Get a GRIP on Inviting

The best way to encourage inviting to your chapter meeting is to make it as easy, and simple, as possible. And the best way to accomplish ease and simplicity is to know what you’re going to say when you invite.

Here’s a simple, easy script. It’s based on GRIP; which stands for Grow, Referrals, Introduce, and Place. The script goes something like this:

Scene: Networking Event

Enter Christel and event attendee.

Christel: So how’s business going for you?

Attendee: Pretty well.

Christel: Are you looking to grow your business this year?

Attendee: Yes!

Christel: Would more referrals help?

Attendee: Yes!

Christel: May I introduce you to a group of business associates who, over time, would like to give you referrals?

Attendee: Yes!

Christel: Terrific, we meet every Friday morning at Gerta’s Pancake House (place) at 7:00 am. Would this Friday work for you…….?

 

Grow, referrals, introduction and place. It couldn’t be simpler.

Now, what event will you attend to try it? And who will you ask? This script works very well on the phone too. Using it might just get you to The Westin Hilton Head Beach Resort and Spa in South Carolina.

How’s Business?

Every great, profitable company has a system to bring in new clients/customers. Your BNI network can as well. One way to grow our BNI network (and our future referrals) is to increase our referral partners. That means inviting.

Try the following:

1. Ask everyone you talk to, “How’s business?”
2. Ask, “Are referrals important to your business?” When they answer, “Why, yes they are”, then ask “how do you generate referrals for your business?” When they ask how you get referrals, “I’m building a referral network with BNI.”
3. “What’s BNI?” “BNI stands for Business Network International and we are a referral network of diverse businesses that generate ongoing referrals for each other”.
4. Then INVITE. “Would you like to attend our meeting and see how we do it?”

What makes the above approach successful is activity. BNI members are the best referral generators in the world, but to produce referrals we need a network and to build a network, we need to be in contact with a lot of people, just as we need to be in touch with a lot of prospects to create new clients for our businesses.

Asking one person to attend won’t show results, asking five people to attend will. Try it and see how it works. Not only will you attract new referral partners, you may even be celebrating them on a trip to Hilton Head Beach. There’s only 2 weeks left to qualify.

The BNI Hour of Power

By  James Sanderson, BNI Executive Director for London South-Central, United Kingdom

“My chapter leadership teams encourage members to set aside one hour a week in which they focus solely on BNI activity. Think about it: if you stopped everything in your day and decided to focus on BNI for one hour, what would you do? Would you be at a loss to fill the time? Or would you have a number of activities that you could immediately pursue to give you tremendous impetus in developing business for chapter colleagues, whilst also giving your own business a major boost at the same time?

In your “Hour of Power” you could:

Focus on inviting visitors:

• Follow up previously invited visitors to see if they are ready to join;
• Review the list of trade/professional categories that your chapter most wants to fill, and update your own customers and contact lists to see if you can identify suitable visitors;
• Make invitation calls;
• Send invitation cards or emails confirming venue details for visitors;
• Make reminder calls to visitors the day before the meeting.

We have found the Hour of Power can transform any member’s experience within BNI, almost instantaneously increasing the value of the business generated and received by over ten-fold.

Adopt it and see the benefits flow.”

Let those benefits help you flow right down to Hilton Head Beach in South Carolina.