DAVID ELDON: Sometimes if one wants to help out with whatever organization it is, then sometimes it is quite nice to do something that is not related to what you do on a day-to-day basis.

And how did I end up doing it? Somebody asked me!

I think it will be very effective. Members have the chance to win some fantastic prizes donated by the sponsors. But also, the fact that it is members who will be going out explaining to other business people the many benefits that they can derive from the General Chamber that will be the real benefit. At the end of the day, there is no better spokesperson for a business or organization than a customer who recommends it, because they are likely to go and tell people: "I had this problem. The Chamber sorted it out. They're worth dealing with." Also, I think it will help reinforce in existing members participating in the contest just how much value they actually are getting from the Chamber.

It is something we have to keep under review, because members' needs will change. If you think things are going well, then you tend not to change them. What we have got to do is to ensure we get the right feedback from members. We have to find out whether or not we are providing what they require and on occasion making changes so that we can provide for them what they want, and at a cost that is of value to them.

It is interesting. I think people's perception on a lot of cases is, it only costs us a few thousand dollars, is this something that we can therefore get rid off? Whereas if you are paying a lot of money for something, you think, I must be getting some value for money. So ironically, if you actually put the membership fees up quite a lot, you might have more people stay. It is an odd thing to say, but perhaps people say, this is easy, it is a small amount of money, so let's say no. So if you can then persuade them for this small amount of money that they are getting very good value for money, it will be the last thing they think of getting rid off. It is like people buying bottles of wine. They may not know much about wine, but if it is expensive, they'll assume it's good.

I think the Chamber has got the credibility to approach issues on behalf of members at the highest levels and ensure that those opinions from members are heard. The Chamber is also asked by the administration for its views on a lot of subjects. And one assumes that if we are being asked for those views it is because those views are valued. And it gives the members of the Chamber an opportunity to feed in their concerns about the things they would like the administration to do on any particular issue. It gives them the ability to know that their views are going to be heard. I think that has to be one of the biggest advantages.

You also have got the slightly softer things. The meetings we have where business people, be they large businesses or particularly SMEs, can get together with people in similar industries or people who may be looking for customers or clients and so forth, where they can meet together and mingle and talk. There is something going on at the Chamber almost daily. And also, the ability to attract top quality speakers, who are internationally renowned, coming to talk to the General Chamber, I think is an indication of the stature of the Chamber within the global community.

I think they need to be persuaded that the views they submit to the Chamber are taken seriously. The Chamber is not there as a recipient of mail that comes in and they don't read and do nothing about. And sometimes, if you have a particular problem that is bugging you and it relates to your business, and you think, why should I write to the Chamber? They have bigger companies to deal with and they have a bigger voice. So if we have to do any persuading, it is persuading those type of members that we are there to facilitate their needs. They are the customer of the Chamber and the Chamber will be responsive to their needs. It doesn't matter what they have got. They should be encouraged to speak up and let us know what is going on. If we don't know what is going on we cannot read their minds.