Grow Your Business With Ocean County’s Original
Industry Exclusive Business Networking Group
About OCBA
The most valuable and trusted way to market your business remains word of mouth referrals. OCBA is responsible for making the connections that result in thousands of leads and referrals exchanged within the group each year. These referrals don’t come automatically, however; they’re earned through the mutual respect our members have for one another.
Once you’ve joined OCBA, you’re virtually guaranteed business from members and their circle of contacts. What’s more, you’ll have fun in the group and discover a whole new world of friends and business associates.
How OCBA Works
As an industry-exclusive business networking group, only one person per business category is permitted to join. This eliminates competition between members. OCBA applicants must meet certain requirements and are carefully screened before being accepted for membership. After joining the organization, each member is required to take the OCBA Ethics Pledge and attend meetings on a regular basis.
OCBA Meetings
OCBA generally meets the first and third Thursday of each month from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m at the Clarion Hotel & Conference Center in Toms River. Click here to view the meeting schedule. Each gathering begins with casual networking, followed by lunch and a business meeting. The afternoon culminates in the all-important “craft talk,” in which a member speaks about his/her business and answers questions from the group. During the last few minutes, members publicly thank one another for business they received or referred.
Fundraising Events to Benefit Our Children’s Charity Organization
CAREing for Children (CFC) is a 501 (c) 3 charity that supplies toys, food and clothing to underprivileged families and children throughout Ocean County, NJ set up by the Ocean County Business Association (OCBA) and run strictly by volunteers.
As a volunteer organization, CFC has no overhead costs, 100% of donations go to support those in need. Over the first six years of our fundraising golf event we have raised and donated over $116,000 worth of food and children’s toys to the community. This cause is close to our collective heart and one that, we hope you agree, is worth the dedication of time, money and effort. Learn more about CAREing for Children >
We’re accepting applications for new members
If you’re interested in joining, click here to get in touch with our membership representative, or download a membership application immediately. For more information, call 1-866-606-OCBA.
Don’t delay. Once your category is filled, you will no longer be eligible for membership. To view which categories are currently taken, check out our Membership Roster.
A Brief History Of The OCBA
By Roger Lees
More than a quarter century ago, in March 1980, a handful of local business owners gathered at the Howard Johnson’s Lodge in Toms River to form a novel business association. This small group included Victor Roccki, Sr. of E.F. Hutton; accountant Bruce Bowe of Jump, Bowe and Associates and real-estate appraiser Marie Godwin of Godwin Appraisals.
Patterned after a model used by the Monmouth County Business Association, the Ocean County Business Association would differ from local, non-business service organizations in that its sole purpose would be to conduct and refer business within the group. In addition, OCBA’s founders wanted the organization to be comprised of qualified business people and have category exclusivity ~ that is, only one person from each business category could join.
OCBA was a success from the start
Dave Connolly, a local lawyer, came to the first meeting, joining Roccki, Bowe, Godwin and several others. From this nucleus, the organization grew in both size and reputation.
For more than 25 years, the Ocean County Business Association has gathered the finest business owners in our community to create and refer business. It has moved into this century as vigorous and motivated as it was when those few founding fathers (and mother) met at Howard Johnson’s more than a quarter century ago.