Episode 240: International Networking Week 2012

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Synopsis

International Networking Week will take place February 6-10, 2012. There are events around the world, focused on bringing people together to network with each other.

Visit www.internationalnetworkingweek.com to find out more or watch our YouTube video:

You don’t have to have a big event to recognize International Networking Week. We recommend Meeting Stimulant #41: Bring one of your best clients to a BNI meeting. This person doesn’t have to be a prospective BNI member. The idea is to strengthen relations between you and your client.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

Complete Transcript of BNI Podcast Episode 240 -

Priscilla:
Hello everyone and welcome back to The Official BNI Podcast brought to you by NetworkingNow.com, which is the leading site on the net for networking downloadables. I am Priscilla Rice, and I am coming to you from Live Oak Recording Studio in Berkeley, CA. I am joined on the phone today by the Founder and Chairman of BNI, Dr. Ivan Misner. Hello Ivan. How are you and where are you?

Ivan:
Hi Priscilla. I am doing great. This week, I am with my Executive Management Team. I bring the Executive Management Team together from all over the world together a couple times a year to talk about where BNI is going. That’s what we are doing over the next several days. We’ll be doing strategic planning. Every company needs to spend time looking at what they as an organization want to do. This is one of those times that I do that with BNI.

Priscilla:
That’s great. So are you going to share with us?

Ivan:
Well, I would like to talk about International Networking Week. It’s a little bit early. It’s a couple of weeks before International Networking Week, but I wanted to give a heads up to all the BNI members. International Networking Week for 2012 is February 6-10. We are about a week and a half away, but I wanted to give everyone a heads up about it, so you can go into your BNI meetings prepared for International Networking Week.

For anyone who would like some additional information about it, there is a website, www.InternationalNetworkingWeek.com. International Networking Week will feature some events around the world. The goal for International Networking Week is to celebrate the key role that networking plays in the success and development of businesses around the world. The focus for these events will be to bring people together- business officials, even government officials, the community to network with each other and understand the benefits of good networking.

The big events will have speakers and International Networking Week is open to all people. It’s an initiative of BNI. IT’s our initiative, but it is open to all people. If you are not doing a big event in your region, we invite you to make sure that you are meeting the week of February 6 and that you talk about International Networking Week.

There is a video up on the BNI official channel of YouTube. You can also get to that video by going to InternationalNetworkingWeek.com. It’s about a 9 minute video. I would recommend if you have the ability to show the video at a meeting that would be great. If not, that’s fine. It’s a great concept. We talk about- I’ve got people on the video with me, Frank Giraffle and Hazel Walker, who co-wrote with me Business Networking and Sex, the book about gender. They talk about the material in there.

So this is a great opportunity. We would love for BNI chapters all around the world to make sure and recognize that week. One of the things that we are recommending you do for International Networking Week 2012 is to utilize meeting stimulant #41. That is bring one of your best clients to a BNI meeting. That’s why I wanted to do this podcast early. I wanted to just let everybody know that this is a great opportunity to bring clients to your meeting during International Networking Week.

We all know that it’s good to bring visitors because they add significant value to a chapter. We talkned about that, a little bit about that with the podcast we did with Linda Macedonio. So it’s very important to bring people in and it’s a great week to do it. We recommend that you find one of your best clients and invite them. They don’t have to be a prospective member. That’s important for this. Generally, visitors really should be prospective members. But here, they want you to bring in your best clients just to show another side of what you do. We want to give members an opportunity to show their clients how BNI networks.

We want to be able to strengthen the relationship between members and their clients. We want to create increased networking opportunities for everybody. That’s what this meeting stimulant is all about. It also gives members a way to say thanks to one of their best clients and publicly recognize them, so I would recommend that you bring in that client, and when you have a chance to introduce them, say, “This is my client. I love working with them. They are great and here is their business.” Then give them a chance to speak, just as a visitor would normally do.

Again, it’s meeting stimulant #41, so we can put an attachment in the podcast so you can see the whole meeting stimulant there. What I would suggest you do is take it to your chapter president and see if they would do that. You have enough time still before International Networking Week. Do that in your chapter.

We will literally have thousands of events all over the world. Big events and then regular chapter meetings where we are recognizing International Networking Week.

Priscilla:
Well, that sounds great. Dr. Misner, you are my best client, so I was wondering if you could come to my chapter that day.

Ivan:
I love it. I’ll tell you what, I’ll do a webcam with you.

Priscilla:
Really?

Ivan:
Absolutely. Any time

Priscilla:
Oh that would be very cool. Okay. I will have to see about that.

Ivan:
It would be my pleasure. A lot of regions are doing big events. We had over a hundred big events last year, where the region would do a big breakfast meeting or a lunch or evening meeting. We have had thousands and thousands of people go to the big events, and then, of course, thousands of regular BNI meetings. You don’t have to have a big event to recognize International Networking Week. I think a regular BNI meeting is great. Just do something special that week and bring in your best client.

Thank you for saying I am one of your best clients. I appreciate that.

Priscilla:
Definitely.

Ivan:
That’s all I have for today, Priscilla. Thank you.

Priscilla:
Okay good. Well, that’s it for this week. I would just like to remind the listeners that this podcast has been brought to you by NetworkingNow.com, which is the leading site on the net for networking downloadables. Thank you so much for listening. This is Priscilla Rice and we hope you will join us next week for another exciting episode of The Official BNI Podcast.