summer 2004 belfast boost from tony's magic€¦ · 2 summer 2004 successnet focus on northern...

SUMMER 2004

MEET BNI'sNEWEST

(TEMPORARY)MEMBERS

MEET BNI'sNEWEST

(TEMPORARY)MEMBERS

Belfast boostfrom Tony's magic

SEE PAGE 2

Women on topin Surrey

SEE PAGE 3

Unforgettable!!Life on the QM2

SEE PAGE 8 & 9

SEE PAGE 3

2 SUMMER 2004 SUCCESSNET

F o c u s o n N o r t h e r n I r e l a n d

Belfast businesses head for top with Tony’s magic

CLIMBING THE LADDER OF SUCCESS: Robin Nesbitt (left) has not looked back sincerecruiting the expertise of Ballymena Chapter’s Tony Devlin

Meanwhile Glenovation has worked its magic foranother, even newer Belfast company, MailroomLimited, helping Lagan Valley Chapter member DesyGault and his business partner win a £250,000 con-tract through the EU tendering process.

Mailroom provides high quality mail fulfilment servicesthroughout the UK and Ireland, but Desy was keen to obtainpublic sector contracts, so he talked to Tony who helped thecompany develop a strategy for responding to large tenderinvitations, and instigate an effective information collationprocess that would be crucial to gaining contracts.

“After a very short time working together, the approachedwe suggested paid off, and Mailroom won their first majorcontract for a quarter of a million pounds – producing plentyof happy faces around their offices that day,”Tony added.“It’sanother great example of cross-chapter networking, and itcould never have happened without BNI.”

Desy Gault can be contacted on 07734 428424

Cross-chapter networking producesremarkable business turnaround

Belfast businessman Robin Nesbitt would be the first to admitthat his printing company was a mere minnow in a pool of muchlarger rivals until 18 months ago. Today however, his businessstands transformed, one of the best known in the region – andwith major, long-term contracts that are the envy of competitors.

How? As a member of LisburnChapter, Robin had already gainedsome modest additional businessthrough his BNI colleagues, but thenhe started to hear glowing reportsabout a member of the BallymenaChapter – some 30 miles away – witha reputation for helping small butsound businesses grow dramatically.

That member was Ballymena’sTony Devlin, whose company,Glenovation, provides a range of keybusiness support services - includ-ing tender writing and bid applica-tion management - to companiesthroughout the UK.

Tony said: “Robin is the seniorpartner of Print Solutions startedfive years ago, and he won’t mind mysaying that when we first met, hisfirm was more used to small ordersthan processing six-figure print jobsfor corporate clients. He’d decidedthat he wanted to grow the compa-ny’s public sector customer base andknew an innovative new approachwas required to be successful inwinning public sector customers.

“He had heard of my companythrough BNI testimonials in his ownchapter but he was still scepticalwhen he approached me looking fora strategy that was going to helpthem win this new public sectorbusiness. We met and developed astrategy for re-positioning PrintSolutions, changing its emphasis tomake sure it would be able to com-pete for bigger contracts.”

Having re-structured the print-ing business, Tony then set aboutwriting the first of a number of bidproposals and tender applicationsfor large contracts, some of themonly accessible through the complex

EU and Public Sector ApprovedContractors tendering process. ToRobin’s delight, Print Solutions soonfound itself on shortlists and thenwinning major new business.

He said: “Before we developedour strategy with Glenovation wehad little success in tender applica-tions.Today we are winning businessthat once we could only hope mightcome our way! In our first year ofworking with Tony, we gained onelocal education authority orderworth in excess of £100,000, and wehave also been accepted as anapproved supplier to share a newpublic sector printing contractworth £5 million a year.

“We are now working closelywith Tony to bid for further contractsand we still have a number of othertenders outstanding. Getting toknow about his specialist serviceshas transformed our business inbarely 18 months, from a small print-ers to a major player in this part ofIreland, and it is very doubtful we’dhave ever made contact had it notbeen for our membership of BNI.”

