As the holiday shopping season is closing in, Flathead businesses may be looking for an edge in marketing to their local and online consumers.

Tuesday’s Kalispell Chamber of Commerce lunch at the Red Lion Hotel will feature a lesson in business marketing from Connie Cermak, a local marketing strategist and founder of the marketing group Social Nectar.

Cermak will present 10 marketing tips for small businesses as the holiday season approaches, an important time for businesses ramping up for Black Friday and Christmas season, she said.

“It’s very important that small businesses create their strategy now so they can start to build momentum and have an audience already in place, so when the holidays hit people want to come to their store and hire their services or buy their products,” Cermak said.

Cermak’s presentation will focus on how to create a holistic marketing strategy including everything from print media to social networking strategies. Social Nectar works with companies of all sizes on marketing new products or networking strategies to help boost businesses into larger markets.

“It doesn’t matter if you are a two-person startup or have 2,000 employees,” Cermak said. “The rules apply to everyone. Learning how to tell your story to your target market is critical to the success of small business.”

Cermak said social media provide a breadth of different tools and resources for businesses to find out who their target audiences are and what marketing strategies are actually effective. Creating an interactive environment for the consumer, Cermak said, is helpful in reaching the target market.

“Connie has an incredible wealth of knowledge and has been an outstanding resource for small businesses in our area,” Kalispell Chamber President Joe Unterreiner said. “Small business is so crucial to the success of our economic community.”

Cermak said anyone with questions before the seminar should reach out to her on her twitter handle, @ConnieCermak.

The seminar begins with lunch at 11:45 a.m. and the presentation will begin at 12 p.m. at the Red Lion Hotel. Tickets are $19 each or $140 for a table. To buy tickets, visit www.kalispellchamber.com or call 758-2803.