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The Andalusia Area Chamber of Commerce held its first Lunch and Learn event of 2022 Tuesday sponsored by Andalusia Health.

It was the first meeting the Chamber was able to hold since the pandemic and featured Monde Donaldson of the Better Business Bureau as the guest speaker.

“Our mission is to promote trust in the marketplace. We’re here to protect consumers and businesses. A lot of people call us to check on a business, and while we can’t recommend one, we can give their BBB rating and how long they have been in operation. I’m going to talk about building a better business and what trust is all about,” Donaldson said.

She said the BBB’s standards of trust are building trust, advertising honestly, telling the truth about a product, being transparent, and having safeguard privacy.

“Building trust is about maintaining a positive track record in the marketplace. It’s also about building relationships. I’m going to use an example as Publix. A customer had ordered muffins for a meeting and was to pick them up at 8 a.m. They had the order wrong and actually put 8 p.m. When she went to pick up, they told her to take everything free, and the manager called her that afternoon to apologize. That was going the extra mile for that manager. Because of that experience, she said she would go back and do all her catering with Publix.”

According to Donaldson, advertising honestly and telling the truth about a product are about using clear wording, being eye-catching, and having testimonials. She added that it is important to be transparent about a business and disclose all policies and guarantees.

“In a small community like this, it’s really good to have those testimonials. Nobody likes a dishonest person and be honest about your services and products. Be clear about what you are offering. It is important to have everything in writing when working with contracts such as home repairs. That way, you are being honest with each other about what to expect. Safeguarding privacy involves personal information of both the consumer and the business.”

AACC Executive Director Laura Wells said it was great to be able to host the return of the Chamber’s Connection Breakfasts and the Lunch and Learn series.

“People are ready to safely get out and connect as well as reconnect with the business community. These are such wonderful ways to keep our businesses updated on current trends and issues in the market place. Monde of the Better Business Bureau did an engaging discussion on building a better business based on trust, integrity, and honesty in client and public relations.”

Moving forward, the Chamber has plans to continue these events quarterly. “Please reach out to us if you would like to host a Chamber Breakfast or Lunch and Learn,” Wells said.