Tony, a bid manager before hedecided to use his skills to develophis own highly-successful companyin North Antrim, now spends muchof his time providing bid and EU ten-der management solutions to busi-nesses trying to sell into the publicsector throughout the UK andIreland – a service that includes per-sonal coaching of key personnel interms of public speaking, appear-ance and even choreographingentire presentations to clients.

Contact Tony at Glenovation on+44 (0) 28 2076 8758. Robin can bereached on 028 9077 4664

MAILROOM GETS BUSIER: Lagan Valley’s Desy Gault (right) is broadening his busi-ness sights, following Mailroom’s new collaboration with Glenovation’s Tony Devlin.

Did you know that on average, womenspeak 6,500 words a day, while men speakjust 2,500 words in the same period? Ofcourse you did! But in Sandown (Esher)Chapter, male members are fast coming torealise that having more than their fairshare of chatty female colleagues, gener-ates very positive results….

For no obvious reason, the Chapter’s earlyrecruitment efforts have attracted a surfeit offemale applicants, with the result that today, theNorth Surrey group boasts more women thanmen – making it unique among BNI’s normallymale-dominated groups.

And, while an influx of the fairer sex has cer-tainly raised the decibel levels during meetings, itis also raising the volume of business done, asfounder member Richard Forshaw (pictured) fromTAL Computer Services is discovering everyThursday morning.

Richard said: “In our chapter, we have 11women to 10 men so, given their far greater abili-ty to talk more, you can imagine what I and mymale colleagues have to put up with! However,all this talking is good for business, because ourreferral rates are rising and the quality of businessis consistently high. It’s also more pleasant to dobusiness in a chapter where there is a goodmix of the sexes, rather than having only a few

women members.”The Chapter’s recent recruitment drive has

brought in four new members three of whomwere women. Karen Sutton, Membership Co-ordi-nator, who runs Digital World Direct, toldSuccessNet:“I think you’ll find that our group hasmore female members than any other in thewhole South East. When members from otherchapters visit us, they always comment on thenumber of women around the table.

Karen is not in the picture [below] because, as

an ex-Formula One photographer, she took thephotograph! Also not pictured is Gillian Harvey-Bush, a personal development coach.

Not that Sandown intends to be sexist! “Wedidn’t set out to recruit mainly females. It’s justworked out that way,” added Karen. “But we’ll bejust as pleased to welcome new applicationsfrom men.”

If you’d like to know more about Sandown’swinning formula, call Jackie on 01372 465041or Karen on 020 8391 0717.

SUCCESSNET SUMMER 2004 3

N e w s

Cardboard cut-outs do BNI business on the border!

Women definitely on top in Esher

They may belong to BNI’s newestUK group, but the founders of EastStaffordshire Chapter already knowthey are cut out for great success,after boosting the attendance at theirpre-launch meetings with a variety oflife-sized cardboard ‘members’!

The Chapter was being launched asSuccessNet went to press, but for severalweeks, the group’s founder membersswelled their own ranks – and their confi-dence – with the help of a dozen full sizedcardboard colleagues, each one represent-ing a trade or profession that the Chapterwants to attract during the summer months.

Michelle Moore, a BNI Assistant Directorsaid:“We thought it would be a novel idea togive Chapter members a feel for just how bigthe group will be once we’ve achieved our

first target: doubling the group’s size overthe next few weeks. Our founder membersmade the life-sized cut-outs – both male andfemale versions – to which we attached thenames of specific occupations that membersare now targeting tojoin us.

“It provided goodentertainment and wasthe source of countlesswisecracks, as well asacting as a continuingreminder of the needto attract real-lifereplacements for ourcardboard colleagues.

“It also generatedsignificant media inter-est, with pictures andarticles appearing in

the The Burton Mail.Anyone interested in boosting the

group’s numbers – or joining any otherStaffordshire chapter – should contactMichelle Moore on 01782 208 297.

TOO MANY LOW CALORIE BREAKFASTS? No, it’s just East Staffordshire Chapter’s temporarycardboard members, keeping the seats warm for their real-life replacements.

SSSH! CAN I GET A WORD IN PLEASE? Esher’s Richard Forshaw is getting used to all the talking from his female colleagues.


