Episode 183: “Ten Networking Questions”

In this episode of Dr. Misner's weekly podcasts, he discusses ten networking questions to ask. #1 How did you get started in your business? #2 What do you like most about your business? For more of the questions... You can access the link by clicking here.

Episode 182: “The Best 60-Second Presentation I Ever Heard”

In this week's episode of the BNI podcast, Dr. Misner discusses the very best 60 second commercial he has ever heard. The results will surprise you...it is not about the "memory hook".

You can listen to the podcast by clicking here. Enjoy the information!

BNI Podcast: Episode 181: “Turn the 80/20 Rule Upside Down”

Click here to listen to this week's podcast on the 80%/20% rule:

Synopsis:

Jim Butcher from Capital Trust Realty, “retired” president of the East Texas and Houston East region of BNI, joins Dr. Misner to talk about how his chapter used Fast Track to ensure that every single member brings 3-4 referral every week. That’s more than 300 referrals per month, up from 100-150 before the program.

The Pareto Principle says that 20% of the people yield 80% of the results. Chapters that find themselves in this position are usually operating at the Visibility level of the VCP process. Once you get to Credibility, you can get 80% of the members bringing results.

One technique they applied is to focus their 60-second commercials on asking for referrals, and even asking for introductions to specific people.

Sign your chapter up for the Fast Track program at www.bninetworkingsecrets.com. Make sure to contact Flynn or Sara to arrange for additional coaching.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

Jim Sando, Our EC on Networking

Jim Sando, from the Strategic Results Group delivers a wonderful EC Moment on that critical first 15 minutes of your BNI meeting. Are you using that time efficiently? Watch here and find out! Thanks to Robert A. Perez for his production of the video!!

What is the most effective way for a BNI chapter president to motivate members to bring visitors and grow the chapter?

This question was posed by Pablo Scodellaro. Pablo is a bookkeeper from Sydney, Australia. I believe the subsequent comments from BNI members around the world warranted posting. When you read these comments, you realize how small the world has become and how social media connects us! I hope that you enjoy the comments and learn from the advice.

From Deepak Garg, an ophthalmologist from India:

"I don't know if there is one best way, but i would say that many ways are to be adapted to enable members to get more visitors. We at our chapter give weekly awards to the person who gets the maximum visitors for the previous four weeks. Also we have a hot seat programme, we write down everyone's name on a chits of papers and pick up, lets say five and these five members then have to bring visitors by hook or by crook in the next BNI meeting."

Allen C. Buchanan, a Commercial Real Estate Broker from Orange County, California:

I believe the best way to motivate the group is by example. I just began my president's term last week and have as a personal goal to have at least one visitor per week. Also, if your chapter has an active visitor host and open categories and attends chapter success forums, the region will send visitors to your chapter. We have had great success with Stack Days as a way to invite. Lastly, if I receive a cold call from a vendor, I ask them to attend my BNI meeting. If they are serious about building their business, they will see the benefit.

From Marty Morris, a printer from Ireland:

"Like Allen, i too have just started a term as Chapter Director (President), I believe the most effective way to promote the invitation of visitors is by PERSONAL EXAMPLE. I have seen this work in the past, and it is a great motivator for the chapter members, particularly, when the end of the month stats become available, to all of the chapter members."

Marty Morris Chapter Director, Castle Chapter, Dublin, Ireland.

From Frank Roe, a business mentor from Lancaster, UK:

"I took on the Membership Co-ordinator role for my Chapter from last week. We are working on a number of factors, personal example being a very good one. Our active Visitor Hosts and Visitor Orientators have worked closely with the previous Chapter Director and now with his successor in helping to find and bring in visitors. Both Chapters in our town are combining to host a new format "information and recruitment" event next month. We are concentrating on filling the open categories in both Chapters. Our 6 months goals include achieving target membership numbers. This event is being well supported by our Acting Regional Director and Assistant Director."

