Through his active membership with the Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce, Brig Serman, owner of Advanced Integrated Marketing, became involved in the community and built a network of success.
“Until I got involved with the Chamber and became a local business owner, I really didn’t know what was going on in Arlington,” Serman said.
When Serman decided to start his marketing agency, his longtime friend and mentor Don Duke encouraged him to join the Chamber at the Corporate Leadership Council (CLC) level.
As a CLC member, Serman attended events exclusive to Major Investors like Morning with the Mayor, Connecting with the Commissioner and more.
“Being in the room is super important, and as a Major Investor, you’re in the room with a more exclusive set of businesses,” Serman said. “People who are decision makers in major companies and organizations in Arlington. You’re in the room with our County Commissioner, our State Representative, our Mayor. Whether it’s business leaders or city or state government, it’s a much greater opportunity to have input into those functions because you’re in the room.”
These events provide details on what is going on in Arlington, something Serman didn’t have before his membership.
“These are stories I may not hear anywhere else,” he said.
Serman invites a few of his clients from DFW to join him at the annual State of the City event, allowing them to become knowledgeable in Arlington news.
The success Serman has seen through his Chamber Membership came from the help of his mentors Duke and Jack Webb. When he first joined in 2019, Duke compared Serman’s new membership to a gym membership, pushing him to be active and engaged at events.
“If you’re not going and using the weights or working out, nothing changes,” Serman said of Duke’s advice. “The most important aspect of being in a Chamber and getting value out of it is being engaged.”
So, Serman began attending events, and he joined the Veterans Business Council (VBC) as part of the Allies, one of the six Member Groups. Serman said the VBC provides an opportunity for him to participate in community service projects, helping the veterans community.
As he attended their events, he built relationships and eventually asked another member, Jim Ross, to coffee. As they were drinking coffee at Ross’ office, Serman started to share what his business offers to their clients. Ross told him to pause and brought his staff in to hear.
“That was our first really big client and that came from the Chamber and showing up consistently and being engaged,” he said.
For Serman, the two monthly networking events, Business Over Breakfast (BOB) and Chamber After Hours, provided great opportunities to connect with people. BOB allows attendees to share their 30-second elevator pitch to 100-150 attendees, and Chamber After Hours is a more traditional happy hour at a different location each month.
“It’s all about raising your visibility and helping people understand who you are,” Serman said.
In Serman’s opinion, BOB is great for visibility, and Chamber After Hours is good for networking.
“Chamber After Hours tends to be more casual,” Serman said. “I found it to be more beneficial in terms of building the depth of a relationship because you had a chance to have a longer conversation with them. People are having conversations in groups, and you can just move around the room. There’s a better opportunity for networking because the structure is oriented more towards individual conversations.”
Before Serman attended his first BOB, one of his mentors, Webb, gave him advice that helped him utilize what can be an “overwhelming” event for newcomers, he said.
Webb encouraged Serman to listen to all of the 30-second pitches and pick two people that stood out to him, write down their names and approach them after the meeting, asking if he can buy them a cup of coffee and learn more about their business. At the next BOB, he would pick two different people; by doing this each time, Serman expanded his network in an intentional and deliberate way.
Serman’s biggest advice to new members is to build their visibility by actively attending Chamber events.
“Visibility builds credibility that leads to profitability,” he said. “It all starts with visibility. If you’re not in the room, you’re not visible, and the Chamber gives you lots of rooms to be in.”
From BOB, Chamber After Hours, weekly Networking Groups, Member Groups, members have dozens of opportunities to increase their visibility.
“The reality is the main cost is your time,” Serman said. “You’re investing your time and effort to be in the room, and you’ll begin to learn how to make the most of it for your business.”
The Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce is the catalyst for growing our members’ business, fostering economic prosperity, amplifying the voice of business and developing our community’s future. Through year-round events, members build lasting relationships and learn crucial strategies to grow their business. Interested in becoming a member? Contact Bryan Weatherford, Director of Member Recruitment.
Learn more about how Advanced Integrated Marketing Inc. can provide website design, social media management and search engine optimization for your business here.