As you handle your day-to-day work, it’s easy to overlook the value of getting away from your business to network—but you can’t afford to skimp on networking if you want to continually grow your business.
We at Great Blue Images take part in weekly breakfast meetings with a group called Business Networking International, or BNI—the largest networking group worldwide, with more than 50 chapters alone in Southwest Florida. Before they are allowed to join, BNI members are screened by a membership committee that checks the business (and the business representative’s) reputation. BNI aims to accept only quality, reputable organizations.
BNI members make a commitment to attend meetings that follow a predetermined structure each week. Each member has 30 seconds to a minute to give their weekly “commercial” and let members know what kind of referral they are looking for that week. Members also have the chance during the year to give a 10-minute presentation and further educate fellow members or visitors about their business. The meeting also includes a time to pass on referrals and thank other members for closed business.
Although there are a lot of business networking groups out there, many of them are casual in nature and don’t invoke the commitment that BNI requires. Because of that commitment, BNI members make more money—a lot of it.
In 2014, over 160,000 members of BNI worldwide passed over 6.6 million referrals which resulted in more than $8.6 billion in business! In southwest Florida, chapter referrals have generated millions of dollars for our members. Since 1985 BNI referrals have generated $30 billion in business worldwide.
There’s another reason that we at Great Blue Images attend BNI—it’s fun. And we’re all about doing a great job for your business, but we also like to have a good time.
Let Great Blue Images Help You Grow Your Business
Let Great Blue Images help you grow your business. We are proud to serve businesses in Sarasota, Bradenton, Ellenton, Palmetto, Anna Maria Island, Longboat Key, Lakewood Ranch, Tampa, Parrish, Live Oak, Wauchula—and sometimes, businesses from around the globe. And if you’d like to attend BNI as a guest of ours, just let us know. The best way to find out if BNI is right for you is to attend a chapter meeting.