The heart of the Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce’s mission is “to advance the general welfare and prosperity of the greater Rhinelander area so that its citizens in all areas of its business community shall prosper.” That means that one of the biggest tasks we have is to promote and market the Rhinelander area to both residents and visitors. The most ambitious project we tackle each year to help accomplish this goal is the creation of the official Rhinelander Area Guide. Each year we print tens of thousands of copies of the Guide to take to sports and travel shows, send out to people requesting information, and to distribute throughout the Northwoods and the rest of Wisconsin. 
The 2015 Rhinelander Area Guide will be full of community information, attractions, shopping options, dining choices, lodging facilities, a business directory and more.  It is our goal to create a quality product that people are interested in reading and one that helps paint a picture for what living, working and vacationing in the Rhinelander area means. A task of this magnitude is not easily accomplished alone though, so that’s where you come in.
There are three major areas where community help will go a long way in putting together another quality Area Guide. The first is through advertising. The Area Guide is a great way to get your business in front of thousands of potential customers. For 2015, we are again increasing the number of guides printed to over 25,000 copies. The Guide is also available online and will incorporate live links to your website or social media profile. Scannable QR codes in the print version will also direct potential customers towards your business. Advertising in the official Area Guide is a benefit offered exclusively to Rhinelander Area Chamber Members so I would be happy to talk to you in-person about additional Chamber Member benefits if advertising in the Guide is something you would like to pursue – feel free to contact me at any time at [email protected]
Secondly, we are looking for photos; all kinds of photos of the Rhinelander area. Do you have a great sunset or hiking shot? Did you capture the family reunion or kids water skiing? A great shot of our downtown? We want to see them all! Area photos are some of the best ways to convey to potential visitors or residents what it’s like to live, work and play in the Rhinelander area. Any kind of photo can work but we always have an eye out for those high resolution, engaging photos that capture people having fun in the Northwoods. If you have a photo you think would look great in the 2015 Guide, then feel free to email them to us at [email protected] or submit them in-person at 450 W Kemp St, Rhinelander.
The final piece of the puzzle we need community help on is creation of an accurate and complete events calendar. Does your organization, business, or club have a community event planned for 2015? If so, we want to know about it and help get the word out! We can’t include all events but we’ll try and feature as many as we can. What we’ll need to know is the name and location of the event, the date or at least month it will be held, and a brief description for those who may not be familiar with it. You can email those to [email protected] or also use the contact form on our website at www.ExploreRhinelander.com
The official 2015 Rhinelander Area Guide is the perfect opportunity to show off all the great things happening in our community and without your help we wouldn’t be able to do it. I hope you choose to get involved in one of the above ways and help us create the best guide yet! If you have any questions don’t hesitate to call us at 715-365-7464.
Dana DeMet is available at (715) 365-7464.