[cannon]

I attended one of the local BNI chapters (business network referal organisation  ) meetings this morning is anyone else a member/ex member?

What are your views or experience of them?

I can certainly see the potential and imagine some people can do really well out of it, my worry would be not being able to pull in many referals in return and ive read some chapters can be quite pushy. I know its not a one way street uve got to give as well as take  but ive got plenty of stress with my own business.

[Steve Gunn]

Which one was a member of the Washington one

[cannon]

Yeah Steve the washington one, george chapter  One of the members mentioned you used to go

[Steve Gunn]

Save your money,you have to get some business out of it to get a return on your investment. People like Ken Robson get £495 for every mortgage he sets up so 3-4 of them and his membership is paid for.There are only 3 members still attending from when I went that tells a story.

You need to look at the mix of businesses that attend will you get referrals for other people and can you see them passing referrals to you.A referral can constitute doing a quote which 9 times out of 10 led to nothing.I still deal with some ex members but the politics was what finished me off I was spending more time searching for business for other members than I did concentrating on my own business

[cannon]

That was my main concern ending up searching for business for other members and getting sidetracked from my own.

Ill give it some thought still but i dont think be able to get referals for some of them and not sure what they could get for me. And of course

Could hook up well with the trade guys currently theres builder, decorator, tiler, electrician and plumber. The other members are wealth management, photographer, freelance graphic designer, the mortgage fella, printers, utilities discount club person, dentist and florist.

And the breakfast was pathetic!

[mark joyce]

and there in the middle of the night      I went to one its the high end boys who love them and try to bully you then offer you a 90 quid job yeah rite

[Ian Gourlay]

I went to one

Carpet Man was very keen i join

So I could say to customers this carpet is beyond cleaning

Car Repair Company did ok

Solicitor

Building trades working together

But they could do that without  £12 breakfast every week plus £800 membership

 

[Ian Rochester]

I'm actually the Chapter Director of the one in Morpeth at the moment, last week this week.

The outlay is £500 +vat for the first year and £7 a week for breakfast and the venue.

We've done very well out of it, with some very nice regular contracts coming directly from referrals, I'm currently quoting for a £1300/month window cleaning contract that came from a member of our chapter.

What I would say to anyone is check out a couple of different chapters before you commit to joining one, our chapter is quite small and the number of referrals coming in is lower that chapters that have 25-30 members.

I often visit other chapters as a stand in for someone or as a guest and I've picked up a decent amount of work and made some very good contacts.

It's each to their own, the one morning a week is very tying, especially if you're self employed, I have the luxury of not having to be hands on all the time now so can make time for these meetings, though it is still a tie.

My membership is up at the end of May, will I rejoin?  Not sure yet, the work has come in and more that been worth it, but the time tied up and the internal politics can be off putting.

[cannon]

Took your advice Ian im checking out another chapter this week, still undecided whether ill join any yet though.

On a separate note Ian any chance you could email me some info on those dip tanks you mentioned in another thread, Thanks

 karl@carpetcleaners-sunderland.co.uk

[pauldugdale]

Imo its 'job for the boys' keep your hard earned money for van insurance or buy some good kit for your business,

[cannon]

Your probably right Paul, i dont think its for me at the minute on account of me having enough stress getting work for myself without stressing over getting work for other people. But im still going to have a look and get a feel for it.

[oliver collins]

Hi guys

I was a member of egbert chapter in middlesbrough for about 3 years,i learnt a lot about business while i went broke even most of the time.

Made some good contacts.

But there is pressure to bring in referrals and visitors which i felt was distracting me from my own business.

Worth a look there are some super chapters out there

Regards Oliver Collins   

[Hilton]

Try these

http://www.the-businessclub.org/

There is joining fee but not the kind of pressure that BNI put on you.

[JandS]

Why would you want to promote someone else's
business not knowing whether the others are
pushing yours as much.
And pay someone else for the privilege, who gets
the joining fee?
What's it used for?


John

[murky]

Its a pyramid type Franchise.

Some people own 3 or more of them. They want you to bring more people in to get there hard earned money off them, if your chapter is building, decorating, print etc ie 'blue collar'trades you will do ok.

But if there are wealth management gurus, graphic designers you havent got a chance.

I went to one and did ok, got my money covered and quite a bit back but was for ever giving out referals.

And that early brekky!
I found I was offered to quote office regular cleans but that isnt what I wanted.

I think it has had its day, there was a bloke on here a while ago, supreme cleen I think, he went but not heard since.

Maybe they take you and you never come back..............................

[Ian Gourlay]

Thats  what I could not figure out

Who actually was making the money,

A group of us were taken into The Conservatory and beaten up by two business ladies. Ie explained benifits of joining

One I new off and has now poped up as President of The Chamber Trade which is what I regard as the origional network club.