What is ChamberTrust?
Q: What is ChamberTrust?
ChamberTrust is a verification seal which validates the objective information published on a company’s website: existence of the company, ownership of website, products and activities, etc...
Publication of this data inside the ChamberTrust database is a powerful marketing tool to increase exposure of the company and its chances to be short-listed by partners all around the world.
Q: Why should my Chamber participate in the program?
ChamberTrust is an affinity program, a new revenue generating service for Chambers, bringing direct benefits to your business members. It is the ultimate tool to help bring your members (and non-members!) legitimacy to their online presence.
By participating in the program, Chambers can increase the range of practical (and revenue generating) services available to their existing members and attract new members.
Q: What are the main advantages for my Chambers’ member companies?
Verification by a Chamber of the objective information about a company (existence, ownership of website, products and activities, etc…) brings that company the following advantages:
• focused exposure of the WCN site: companies interested or engaged in international trade all around the world
• enhanced trust in its services, due to the verification by a Chamber.
• increased marketing benefits via the included 'Global Media Room' publishing service
Q: What is the main selling argument to a company?
ChamberTrust, as indexing in search engines, is about exposure. World Chambers Network attracts every month around 150200 000 visits (80 000 unique visitors), and these visitors represents a its qualified audience interested in export/import and partnership opportunities. When compared to the potential audience in one year, ChamberTrust presents really the lowest price/contact ratio on the market.
Q: How can this program be integrated into my chamber’s existing services?
ChamberTrust seal can be packaged into a chamber’s daily relationship with its membership services, especially in its international trade support functions. For instance:
- differentiate price of the seal for members and non-members,
- create a “gold membership”, automatically integrating the ChamberTrust seal,
- “embed” rebates on first year subscriptions into the fees for participating in your different international trade oriented services and activities…
Q: What are the CCIs commitments and liabilities regarding this program?
Chambers which wish to participate in this program have to sign a standard partnership agreement setting the parameters of the service and its operations. Each chamber receives guidelines and a toolkit on how to administer and deliver the service.
There is no specific liability for the Chamber:
- the program helps in the contact process only; it doesn’t cover credit status of the company, nor its capacity to deliver and/or satisfy and it does not replace the normal due diligence process,
- information provided by the company is “self-certified” (as for certificates of origin, for instance) and a disclaimer clearly indicates that in case of false declaration, the liability lies with the company.
Q: How many chambers and countries are currently participating in this project?
ChamberTrust is in its deployment process. The list of countries where it is already available can be seen online.
But, of course, the content of the database and its search is open to the whole world.
Q: How many chambers per country can provide the ChamberTrust seals?
One or several chamber can sign up to deliver the seals. However, if one Chamber has done the initial launch and marketing activity, it will keep a “national focal point” status. Any decision in increasing the number of delivery points in a country would be done in close consultation with chambers already actively using the service.
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Companies requirements
Q: Which companies can apply for a ChamberTrust® seal?
Any company in the world can apply for a ChamberTrust; but the seal is primarily designed to assist small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs), mainly B to B, already active in, or interested in, developing new markets in international trade.
Q: What are the requirements a company should meet to obtain the ChamberTrust seal?
The company needs to prove the existence and the reliability of the activities described on its website. The process is simple: the company has to fill in the online questionnaire and provide the necessary justifying document to its local chamber. An annual subscription fee is required to benefit from this seal.
Q: What are the supporting documents to be provided by the company?
This is decided by local distributing Chambers. Most usually, they ask for:
- a legal proof of existence (copy of the Trade register and/or tax registration)
- a printed copy of the questionnaire holding a sentence by which the company legal representative certifies validity of all data
Q: What are the steps the Chamber should follow for the checking procedure?
• check existence of company, through the documents provided and/or on line (if company register is available),
• check existence of web site at the provided URL,
• if the company claims to be member of the Chamber (volunteer membership Chambers), check that this is true and verify accuracy of the data with the one the Chamber already has at its disposal,
• check list of products to be as precise as possible… and in correct English (English is mandatory; local language can be added especially if the local language is widely used in other countries,
• check accuracy of products/activities described with presentation of company on its web site,
• check that all justifying documents are attached,
• in case company indicates ownership or use of a notorious brand, check (by phone call or mail) that this claim is legitimate. Attention: this field is devoted to brands owned, not to brands distributed by the company.
Q: What happens in case of false declaration from the company?
The seal is immediately retrieved.
Q: What information should companies provide in the “business” and “products” descriptions?
Company should describe its activities, products and services as precisely as possible, because it is key to relevant contacts
Q: Can companies request some confidentiality regarding the information displayed?
No. The allocation of the seal is all about transparency and accuracy.
Q: For how long is the seal valid? How often do verifications occur?
The seal is valid for one year and companies need to renew their subscription to be able to keep displaying the ChamberTrust seal. Verifications are made by the Chamber on a continuous basis for the existence of the company (most of the time by subscription with a credit scoring company).
Company’s information should be updated at least once a year, when seal is renewed. Most of the participating Chambers sends out a newsletter/mailing to the subscribers, 4-6 times/year, reminding them to check and update their data.
Q: What happens if company changes its activity fields or products offered?
In case of a modification/update, the company has to indicate by mail the changes to be made. Annual verifications are made by Chambers.
Q: Is it possible for a company to get the seal directly from WCN?
Yes, if WCN does not have a chamber delivering ChamberTrust seals in a specific country. Should a request be made for a seal, WCN will treat the case directly, but, shall contact a local Chamber encouraging it to partner with us on this service.
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Registration process and fees
Q: If eligible, how can my Chamber join the ChamberTrust program?
If no Chamber is participating in your country yet, you can apply by filling in the online questionnaire. To consult the list of countries where chambers already issue ChamberTrust seals, please visit: www.worldchambers.com.
Once your request is processed and approved, you will benefit of a certain number of free seals to make the ball roll and get acquainted with the system and its procedures.
To know more about how your Chamber can join the ChamberTrust programme, just fill in the ChamberTrust Chamber Affinity Program - Contact Form and we’ll be in touch with you immediately!
Q: What are the fees to be paid by my Chamber?
Chambers have to pay two fees:
- an entrance fee. The amount is function of the status of the country (OECD classification): 2,000 to 10,000 Euros; but in the launching phase, special prices can be granted.
- a royalty-fee, presently fifty (50) € per seal (subscribed or renewed).
Q: What are the costs for the following years?
Once you have joined the program, the only cost to be taken into account is the annual royalty.
Q: What are the revenue opportunities for my chamber?
Your chamber charges each Trust-Mark user a service fee per each yearly subscription. The usual fee is 120 to 300 euro/year (plus a possible entrance fee)
Q: How much my chamber sells a ChamberTrust seal?
The Chamber is free to set the selling price of the ChamberTrust seal, for the price itself as for the pricing scheme. It can differentiate between members and non-members (where relevant); it can ask for an entrance fee plus a subscription or just a subscription; it can propose a discount for companies subscribing for two years… or combine these features.
The only requirement is to have the same single price in a given country.
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Management of the ChamberTrust program
Q: Which organization manages ChamberTrust registry?
ChamberTrust is part of the World Chambers Network (WCN), a common venture of ICC-WCF and the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
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