Frank Roe, Membership Co-ordinator, Redwulf Chapter, Kendal, South Lakeland.

From Dave Clark, a business consultant from Chattanooga, Tennessee:

"I will ask a question for all. How do you attract new customers? For us (A to Z Printing and Marketing), we bring a new visitor about once a month. You market your company, well BNI is "our company, sales team, biz partner, mentors and support network". Please email us at salesa2z@volfirst.net for some marketing Ideas and I will share some of our marketing tips."

From Lisa J. Raymond, a graphic designer from Phoenix, Arizona:

"I agree with Allen, leading by example. As the current VP for our chapter, I've taken postcards provided by BNI and filled out our chapter's information and my name; then, when I meet someone looking for a networking group, I hand them a postcard, inviting them to come join us for breakfast. We also have a regional coordinator helping the chapters fill positions by request of each chapter. For example, if our chapter is looking for a realtor (and ironically, we are), I e-mail a request to this coordinator asking them to send realtors looking for a chapter toward our group. We're just trying this for the first time this week, and we may have a couple of guests this next week! Our Education Coordinator is also challenging us with visitors by scheduling a monthly "visitor day", targeting one industry rather than three.

Remember to cite the number of referrals passed, how many are golden and explain to visitors what a golden referral is, and how much referral dollars your chapter has done thus far.

Last thought: there is no "cost" to joining any networking organization; rather, it is an investment toward the health and well-being of their business. Try breaking down the investment into a daily or weekly number so visitors can easily see how little investment it takes, but the overall impact and ROI for them would be substantial!"

Commercial Real Estate Power Team

Aric Gless, Chuck Tipton and I have formed a Commercial Real Estate Power Team (CREPT) and we conducted our first meeting on Friday October 8 at JT Schmid's in Anaheim.

The topics discussed were: meeting frequency, additional members that could benefit, referrals and introductions that we could make to each other and marketing ideas.

Meeting Frequency:

We decided to meet every other week for breakfast or lunch. Our next meeting will be held at Mimis Restaurant at 17th and the 55 Freeway at 7:00 AM on the October 20th.

Additional Members and Visitors:

As a commercial general contractor is a pivotal position for our practices and in the top ten "most wanted" list for the Champions SoCal BNI chapter, we are on red alert to locate the right general contractor that can receive our referrals and participate in our power team. Aric has extensive contacts in the area and has invited Kirk Christensen of Suncoast Builders to visit our nest PT meeting. We also discussed inviting Raymond Handling Solutions. Raymond provides warehouse racking, conveyor systems, and forklifts to industrial building owners and occupants.

Referrals and Introductions:

Introduced to the group were Thierry Montoya of Adorno Yoss who is an environmental attorney, Dave Hibbard who trains companies and individuals on prospecting, Scott Jones who is the BDO for White Nelson, and Ryan Swanson who is selling a building in Corona to a company that will need commercial building financing. We spoke about our roles as "creators" and how each of us can engage numerous members of the chapter through our business generation.

Marketing Ideas:

1. Distributing the "new listings" that I receive weekly in anticipation of architectural needs and providing the introductions.

2. Distributing the new "purchase requirements" that I receive weekly in anticipation of financing needs and providing the introductions.

3. Sending Chuck's young guys to a prospecting class to enable them to "prospect" for requirements in the market.

4. Having each member of the PT send me a paragraph on an industry "hot topic" for the week to be incorporated into my Location Advice blog.

5. Refining each of our 30 second commercials to make them more impactful...Chuck will ask for attorney introductions and Aric will "go green"!

What Do You Do?

This article recently appeared in the Orange County Register and was penned by Robert Pagliarini and is titled "How to Answer “What Do You Do?”I believe that we can all benefit from the tips contained here. Enjoy!

