LAST YEAR'S THEME, "We all Speak the Language of Referrals," PROVED TO BE VERY TRUE WITH MEMBER REFERRALS TOTALLING 1.9 BILLION DOLLARS IN VALUE FOR 2006!

It is a known fact that BNI is the largest business networking organization in the world; yet it is always exciting and inspiring to see the concrete numbers which prove it. So, without further ado, here are the official statistics for the year 2006 –

As of December 31, 2006:
Total BNI Countries: 36 (NOTE: Country #37 opened on January 18, 2007!)
Total No. of Chapters: 4,600
Total Members: 92,000 (approx.)
Total Referrals: 4.9 Million
Total Value of Referrals to Members: 1.9 Billion (U.S. Dollars)

It is impressive to note the solidity of the statistics for Referrals and their value, which are calculated based on TWO doctoral studies – the first done by Dr. Ivan Misner, BNI’s Founder & Chairman, and the second done in 2005 by Julien Sharp, a business consultant and BNI member from Florida. These powerfully reliable statistics are proof that networking delivered a huge pay-off for BNI members around the world in 2006!

In addition, the fact that BNI opened 10 new countries in 2006 is not simply an outstanding accomplishment - it also sets the BNI record for the highest number of countries opened within a given year! This becomes even more exciting when we realize that BNI is showing no sign of slowing down its expansion into new countries. We are barely into 2007 and on January 18th, BNI opened country #37 – the Philippines!

The 2006 year-end statistics clearly speak volumes about the value of word-of-mouth networking anywhere in the world. We can’t think of a better way to usher in the inaugural International Networking Week™ (February 5th – 9th, 2007) than with these phenomenal statistics behind us to demonstrate that business networking truly is international!

For more information on International Networking Week™, please visit:
http://www.internationalnetworkingweek.com/