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Breaking News
On-line Session Offers Members Chance to Chat with Founder
Earlier this year, approximately 30 attendees met on the BNI-Yahoo! chat room for an Ask-the-Founder chat session with Dr. Ivan Misner.
Here's a sampling of the questions and answers asked and received during the hour-long session.
How do I develop my contact sphere?
Reference a recent article written on Entrepreneur.com on contact spheres: Develop your contact sphere because this is a group of business people who work with a similar target market as you and can give you referrals more quickly. Growing contact spheres within a chapter grows the chapter and makes it more productive.
Why don't we have more on-line chats or a lecture series on-line?
We have been doing this sort of thing since 1998, and we were ahead of the curve. Right now we are using the bulletin board extensively to get input from members and directors on issues that members are interested in. This chat is a repeat experiment to test to see if there is interest in this venue. A suggestion was made that there may be more interest with voice and a slide presentation. We need to make sure it would be effective, and there would be more participation.
How can I help my fellow members by bringing more referrals?
Work with members who want to contribute. When I was the president of the first chapter, I sent out letters to my clients three to four times a year stating I believed in Word of Mouth and referrals with an attachment listing the professions of the businesses in my chapter saying I knew these folks well and trusted them. I'd write, "If you need the services of these businesses, feel free to give me a call and I'll give you their information."
How is "Masters of Success" shaping up? When will it be published and available?
Masters of Success is being published by Entrepreneur Press. There are several big names on board such as Erin Brockovich, Brian Tracy, Vince Lombardi, Jr. and Tom Hopkins. The draft must be done by June, and the estimated release date is this time next year.
Our chapter has a Visitor's Day once a month, but they don't seem to be very successful. What can we do to boost attendance?
Once a month is too often. A Visitor's Day should be a special event. Have them less often and make them more successful.
Our chapter wants to do some print advertising. Can we put some of our dues money toward ads?
We tested this out thoroughly in 1985 and 1986. We had horrible results. I took the ad to an advertising specialist to look at the ads and make suggestions. He said they were good, but it just wasn't a good medium for a business organization that focuses on word of mouth. The focus should be on tradeshows, public relations and books. The books have generated a lot of media.
How do I get my chapter interested in subscribing to "SuccessNet"?
The best way to subscribe members to "SuccessNet" online is to get all the members in the chapter to write down their email address. Have them write it twice to make sure it's correct and then have one of the members subscribe them through www.bni.com.
For me writing is one of my weak areas. How do you prioritize your time to be able to write so much?
Time management. I find the best environment to write—one with few distractions. I usually take a half-hour a day or one day each week and dedicate it to writing.
How do we get more upscale businesses in BNI; i.e., companies that make eight or nine figures?
We have had several chapters that only allowed businesses of this size and they never lasted more than a year or two.
Chapters should be selective but for the right reason—good at what they do and have a great attitude.
In "World's Best Known Marketing Secret," there is a story about people getting awesome referrals from unexpected sources. Find quality people. Get a strong contact spheres.
BNI's Inside Secrets Published in New Book
In Debbie Allen's newest book, "Confessions of Shameless Internet Promoters," BNI founder, Dr. Ivan Misner, and BNI technology advisory, Jeremy Allen, share BNI's inside secrets to our business network success.
The six-page story covers seven key strategies BNI has used to support and fuel the worldwide growth of BNI by using online technologies and www.bni.com
More information on the book can be found at Confessions of Shameless Internet Promoters.
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