By Robert Pagliarini Oct 4, 2010

Have you ever noticed how even the most introverted guests on talk shows always have such great stories? Is it because they have more charisma or can think better on their feet? No. These “impromptu” stories are well rehearsed. In fact, your favorite stars craft these stories days or even weeks in advance and then tell the show’s producers so the host can ask the right questions. Is this cheating? Not at all. When you only have a few minutes on TV, you want to make sure you pack as much punch into the limited time you have. If this strategy can work for Brad Pitt and Jessica Alba on the Tonight Show, it can certainly work for you in job interviews and at cocktail parties.

If you’re like the rest of us, there are two questions that you get asked daily that you completely blow: “What do you do?” and “How have you been?” These questions provide you with great opportunities to make meaningful connections and grow relationships.

This week, we’ll tackle the ubiquitous “What do you do?” question that causes even the best of us to stumble. Rather than continue to muff this question, I’m going to show you how to make it TV worthy by helping you prepare a scripted, yet compelling response you can use over and over again. Keep these six tips in mind:

1. Aim for 15 to 25 seconds. The typical response is less than two seconds (e.g., “I’m in insurance” or “I’m an executive assistant”), but you want your response to be 15 to 25 seconds in length. That’s considerably longer than you’re probably used to, and it may feel a little uncomfortable at first, but anything shorter than 15 seconds won’t give you enough time to share everything you need.


2. Focus on what, not where. It’s okay to mention the company you work for, but you then have to follow it up with what you do there. Instead of saying “I work at IBM” or “I work for a real estate company,” focus on what you do there. According to Dan Abelon, co-founder and president of SpeedDate.com (who better to ask about how to quickly make a great first impression?), he suggests describing what you do in terms of why it is important. For example, instead of “I’m an accountant at a hotel chain,” say “As an accountant at a hotel chain I look for opportunities to save the company money and to make sure we manage our assets so we can continue to grow.”


3. Ditch titles. So you’re the assistant vice president of operations? Sounds impressive, but nobody knows what that means. If you have an impressive title, feel free to share it, but immediately follow it up with a simple explanation.


4. Keep it simple. In the 1993 film, Philadelphia, Denzel Washington’s character asks throughout the film, “Explain it to me like I’m a six-year old.” If you want to communicate effectively, pretend you’re talking to a child. If you’re worried you’ll come across as insulting, you won’t. You’ll come across as refreshing and engaging.


5. Get personal. Be sure to mention any hobbies you have, non-work projects in which you are involved, and/or charities where you volunteer. Also, don’t be shy about briefly mentioning your family.


6. Leave ‘em hanging. The best responses are those that pique the listener’s interest and that lead to more questions.

If you’re struggling a bit, use this template to get started:

“I am a [job title] at [company name]. What this means is that I [describe what you do and why it is important]. When I’m not helping [reiterate who you serve], I love to [insert hobbies, passions, and/or information about your family].”

Here’s an example of a good response:

“I am an executive assistant at ABC Company. What this means is that I make my boss look great by managing her calendar, keeping her organized, and helping her focus on the bigger goals. When I’m not helping my company grow, I love to go to the park with my three children, cook fancy French cuisine, and volunteer at Saddleback Church.”

By answering the “What do you do?” question like this, you are giving the listener many more options to connect with you. Imagine you are casting a fishing line into the water. Think of each bit of information you provide as an extra hook. The more hooks your line has the more opportunities your listener can connect with you.

Mark Twain is quoted with saying, “I never could make a good impromptu speech without several hours to prepare it.” Now it’s your turn. What do you do?

Champions SoCal BNI President's Weekly Letter

Woooooooooo, CHAMPIONS!!!

The New leadership year was embraced by all who attended the meeting this week. Allen Buchanan opened the meeting with a new Champions SoCal BNI greeting, Wooooooooo, CHAMPIONS! This is reminiscent of "calling the hogs" in Allen's native Arkansas.

We welcomed three visitors and one substitute and the room was full of Champions enthusiasm.

