The Berkshire Chamber of Commerce is holding an open house on Monday morning from 8 to 10 at its North Adams office at 6 West Main St. Volunteers, members and potential members are invited to attend and find out what the chamber can offer.

Attendees will meet the staff and be able to learn more about the many volunteer opportunities offered through the chamber as well as the benefits of membership. Businesses that are not part of the largest business-support organization in the Berkshires are also invited to attend the open house to learn more about the many benefits of chamber membership.

For businesses considering joining, March is a good month to do it. Along with regular benefits, the chamber is offering more than $1,500 in incentives for businesses that join during the month.

March has been developed as a "Membership Month" with the small-business or sole-proprietor owner in mind.

"By increasing the size of the chamber's membership base, businesses and their employees will realize a greater return on their investment," according to Jen Glockner, the chamber's membership manager. "With more businesses participating at our networking events, our attendees will have a much greater opportunity to develop new relationships. And, as we increase in size, the chamber's advocacy efforts represent a larger constituency creating an even stronger voice on business and legislative issues."

The following members will be offering discounts and/or freebies to new members: New England Newspapers (including The Berkshire Eagle, Nort Adams Transcript, and The Advocate), Custom Business Solutions, Winstanley Partners, MacFarlane Office Products, BBE Office Interiors, CompuWorks, Berkshire Coupon.com, Berkshire Jobs.com., iBerkshires.com (Editor: that's us!), Vox Communications (including WBEC, WUPE, WNAW, and WSBS), WJ Blueprint, Berkshire Print Shop, and Quality Printing Co.

Annual membership dues start at $255 for businesses with five employees or less. Applications are available at www.berkshirechamber.com. Business owners can also find out more by attending the open house on Monday or contacting Glockner at 413-499-4000, Ext. 17.