April 2010 Archives - The Official BNI Podcast

Episode 152: “Do Unique Professions Work in BNI?”

April 28th, 2010

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Synopsis

Note: you can search the podcast website for topics you’re interested in—that’s how Dr. Misner discovered that he hadn’t covered this topic before.

About 20 years ago, Dr. Misner met a commercial light bulb salesman who wanted to join BNI. He was a little concerned that a person in such a unique profession might not do well, but the prospective member had no doubts.

First, he wanted people he could refer his clients to, because that would strengthen his relationship with them.

Second, he knew he was the kind of networker who could get business anywhere.

He was right. During his first year in BNI, 40% of the sales he got came from referrals from his BNI chapter.

Success in BNI doesn’t depend on the profession, but on the person. If you’re willing to give and help and learn, you’ll succeed in BNI.

Brought to you by Ask Ivan Misner.

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Episode 151: “Power Teams & Contact Spheres”

April 21st, 2010

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Synopsis

This topic came up on the Ask Ivan Misner website, where you can type in a question and connect to a live teleconference where Dr. Misner answers it.

Several people asked about Contact Spheres and Power Teams in BNI.

A Contact Sphere is a group of professionals who complement rather than compete with each other.

A Power Team is a subset of your Contact Sphere that actively works together to pass referrals to each other. An example of a Power Team might be a caterer, a florist, a photographer, and a travel agent, the so-called “Wedding Mafia.” Priscilla’s chapter has a health care Power Team.

Every BNI group wants to create strong Power Teams, because they generate more referrals than groups without them. But it’s possible to go too far with Power Teams and leave other members feeling excluded. If your Power Teams meet separately from the rest of the BNI group, suggest that they invite other members of the group to visit their team meetings.

Brought to you by Ask Ivan Misner.

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Episode 150: “Relationships Are Currency”

April 14th, 2010

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Synopsis

It’s not the number of contacts you make that’s important, but the ones that you turn into lasting relationships. You’ll always get better results trying to deepen relationships with people you already know than starting relationships with strangers.

Here are some tips for creating closer connections:

Give your clients a call. Find out how things went with the project. Ask if there’s anything you can do to help. Don’t ask for a referral at this time.
Make personal calls to all the people who’ve helped you or referred business to you. Find ways to help them.
Put together a “hit list” of 50 people you’d like to stay in touch with. Send them a card on the next holiday, then follow up with a phone call 2 weeks later. Then you can ask for a referral.

If you’re having trouble making calls, start with the people you’re at “Profitability” with in the VCP scale.

Dr. Misner recommends reading Stephen M. R. Covey’s The Speed of Trust for more on this topic.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

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Episode 149: “Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door”

April 7th, 2010

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Synopsis

Today Dr. Misner is joined by Harvey Mackay, author of Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive, who has a new book for job seekers, Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door.

He has a 66-question customer profile all his sales reps have to fill out. The questions in the Mackay 66™ are aimed at making a human connection. This is similar to the GAINS Exchange at BNI.

One of the topics addressed in Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door is how to handle rejection. Here are some things to say to a client who chooses to leave:

Thank you for giving your business to us all these years.
What can we do to make an easy transition for you?
If things don’t work out, we’re ready, willing and able to consider stepping right back in.
We sure would love to keep in touch with you over time.

The book comes with a money-back guarantee: if you don’t have a job within 6 months of applying the techniques in it, Harvey will give you your money back. Go to Mackaybook.com to buy the book and get some great free gifts.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

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