Jim Sando, Education Coordinator, delivered his first EC Moment and based his presentation on "How to Improve Your BNI ROI". Jim's presentation encompassed four key points: use your open networking time more effectively, use your Sales Manager Moment more effectively, use the speaker's presentation time more effectively, and finally use your "Stand and Deliver" time more effectively. Great Job, Jim and we are eager to hear more education messages from you!

Allen Buchanan was the leader in one-to-one meetings and referrals for the month of September and Rosanne Grigsby invited the most visitors. Emily Davidson won the spark plug award for her diligent efforts on membership issues for the past two weeks and her skillful execution of the BNI Family Feud last week.

Greg Beck reported that the chapter participated in 209 one-to-one meetings, exchanged 112 referrals, and welcomed 10 visitors for the month of September. Additionally the Champions thanked others for $49,533 in closed business raising the BNI yearly total to $638,531! Tremendous effort Champions!!

Rosanne Grigsby introduced the speakers for this week. Dr. Hercules Real spoke about Snap on Smile and his special promotional price of $999 for cash payment or $99 per month for 12 months. Dr. Real also reviewed several images of dental issues to note when we are conducting our weekly activities. Allen Buchanan spoke about his "Spheres of Influence" and the five professionals that most small businesses rely upon for advice, CPAs, business attorneys, commercial bankers, commercial insurance brokers, and wealth advisors. Allen also demonstrated the new blog site and facebook page for the Champions SoCal BNI Chapter.

Dues for October are now due and payable. A late charge of $5 per week will be assessed on all late payments.

Emily Davisdson outlined our "Top Ten" list. They are:

1. Business Attorney

2. Hair Dresser

3. Merchant Services

4. General Contractor

5. Electrician

6. Roofer

7. Estate Attorney

8. HR Consultant

9. Personal Fitness Trainer

10. Heating & Air Conditioning Company

Emily also reserved four Stack Days for the upcoming year...November 16, February 15, May 17th, and August 16th.

Allen adjourned the meeting with a quote and asked that all of the Champions make it a Champion Week!

6 Tips to Make Networking Events More Beneficial

Bryan Elliott of Linked OC.com recently penned this article that I believe can be helpful in our networking efforts. You can email Bryan at Bryan@linkedoc.com.

"With all the great events coming up I thought I'd put together a list that might be helpful:

Top 6 Tips To Make Attending Events Worth It:

If you're like me you've been to a bunch of networking events, seminars and business conferences. Some are good and some have been really bad, right? I'm not going to focus on the bad stuff, but suffice to say I created Linked Orange County because I couldn't find what I was looking for out there. Now, we're far from perfect and there's lots of room for improvement, but we are trying to do things differently and have great events that actually mean something to you and produce the results you're looking for. Here are 6 tips that might make the difference:

1. Do-- Attend the Event. I know this sounds silly, but actually showing up is important. I'm know success has never been determined by "best intentions." Remember Wayne Gretzky: "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." Keep in mind attending is only about 50% of the equation. But do save event dates in advance and make attending a priority.

Why?
a. Because successful people do what others are not willing to do. If you have a product or service, your competition is probably at our events and making the most of it. Looking for a job? You have competition too--just saying...
b. Because meeting someone at one of our events can help you accomplish your business goals like: getting new customers, finding a new job, finding a supplier/vendor etc. This probably far outweighs the investment of time and money you spend to attend an event. "Be there before the sale."

2. Do-- Have a Goal. Having a goal is the same as having a strategy. It answers the question: Why-- What's the point of this? Ex. Do you want to find 1 new client? Do you want to be a sponsor to reach our members and get the word out about your product or service? Is there 1 person on your must-meet list who you know will attend that could help you find a new job? Once you know WHY, you can start planning WHAT--the tactics or what you'll do to accomplish your goal when you're at the event.

