWORKS Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce 6671 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Ste. 300 Las Vegas, NV 89119-3290 702.641.5822 • LVChamber.com 2011 Board of Trustees Executive Committee Chairman’s MESSAGE Michael J. Bonner Chairman of the Board Greenberg Traurig, LLP pring is a time of renewal, a time to chart new courses, look Kristin McMillan for innovative ways to refresh your business objectives and Immediate Past Chairman CenturyLink move your company forward. Kevin Orrock S Chairman-Elect The Howard Hughes Corporation The Chamber wants to be a partner in your company’s spring Hugh Anderson overhaul. Here are just a few examples on how you can utilize your Anderson & Delutri @ Merrill Lynch Chamber member benefits to help you breath new life into your Jay Barrett The Marnell Companies business: Kevin Burke Burke Construction Group, Inc. Generate Publicity: Steve Hill If ever there was a time to make sure your company is taking CalPortland advantage of every available promotional tool, it is now. The Vicky VanMeetren St. Rose Dominican Hospitals, Chamber has several tools to help generate buzz about your business St. Martín Campus and drive new customers to your door. Send the Chamber your Nancy Wong Arcata Associates, Inc. latest company news to [email protected] for inclusion in the Trustees Member News section of The Business Voice. Post a member Bob Ansara discount offer or a video advertisement for free in the Chamber’s Ricardo’s of Las Vegas, Inc. Michael J. Bonner Chairman of the Board Member Marketplace. Interested in social media? Check out the Bob Brown Las Vegas Review-Journal Chamber’s Business Education Series session “Marketing on the Edge” on April 12 to learn how Senator Richard Bryan to utilize Twitter and Facebook effectively. Lionel Sawyer & Collins Marilyn Burrows Polish Up Your Networking and Presentation Skills: Cox Communications How effective are your presentation and networking skills? You can polish all of your Tim Cashman Las Vegas Harley – Davidson interpersonal communication tools by joining the Chamber’s Toastmasters Club, “Chamber Doris Charles Voices.” Toastmasters will help you develop communication skills that you can use in both your Wells Fargo Bank Cornelius Eason professional and personal life. Also, don’t miss the joint Chamber Vegas Young Professionals Workforce Connections mixer on April 28 to make new connections. Jonathan Halkyard Caesars Entertainment Corporation Access Free Expertise: Dallas Haun Nevada State Bank Sometimes you just need to sit down face-to-face with an experienced, knowledgeable business Corey Jenkins expert who can help you troubleshoot your current business conditions. The Chamber offers all SAVMOR Rent a Car members free one-hour private counseling sessions with a SCORE business counselor who will Bart Jones Merlin Contracting & Developing serve as your personal business coach. You do not have to be an “at risk” business to participate Russ Joyner in these sessions. In fact, using this member benefit could help you take a stable and successful Miracle Mile Shops business and make it even stronger. William (Bill) Nelson Piercy Bowler Taylor & Kern Karla Perez Of course, the Chamber offers a host of other membership benefits, all designed with you in Valley Health System mind. If you would like to learn more about how to get the very most out of your membership Gina Polovina Boyd Gaming Corporation investment, please call the Chamber at 702.641.5822, or visit LVChamber.com. Larry Singer Grubb & Ellis - Las Vegas Dr. Neal Smatresk University of Nevada, Las Vegas WHAt’s inside Bruce Spotleson Greenspun Media Group Chamber Centennial Chamber News Member News John Wilson 6 10 18 Anniversaries MedicWest Ambulance Michele Tell Woodrow Preferred Public Relations, LLC COVER STORY: Spotlights Ribbon Cuttings 14 20 8 SPRING CLEAN BUSINESS! 16 Calendar of Events 22 New Members Volume 31 Number 4 We’veNEW got CHAMBER business OPPORTUNITY covered. APRIL Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce 5 4 April 2011 Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Business Voice Business Voice April 2011 CHAMBER CENTENNIAL Chamber plays pivotal role shaping Vegas in 1940s The start of World War II and the World War II benefitted Las Vegas in other saying, “Everybody is going to have to do buildup of U.S. ally defenses ways as well. Tourism continued to grow their share to help bring the tourists and proved to be of great benefit to Las as the war kept residents of nearby states continued prosperity to Las Vegas after Vegas’ economy. the war.” The term “live wire” was given to Chamber members who made the com- In 1940, the U.S. Army determined Las mitment to give between one and five per- Vegas would be an ideal site for a gunnery cent of their annual gross receipts to the training school. With the help of Senator