N e w s

An Edinburgh businessman hasdoubled the turnover of his thrivingfinancial services company in thepast nine months thanks to his localBNI chapter – even though his sus-tained efforts to become a memberhave been unsuccessful!

High-flying independent financial advis-er Kevin Quinn found himself ‘locked out’ ofhis local Edinburgh South Chapter becausehis position was already taken – but it hasn’tstopped him using the combined expertiseof no less than 17 BNI members, whom hecredits with “growing my business at anextraordinary rate.”

He heard about BNI through The RoyalBank of Scotland Business Adviser JimBowman (a member of Edinburgh South)who helped turn his business plan into asuccessful IFA and mortgage consultancy –Options & Choices Mortgages Ltd – based atDalkeith. Jim also felt his chapter colleaguescould offer many of the services Kevin need-ed to get started, and took him to meet TonyMiller at Riverside Stationers, who provided

the company with a variety of office sup-plies and business machines.

A strong relationship was struck upbetween them and Tony duly introducedKevin to other chapter members whoseservices he needed, including an account-ant, web designer, vehicle salesman and cor-porate image specialist. Formed just over ayear ago, Kevin’s firm now employs 15 peo-ple and earlier this year moved to largerpremises when, naturally, many BNI mem-bers were involved in its relocation!

Tony said: “Kevin desperately wants tojoin the chapter that has played such a keyrole in the growth of his business, but hiscategory has remained filled, so he has beenlooking for an alternative group for ninemonths. Ironically, the only other recentlylaunched chapter in the area - atMusselburgh - already had an IFA foundermember, so he missed out there too, but heis utterly committed to working with BNI. Itis far from one-sided, because he has alsogiven a steady stream of referrals to ourmembers. He must be the most prolific

member we haven’t got!”Kevin told SuccessNet: “ I

am now so involved with BNIthat I joke about EdinburghSouth Chapter holding itsmeetings in our offices.Dealing with nearly all itsmembers regularly, I feel Ibelong to BNI. One day soon,I hope they’ll let me come infrom the cold,” he added.

Tony can be contacted on0131 665 2784 and Kevin can

be reached on 0131 663 7711.

SuccessNet is delighted to report on thefirst two Birmingham members to win theircoveted black badges, for what has beendescribed by their chapter’s leadershipteam as “fantastic contributions” over thepast two years.

Garden designer David Robinson whoruns ‘Up the Garden Path’ and telecoms sys-tems specialist Stewart Evans of QualitelSolutions, are members of the Great BarrChapter and, to the best of our knowledgeare the first members in Britain’s second cityto join BNI’s prestigious Gold Club after each

recruiting more than six new members.They are among six members to earn

their black badges in recent weeks, the oth-ers being printer Stuart Howarth and solici-tor Philip Stephenson (both members of theWalworth Chapter in Darlington), John Hartfrom Harrogate’s Thursday Chapter andDavid King who has introduced no less than10 new members to Hastings Chapter. Ourwarm congratulations to all five.

If your chapter welcomes any of itsmembers into the Gold Club, please makesure that someone tells us at SuccessNet.

“The best member we haven’t got!”

Brum gets first black badges

Lawsons’ LoreGillian and Martin LawsonNational Directors of BNI, write:

Readers will know that from time to timeduring BNI’s rapid growth in the UK and Ireland,we have reflected on key milestones along theway.Two major events in the past three monthshave colourfully confirmed, more than any-thing previously, just how successful BNI hasbecome, in establishing itself as Britain’s mostdynamic business networking organisation.

This year’s European Conference atBradford, hosted by our Yorkshire colleagueswas, without doubt, the biggest and best so farand it is significant that in each successive yearwe have managed to markedly improve everyaspect of this annual event,.

Those of you who attended last year’s con-ference at St. Andrew’s Bay Resort in Fife, cameaway with the unanimous view that it could nothave been bettered. Yet within 12 months,directors and members had again raised the bar– giving us a truly incredible day. On Page 6, youcan find out what made it so special. For those ofyou who missed the experience, we hope thearticle will inspire you to book a place at nextApril’s European conference in Bristol, as soon asfull details are published. It is one of the mostvaluable, enjoyable dates in the BNI calendar.