3. Do-- Your Homework. Also common sense, but how many of you are really using our group on Linkedin to its full potential? My guess is almost none of you... And BTW, this has nothing to do with continual useless promotional posts on our Discussion Board. How is asking me to buy your stuff a discussion?

How about this...How many of you have taken me up on my offer to publish your blog on our group website www.LinkedOC.com? Could you use an addition 8-10k unique visitors a month to your website or blog? This is for you, not me.

Examples:
a. Being part of Linked Orange County's Linkedin group let's you view member profiles, work history, recommendations and more. You can do keyword searches based on any criteria you want. For example, if you're looking to connect with someone who has "digital media" experience or is "VP of Marketing" at an upcoming event, all you have to do is put in the keywords and see who comes up. Make a list of people you'd like to meet at the event and seek them out when you get there.

b.Linkedin gives you a limited amount of free "In Mail" to make connections. After you exhaust those you have to pay. But members who belong to the same group can send as many messages to each other free of charge. So what if you made a list of group members you wanted to meet based on your biz goals? Before an upcoming event you could send them a message like, "Hi Julie, we're both members of Linked Orange County and I see you're in commercial real estate. I have a friend who's looking for some office space.. If you're attending the next meet up on Oct. 12th it would be great to meet you..." or something like that. Do your homework and come prepared to the event with a plan.

c. Come prepared to ask questions. You've got expert Chris Brogan here for 1 night only next week. There will be a Q&A after his presentation or you'll get some personal time with him if you get a VIP ticket...

4. Do-- Bring a Camera, Video and Take Notes Do you write a blog? Need content that will drive visitors to your site? Content and context is king. Our events are filled with some of the best talent in Orange County from whom you could get great stuff to write about. And what about our speakers and or expert panelists? On Oct. 12th we'll have bestselling author Chris Brogan who also happens to have the #2 ranked marketing blog in the world. This could be an opportunity for content that would fuel several future blog posts and spur visitor traffic. Post pics or a write-up to your blog, Facebook, Twitter to get a conversation going or whatever.

5. Don't-- Pass Out Business Cards To Every Person. It's generally not a good idea to measure the success of an event by the number of business cards you collect by the end of the night. What would you do with all of these anyway, wall paper your bathroom? If you get someone's card and send them a blind email, or worse your Newsletter, they will usually delete it. You should get to know someone a little and IF there's a match, exchange cards. A match could include people in one of 3 categories: 1.) I can help this person. 2.) This person can help me. 3). I know someone who can help this person.

6. Do-- Break Out of Your Comfort Zone. It's fun to be social and talk with the people you know and like--and if they are part of your plan to be successful, then keep it up. Just remember the reason you're attending. Don't you hate that awkward feeling of wanting to break into what looks like an interesting group--but you don't because they obviously ALL know each other? Or you're just too shy to try and meet anyone? Being quiet and introverted limits your opportunities. You might consider bringing a friend or two of your own to events to be your wing man. But in either case, remember your goal and get it done! Seize the day. Make it happen! "

Welcome New Leadership Team!

The Champions Chapter of SoCal BNI began its 2010-2011 leadership year on October 1, 2010 with a new leadership team. Allen Buchanan will serve as President. Allen provides location advice to owners and occupants of industrial buildings in Southern California. Gregory Beck, CPA will serve as Vice President. Greg provides accounting, part time CFO, consulting, and forecasting services for closely held businesses that generate revenues of $1,000,000 to $10,000,000 annually. Rosanne Grigsby, Bookkeeper, will serve as Secretary Treasurer. Rosanne provides bookkeeping services to small and medium sized businesses and has extensive experience with non-profit organizations. Jim Sando will serve as our Education Coordinator, Aric Gless will head our Membership Committee, Steven Stakley will Mentor the Mentors, Emily Davidson (2009-2010) VP will coordinate Growth and Retention, and Tom Roberts will manage the Visitor Host Team. The Champions has a long history of success and I am confident that this year's leadership team will make it another Champion year!