We all know that Visitors to the chapter are our life blood and it is important that we are all making every effort to find our next visitor.
But where can you find yours? Have you considered the following?
We all receive leaflets through the door. If someone is distributing leaflets about the services that they can offer, they are obviously looking for more work. Invite them to BNI!
Small business directories are distributed in all areas – in Banstead and Reigate, there is The Challenger Magazine, in Carshalton there is the Carshalton Beeches Directory. These directories are full of adverts for small independent local businesses, all of which have spent a lot of money to advertise in this book. So they are eager for business and they are willing to invest money to find it.
I know from personal experience that the results from these books are minimal – why not call them and invite them to BNI to find out how for a similar investment, they could enjoy far better results?
It is worthwhile being specific about the type of business that you are looking to invite and concentrating on this. For instance, you might choose a Caterer as the next ideal member for Sutton BNI. In which case, enter ‘Caterer, Sutton’ into a search engine and you will be presented with a list of potential visitors. Concentrating on a particular business like this might mean that you will have two or more visitors in the same category, then they can compete for the position!
Once you find your Visitor, you need to look after them!
- You can send them a formal invitation by email which contains further details about BNI together with a Map for the venue.
- Call them on Wednesday, ensure that they know how to find us; what time they are expected; bring plenty of business cards with them to pass around
- When they arrive at BNI, welcome them; get them a tea or coffee; introduce them to other members; make sure they know where they will be sitting and perhaps run through a summary of the format of the meeting – this will help them relax and feel comfortable
We look forward to welcoming your next visitor to Sutton BNI!
The above education slot was presented by Carolyn Reilly of PrintInc
