by Sharon Hiebing | May 5th, 2010
As most people know I am a raving fan of the BNI Networking group. I have been a member for over three years.
Last year 58% of my business for my printable greeting cards online company came from BNI. That’s a pretty impressive number, right? But what most people don’t know is all of that business did not come from my chapter alone.
BNI has a fabulous little policy that allows you to substitute for other members in other chapters when they have to miss a meeting. Unfortunately, in my opinion, not enough BNI members take advantage of this incredible opportunity. I have three main reasons for embracing this practice:
1. Gives me exposure to business owners I would otherwise never have a chance to meet. This is helpful for me both because they may want my services, but I may want theirs.
2. Not every chapter has someone from every profession. One of the reasons I like BNI is because I can be a connector for my friends, family, neighbors and business associates when they need the services of different types of businesses. If a profession that someone needs is not represented in my chapter, then being associated with other chapters helps to expand my ability to give referrals to those that need my help.
3. Doing favors for others is very powerful. If someone asks you to substitute and you do, I promise you they’ll remember you for it. And in return, they’ll want to do something nice for you one day in the future. It’s actually a great example of the “giver’s gain” philosphy BNI is so famous for.
Because I’ve embraced substituting as a business networking strategy, it’s amazing how many people I know when I attend events. Just the other night I went to an event for a gal I met while substituting at a BNI meeting – she’s going to be a customer soon, so in order to support her I went. There were many members from her BNI chapter, some I knew, some I didn’t. It was really fun getting to know a few people much better, and a couple of us may do business together in the future.
And after all, that’s what networking is about. Building relationships so one day down the road, if the opportunity presents itself, you’ll feel comfortable referring that person or working with them yourselves.
Would love to hear any BNI Substitute Success Stories out there!