The second event could not be more differ-ent, but its occurrence was equally significant.We were recently privileged to play hosts to ourChapter Development Drive winners who expe-rienced the trip of a lifetime to New York, aboardCunard’s new Queen Mary 2 - the world’s largest,most luxurious liner. On the centre pages, youcan read what some of them had to say abouttheir week, but the sole reason for its referencehere, is because it again demonstrates how farBNI has come, in proviing rewards of this quality.

Common to both events was an ongoingenthusiasm for, and commitment to, networkingamongst BNI members. While you might not besurprised to learn that those who took part inthe annual conference, collectively went awaywith a conservative £4 million worth of newbusiness, you might be astonished to know thatBNI networking continued successfully in mid-Atlantic, producing an unexpected businessbonus for more than one of our members!

The clear message is that if you pursue BNI’sphilosophy, and you follow our tried and testedpractices, you can ALL be winners. Just ask thosewho took part in these activities.

PLEASE LET ME JOIN BNI: Kevin Quinn (centre), pictured with Edinburgh SouthChapter’s Royal Bank of Scotland Adviser Jim Bowman (left) and business suppliesboss Tony Miller.

If they gain top prize it will be the ultimate‘rags-to-riches’ success story for the youngstersbut, even getting to the finals (being held atLondon’s Savoy Hotel) has been a remarkableachievement, thanks in no small measure to BNImembers of Hull’s Wednesday Chapter.

Earlier this year, KH Smilers - a YoungEnterprise company launched last Septemberby other pupils in the school - was rescued fromcollapse with help from the Chapter’s IT andTraining specialist Vic Golding, following a pleafrom his own secretary, Dianne Garbera whose15-year old son David had just been ‘appointed’its new managing director in a classroom vote.

David and his five classmates – all studentsat the Kelvin Hall School – took the reins of theflailing company in January after the business’soriginal board of directors found the project toodemanding. And in less than six months, theyhave transformed the previous flop into a thriv-ing, profitable venture that many a professionalbusiness person would be proud to own.

With little help from busy teaching staff, thenew team switched its product range from nov-elty cards and gifts to bedding plants, produceda superb business plan, delegated specific tasks– marketing, sales, operations, IT and productdevelopment – to different team members, andstarted to turn the business around.

In stepped Vic Golding, first offering KHSmilers the professional IT and computing sup-port they needed (including a crash course inSage accounting and book-keeping) and theninviting the team to present their business planto a meeting of his Wednesday Chapter. SeveralBNI members were so impressed that theyimmediately offered their own expert servicesto the young entrepreneurs, covering market-ing, printing, exhibition and promotional work,financial planning and reporting.

The result is that KH Smilers have gone fromstrength to strength, despatching orders forhundreds of pounds worth of plants (makingover £1,000 profit!), joining VIPs at the presti-gious Yorkshire International BusinessConference, and being given a civic receptionby the Lord Mayor of Hull.

Vic Golding said: “When weheard how the school’s newYoung Enterprise team hadstarted to make such bigstrides, the whole chapter want-ed to help. When we first metthem, they were £250 in debt,had products no-one wanted tobuy and all but two of the origi-nal board had resigned. Thenew team has done a truly bril-liant job in turning it all round!

“All the team members are14 and 15 year olds and were upagainst 17 to 19 year olds from other schools –including public and private schools - with fargreater resources. However they fare in this

month’s finals, we are proud of them”.You can contact Vic Goldingon 01482 328 706


I n v e s t i n g i n o u r f u t u r e

London - Here We Come!A group of teenagers from a Hull comprehensive school

will be making the most important presentation of theiryoung lives in a few days time – hoping to win the UK finalsof this year’s prestigious HSBC Young Enterprise InnovationAwards - after sweeping to a clear victory in the competi-tion’s Yorkshire and Humberside Regional finals.

Planning the school’s annual outing toBritain’s top theme park at Alton Towers mightnot sound too onerous a task, but when you’retalking about a two-day 450-mile round tripwith overnight accommodation for severalhundred teenagers, and you are expected tomake a decent profit along the way, well…. it’san altogether tougher proposition.

