 Ashland Business Association |
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The ABA
Resources Members Only |
Events & ProgramsOngoing Membership & Community Support ProgramsAshland Day Booth Each year during Ashland Day in September, the Business Association has a booth with a few games of skill and/or free raffles for the kids. At the same time we promote the ABA and Ashland First, encouraging residents to Shop in Ashland. Ashland Day 2012 will be September 15. Business Card Racks Display your business cards for FREE at the following locations if you have joined the ABA and paid your annual dues. Please note that individual agents at the same real estate agency, insurance agency, etc., need to join the ABA to take advantage of this opportunity. It's OK to display at more than one place, but each member is responsible for replenishing his or her own cards. If you don't find a space for your cards in at least one location, or if you have room for a rack at your business or organization, please contact your ABA officers.
Business Slide Show on AshlandFirst.com A slide show featuring 6 ABA member businesses continuously runs on AshlandFirst.com, our website for helping consumers search for and find ABA member businesses. Each slide clearly indicates the business name and is clickable to that member's business profile. Every month 6 ABA members are chosen for the ABA slide show. To be featured in it for FREE, you need to provide an image correctly formatted for the web:
Holiday Lighting Goodies Each December holiday season the ABA supports the Holiday Tree Lighting in Montenegro Square by supplying and distributing FREE cookies and hot chocolate to attendees. We purchase cookies with ABA funds or get them donated by local vendors. Hot chocolate is donated and delivered by Sunnyside Cafe. The 2011 event was on Saturday, December 3, starting at 5:00 pm. Surrounding towns brought their decorated fire trucks, and a prize was awarded for the best one. As always,Santa was there, too! Contact Mike Kane at vp@ashlandbusinessassociation.com to volunteer for 2012! LinkedIn Group To encourage communication among members, we have started a group on Linked In. Follow this link to join Linked In and the Ashland Business Association group: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1950802. Feel free to start and lead ABA-relevant discussions. Contact Ed Furey at 508-231-1331 if you have any questions. Map of Ashland In 2008 and 2010, the ABA developed and distributed to all residents an Ashland Street Map. We plan to update the map every other year as an advertising opportunity for members, and as a public service to the Ashland community. We're now working on a 2012 map, to be distributed at various locations around town. A"value added" feature this year will be an electronic version of the map on AshlandFirst.com, where people can zoom in to see the streets (and in the process, notice the advertisers). View the 2010 map (as a sample) at this link: http://www.artbyherring.com/ashland.html If you would like to advertise in the 2012 Map, please contact John Ellsworth at john@ashlandbusinessassociation.com or 508-231-4566. Member Spotlight on WACA-TV Channel 8 WACA-TV Channel 8 has a program designed to spotlight ABA member businesses. This is locally concentrated and reaches many Ashland residents. Call Bill Gath at 508-989-0181 -- and he will help you get YOUR business or organization on the air. There are three ways for your business to be spotlighted:
Scholarships Awards: One or more scholarships of up to $1,000 each will be awarded. Eligibility: The ABA scholarship competition is open to any high school senior residing in Ashland, as long as he or she is graduating in 2012, and has been accepted to an accredited school for further education. This is a unique opportunity for graduating seniors, as they are not judged on GPA, class standing, or CEEB scores. The scholarship will be awarded to the student who best demonstrates good work ethics, motivation, creativity, and business/community interests. Deadline: The ABA must receive your completed application by Friday, April 27, 2012 How to apply: Applications are available now at AshlandFirst.com, and will also be on the Ashland High School website, as well as at other locations. All applications must be completed and submitted electronically. Download an application now and save it to your computer. Then open and fill it out, save it, and email it by the deadline to scholarship@ashlandbusinessassociation.com. Be sure to include in the Subject Line: your name -- 2012 Scholarship. If you have any questions or problems, call 508-231-4566. Please pass the word along to your friends and neighbors in Ashland. Specials/Events Page Remember that you can also publicize your specials or events for free on AshlandFirst.com.
Specials and events will display if they are starting within 30 days and stay live until the end date has past. Otherwise they will automatically be hidden. Testimonials Testimonials ..... Publicize testimonials about your business, from any two of your satisfied customers. Email the Publicity Coordinator up to three lines of wording for each of your two best testimonials, and it will be added to the listing. Note that these testimonials may be permanently moved to the member profiles in our business directory.
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