July 2007
Art of Networking
CanadaThe Electronic Chapter Brochure
Many chapters do a great job of promoting their members on a large scale: they post business card boards in their offices or list their members in print or e-newsletters they publish. For some members, however, large-scale promotion presents a challenge. They need a small, compact list that can be handed to a client or mailed to their customer database.
In the past, chapters have invested in brochures, only to find that they were out of date before the ink had dried. The Business Referral Source Chapter in Ontario, Canada, found a solution to this problem. We created a fabulous brochure and would like to share it with other BNI groups.
The brochure is composed in Microsoft Word. There is room for 30 members without changing the formatting; more if some info is deleted. Adding and deleting members' names is a simple process. The updated document is emailed to the entire membership each time a member is added or leaves. This ensures that our brochure is as up to date as possible.
Because it is a Word document, it can be emailed to clients and prospects. We print small quantities for our visitor packets, which is much easier than placing individual business cards in each packet. We also place them on our display table outside our meeting so that if someone is curious, they can pick one up. Many of our members send them along with every email they send out, letting every client, associate, and prospect know about their BNI contacts.
I have edited our current brochure into a template, for use by other BNI chapters. Please feel free to edit as needed for your chapter and give us feedback. You can contact me at housedoctor2001@hotmail.com.
Click here to view an example of the brochure and click here to view and use the template.
Submitted by Ed Owen, Education Coordinator, Business Referral Source Chapter, Ontario
AustraliaBiz Unlimited Farming for New Members
If you were to visit a meeting of BNI Biz Unlimited Chapter at Shellharbour, you would notice that the back of several of their empty chairs have a pillow-case type cover …Written on a card sticking out of a 'slot' on one are the words, "MECHANIC $290,240" and on another, "FLORIST $25,472." Let me explain.
The executive directors led chapter members in an exercise during a recent ten-minute presentation. Each member had to write one figure on a piece of paper. This figure was to equal the total of:
1. The amount of money they spent with a mechanic on their car in the past (or previous) year.
2. The amount of money their immediate family spent on a mechanic during that same time.
3. The amount that was spent by friends, colleagues, and others where there was the possibility of being able to influence which mechanic they used.
The amounts on the pieces of paper were then added together to give the total amount of business that could have been given to a mechanic, if there had been one in the chapter. It equalled $290,240!!
After the meeting, members invited several mechanics to the following meeting. Although they had three mechanics confirm, only one turned up, on April 4, 2007. That one returned the following week! This is a chapter that has been trying to get a mechanic for well over six months!
They did the same exercise with a florist, who was valued at $25,470! How long do you think it will be before they have a florist in their chapter?
Submitted by Marilyn and Bob Haldane, Executive Directors, BNI NSW South Coast
United StatesBNI Chapter Gets BNI Noticed
The Absolute Connections BNI Chapter in Champlin, Minnesota, has taken BNI to a new level. This energetic, fun, and successful chapter of 45 members launched in January 2006. The group's latest adventure took place May 10, 2007, when members and their families gathered at a Hennepin County Service Center to be extras for a video shoot produced by one of their members, Greg Norton.In return, Hennepin County allowed the chapter to post an advertisement on the computers at their service centers (Hennepin County includes Minneapolis) for six weeks promoting BNI Minnesota's ten-year celebration; it featured Dr. Ivan Misner. We expect more than 500 BNI members and visitors to attend our trade show and evening of networking, which will feature a two-hour keynote address from Dr. Misner.
You can learn more about Absolute Connections on their website, www.absoluteconnections.bni-mn.com. Congratulations to Absolute Connections BNI for taking it to the next level!
Submitted by Beth Anderson, OrgTrack.com and BNI Minnesota
United KingdomSwakeleys Chapter Celebrates Its First Ten Years
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| Photo by Alex Smith, photographer and member of the chapter |
Swakeleys Chapter of BNI is based in Uxbridge, Middlesex. We meet at Uxbridge Golf Club on Thursday mornings. We celebrated our anniversary with a group photograph. We wore our work clothes or held the implements we use at work. Let's roll on to the next ten years!
Submitted by Tony Fieldhouse, Chapter Director, Swakeleys Chapter
SingaporeBNI Singapore Members Conference & Awards 2007
On May 23, more than 200 members attended the BNI Members Conference & Awards. This year's theme was "Who Can You Refer Today?" BNI directors and members from the Philippines and Malaysia also participated.Mr. Sim Chow Boon, founding national director, delivered the opening address and emphasized the fundamentals of being a BNI member. Guest speaker Mr. Al Argo shared "The E-D-G-E F-A-C-T-O-R," while HR veteran Ms. Christine Sim talked about her entrepreneurial journey from Success to Significance. Several educational topics on referral marketing were presented by BNI directors during the workshop sessions, including a presentation entitled "Truth or Delusion" by the founding National Director, Mr. Mervin Yeo.
The conference was followed by an awards ceremony. National Directors Special Awards were given to seven members who had been members for five years and more. Three members shared the glory of Member of the Year award: Philip Ong from Izaq, Edwin Sim from Orion, and Swee Boon Chai from Summit. Mr. Alfee Goh was the 2007 Director of the Year. Crescendo bagged this year's Chapter of the Year award.The event concluded with the infamous closing statement, "See you at the Members Conference & Awards 2008!"
Submitted by Mervin Yeo, National Director, BNI Singapore
IndiaBusiness Genies—A World Class Chapter Made in India
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When they began, the leadership team of Sanjay Bhatt, William Pinto, and Bakul Shah set two goals: to make this one of the best chapters in the world, and to make every member a crorepati (millionaire) through their participation in BNI.
To achieve this, they focused on inviting quality business people who were hungry for more business. As new members joined, the founding members and leadership team made sure every new member was well grounded in the BNI ways. A special hand was extended to better acquaint them with the activities, and the BNI Business Genies ensured that every new member received referrals in the first four weeks of joining.
To help the chapter bond further, they created their own unique identity with the logo of a genie. This logo is proudly displayed on every member's badge, stationery at the sign-in table, and a six-foot banner.
As membership increased, the chapter began breaking records. It became the first chapter to pass 100 referrals in a meeting; they've since passed 150 referrals. Bakul Shah, secretary/treasurer of the chapter, sets the pace by bringing in ten or more referrals every meeting.
It's no surprise that BNI Business Genies won the Founders Award in November 2006, which is given to the top 1 percent of chapters worldwide.
"In just 11 months we have grown from 10 to 53 members and are still growing," says William Pinto. They have passed 4,374 referrals as of March 31, and generated over Rs 5.74 crores of business! They've already achieved their first goal and are well on their way to achieving their second! Good things happen when good people meet!
Submitted by Niraj Shah, National Director, BNI India
New ZealandBNI New Zealand Wins National Business Award
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| From left, awards' founder and organizer Sarah Trotman, the New Zealand Business Excellence Foundation's Mike Watson, Government Minister for Small Business the Honorable Lianne Dalziel, and BNI NZ Director Graham Southwell |
The Vero Excellence in Business Support Awards recognize and encourage high standards of excellence for organizations that provide products and services to small and medium-sized enterprises.
BNI New Zealand Director, Graham Southwell, said BNI NZ was a finalist for two awards—"One on Many" and the "Individual" award—and won in the 'One on Many' category. In terms of offering support to NZ business, this is the main award.
Southwell commented, "As I said in my acceptance speech, this is a team effort. I am grateful to all of you for your support."
The awards were presented by the Government Minister for Small Business, the Honorable Lianne Dalziel, at a black tie gala dinner attended by nearly 600 VIPs, influencers, media, and business support guests in Auckland on Thursday, May 31.