That was the challenge presented to a 10-strong group of ‘A’ level business students atLittlehampton Community School in Sussexwho, as part of their transition to the real busi-ness world, were also asked to present theircompleted project to members of BNI’s neigh-bouring Arundel Chapter.

“We were all most impressed by their

achievement,” said Chapter Director NickPeters of Netintel Media. “It was not an easysituation to have their coursework subjectedto scrutiny by business professionals. Each ofthe group was asked to describe how he orshe managed their part of the business, whichshowed an impressive profit of £1800.

“They presented themselves very well andare clearly destined for great things whenthey move on to the next stage in their lives,And from our point of view, members werewell aware that today’s students are tomor-row’s BNI members,” he added.

Geoff Davis, the School’s Deputy Headsaid:“The students were genuinely impressedthat BNI took them seriously and that

members asked them probing questions.It was a superb experience. We haveactively encouraged links with the localbusiness community, and meeting withBNI was an excellent example of this.”

The students seemed equally pleasedwith the occasion, despite having to showup at 6.45am to present their work to theChapter’s breakfast meeting.

You can contact Nick Peters on 01903 885191

BNI members look to the future

A WINNING TEAM: LCS Managing Director Emma Biffi is presentedwith a Notable Networker Award by Chapter Director Nick Peters.

It may have arrived in Britain less than eight years ago, but BNIis here to stay. That means planning for the successes of tomor-row’s businessmen and women, while maximising the profitpotential of today’s members. Here, we are delighted to reflecton how two UK chapters have taken time out to help and sup-port the country’s up-and-coming business entrepreneurs….

HULL’S TEENAGE WHIZZ KIDS: KH Smilers’ winningYoung Enterprise team with Hull’sLord Mayor Councillor Ken Branson, after BNI members had lent their support.

Sussex business students get BNI once-over


E u r o p e a n C o n f e r e n c e 2 0 0 4

They knew that the 2003European Conference held 12 monthsearlier at the St. Andrews Bay GolfResort would take some beating.Theyknew that BNI’s late and much-missedExecutive Director Ron Hain had setthe gold standard by which all ourfuture major events would be judged.But BNI’s Yorkshire directors did it!This year’s Conference and Members’Day at Bradford’s Hanover Hotel was -declared: Simply the best!

Organised largely by the nine assistantdirectors who make up Executive DirectorNiri Patel’s support team covering one ofBNI’s largest geographical regions, the 2004Conference attracted nearly 400 members –many of them from the north of Britain, but asignificant percentage coming not only fromfar-flung corners of the UK, but also from asfar away as France, Malaysia and Australia.

And they were not disappointed! Whatwas, by common consent, the best-everMembers’ Day agenda saw wall-to-wallkeynote speeches, break-out groups, work-shops, highly focused networking sessionsand of course, plenty of member participa-tion with all the usual fun that has become ahallmark of BNI’s major annual get-together.

John Middleton, one of West Yorkshire’sassistant directors, whose own keynoteaddress about ‘thinking outside the box’gained very positive feedback from dele-gates, told SuccessNet: “We’d all come away

from Scotland the previous year thinking ourconference couldn’t get any better than that,but we still managed to raise the bar!

“One of the biggest factors behind thehigh-energy Members’ Day was that severalkeynote speakers such as Terry Hamill andAndy Bounds delivered excellent presenta-tions on improving fundamental networkingskills, which delegates were then able to putinto practice as soon as the next open net-working session began. This immediatelyproduced better business results, which inturn made the day even more exciting – witheveryone determined to get in on the action.There were no retiring wallflowers…”

Area Director and co-organiser JohnLeach said this year’s conference, more thanany previous event, had made many partici-pating members realise the full extent anddepth of BNI’s value to their own businesses.

“Everyone always talks about the fact thatBNI is more than simply a weekly opportuni-ty to meet and exchange referrals, but Ibelieve the vast majority of this year’s dele-gates went away understanding fully, justwhat that means. Conference speakers andthe various workshops and group activitiesshowed them just how much the averagemember can get out of BNI, if s/he is willingto listen and learn.”

At the end of what was undoubtedly themost frenzied day’s networking in BNI’s

relatively short UK history, every delegatewas asked to carefully assess what level ofpotential new business he or she believedthey had generated during the conference –referrals they believed would turn into firmbusiness, generating income during 2004.

