The Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce held its annual meeting Tuesday morning in downtown Grand Rapids as business leaders in the community learned more about the power of social influence from the keynote speaker. The 129th annual meeting of the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce took place at the JW Marriot downtown as over 700 business leaders in Grand Rapids attended.
While the economic forecast for 2017 is strong and Grand Rapids should continue to grow and expand this year, the theme at the meeting was all about understanding the art of influence.
“We see social influence everywhere from imitating others, to doing something different, why do we do the same things as others, why do we do something different, and how can we use that to live happier and healthier lives," said keynote speaker and author Dr. Jonah Berger. Berger, who wrote the New York Times Bestseller, “Contagious Why Things Catch On.” Dr. Berger said he has spent over 15 years studying how social influence works and how it can drive products and new ideas. He says that can the art of influence can help Grand Rapids and its local businesses?
“So many ways, from how we convince people to start new businesses, how do we convince people to move here, how to we motivate our employees to try something new and work harder, you know anytime we are trying to change behavior, influence is a powerful way to do that, and the more we understand that tool, the more we can take advantage of its power.”
The Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce is dedicated to actively encouraging entrepreneurial growth and community leadership in the city----and it just may be working. The Chamber has five new business ribbon cutting ceremonies scheduled in the next week alone. On Thursday, they will cut the ribbon on Level One Bank in celebration of their first location in Grand Rapids.