group to help publicize Las Vegas. Pat McCarran and Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce officials, a deal was brokered. The Chamber originally hired a high- When the Las Vegas Army Air Corps profile advertising agency, but then took Gunnery School opened in 1941, it shared over promotional efforts, creating the Las space at what would become McCarran Vegas News Bureau. International Airport. The development of from traveling far, so Las Vegas boosted Some of Las Vegas’ legendary figures en- the gunnery school led to a boost in con- its reputation as a vacation destination. tered the picture in the 1940s, bringing struction around the base and an increase Additionally, Ria Langham Gable gave a with them the development of a number in population. boost to Las Vegas’ “quickie divorce” laws of Las Vegas’ landmark gaming proper- when she arrived in 1938 to divorce Clark At the same time, manganese deposits were ties. Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel opened the Gable. Interestingly enough, the publicity discovered in Nye County. Manganese Flamingo Hotel in 1946; The Thunderbird surrounding this high-profile couple not ore can be converted to magnesium and launched in 1948; and Guy McAfee, Art only garnered Las Vegas a reputation as used to manufacture airplane parts and Ham and Kell Houssels opened The a popular divorce spot, but as a wedding Golden Nugget in 1946. The 1940s even destination as well. saw the launch of still-popular Las Vegas The 1940s saw an evolution of the re- mainstays – the buffet was born inside the lationship between California and El Rancho Vegas in April 1941. Future Nevada. Gambling operators ousted from Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce execu- California made their way to Southern tive Herb McDonald launched the Chuck Nevada looking to make their fortunes in Wagon Buffet by lining up cold cuts along a legalized casino operations. Some of the bar top. biggest names in gaming history went on The decades saw the population triple, and to make their mark in Las Vegas, including it set the foundation for a vibrant future. Sam Boyd, a former Las Vegas Chamber build fire bombs. With financial assistance of Commerce president, who developed a from the federal Reconstruction Finance number of well-known casino properties. Corporation, Basic Magnesium plant was developed in what is now downtown In 1945, Chamber Chairman Maxwell Henderson. While the plant was only in Kelch led efforts to create the early adver- operation from 1941-1944, 13,000 em- tising collective that funded promotion ployees were drawn to the plant during of Las Vegas. Kelch is credited with en- those years, and many went on to become couraging the idea that businesses had to permanent Southern Nevada residents. band together to foster the ongoing evo- lution of Las Vegas. Kelch was quoted as Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce 7 6 April 2011 Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Business Voice photos courtesy of the Las Vegas News Bureau Business Voice April 2011 COVER S scrub! step 1 PRINT OUT each MAILING LIst AND GO OVER IT THOROUGHLY TORY Data Do’s & Don’ts “Spring is a scrub! great time to scrub! step 2 VERIFY CONtact INFOrmatION FOR each custOMER OR CLIENT DO your USE A secure arch4IVE FOR clean out your step 3 DELETE Outdated CONtacts IMPOrtaNT data, DOcumeNts mailing & AND PROJects inbox.” step 4 CALL YOUR custOMERS TO TOUCH base AND CONFIRM/update THEIR INFOrmatION - DAVE ARCHER, contact SPRING CEO of the Nevada Center RE-segmeNT YOUR MAILING LIsts based ON curreNT MARKET CONDITIONS clutter YOUR COMPUTER WITH for Entrepreneurship lists step 5 DON’T Needless, UNUSED PROgrams and Technology DO update passWOrds, securITY TRIM THE FAT. CLEAN SETTINgs AND SOFTWARE LICENses GET IN FOCUS. DOeducate YOUR staFF ON PROPER STAY COMMITTED. COMPUTER AND ONLINE securITY • Evaluate your budget line-by-line to eliminate waste THE MORE YOU LEARN, BUSINEss • Take advantage of Chamber discounts to save money TIME TO PURGE, ORGANIZE, UPDA THE MORE You’ll EARN • Challenge employees to be more efficient and productive There’s a reason spring cleaning is effective: It’s a time toT Estart AND fresh, REFREdo away withSH! • Use the Chamber’s SCORE free business • Cut out duplication, redundant processes and needless steps what’s old and not working, and generally just make a clean slate of your home, your life counseling service • Create a mission statement that defines your goals and yes, even your business. Here are some ideas for re-invigorating your workplace: and objectives and revise regulary • Attend the Chamber’s Business Education • Review your progress monthly and make necessary adjustments Series for fast and affordable training • Discover a world of free or low-cost training Tips to un-clutter cash options online CLEAN Simple Steps to Better literally.