Niri Patel, the host region’s ExecutiveDirector told SuccessNet: “We collated all ofthe delegates’ confidential assessments andthen deliberately reduced the resulting fig-ure by a factor of four, to produce the mostconservative estimate of the new businessproduced on the day. Even that came to aremarkable £4 million, which shows why itwas such a powerful event.“

In addition to new chapters individuallyfeatured elsewhere in SuccessNet, the follow-ing chapters are among other UK groupslaunched during the past 10 weeks:

Brunel (Bristol), Derby 4, Falcons(Manchester West), Grosvenor (Ireland NE),Highway (Enfield), Lionhead Alpha (Rugby),Lowestoft, Meridian (East Grinstead), Regency(London North Central), Science (Oxford),Surtees (Newcastle), The Arrow (Alcester),Tuesbury (Watford), Waterlooville (Hants),Amethist (Amsterdam), Loewe (Berlin),Sempione (Milan), Scandic KNA and Alpha,(both Oslo, Norway), and Rezidor Inn, Gavleand Slottet, Uppsala, both in Sweden.

THE BIGGEST AND BEST EVER: That was the unanimous verdict of the 400 delegates attending this year’s European Conferenceat Bradford, many of whom told organisers they had done new business worth more than £10,000 at the event!

Simply the best!

New Chapters

“ ”I met several people I may do

business with, got new ideas aboutdeveloping my business, and learnthow to get more referrals for mychapter colleagues. Not bad for aday’s work!

- Andrew Lawrie, The LeedsRoyal Armouries Thursday Chapter

“ ”The coloured spots on dele-

gates’ badges to denote theirappropriate power circles was aninspired idea. It meant we could allfocus on people who could be mostuseful to us.

- Jeni Rankin,Wakefield Thursday Chapter

“ ”The conference agenda was the

best to date..The key to the day’s suc-cess was the variety of subjects, pre-sented in manageable chunks. At notime did the programme drag.

- Jeffrey Cohen,Leeds Moortown Chapter

“ ”Of all the UK conferences I have

ever been to, this was the mostrewarding, and the Yorkshire teamhave been the best hosts yet….

- Martin Bailey, BNI ExecutiveDirector for South Derbyshire


A r o u n d t h e C h a p t e r s

Broad band of business for Harrogate membersTwo BNI member companies in

Yorkshire have each won substantiallong-term business with ABC, theAccess to Broadband Campaign, as aresult of a some sharp-eyed oppor-tunism by Harrogate ThursdayChapter’s IT specialist Joel Smith.

Joel, whose company Dales IT Ltd inPateley Bridge is at the forefront of helpingrural communities to obtain broadband inter-net services, was aware that the NationalBroadband Conference was due to take placein London – despite the fact that no confer-ence organiser had been appointed. Joelturned the business opportunity into a

referral for his chapter col-league Andrew Macdonald,Business DevelopmentManager for Harrogate-based events organisation, -www.conference-events.biz- who quickly gained thecontract to stage the event.

Since receiving the initialreferral, Andrew’s companyhas gone on to win the con-tract to manage all of ABC’snational conferences andother events, and he said:“Having won such a substantial piece of busi-ness through networking has highlighted the

benefits that BNI can offer any company.”Happily, Joel’s original referral has turned

full circle as Andrew explained:“All of this newwork has generated additional referrals andeven more customers for Dales IT, enabling Joelto provide Broadband for more local business-es who will immediately benefit from it.”

As a further direct result of their work forABC, conference-events.biz has been able topass additional referrals to other Chaptermembers who are now providing services suchas print and signage for ABC’s national events.

The Access to Broadband Campaign is anational campaign group formed to promoteaffordable broadband access and more detailscan be found at www.abcampaign.org.uk

Grant information can be obtained fromBusiness Link North Yorkshire or through Joel.

Contact Andrew Macdonald on 01423810 297. Joel Smith can be reached atwww.dalesit.com or on 01423 712 591.

More than 20 of BNI’s most intrepid Irishmembers recently found themselves having tofillet raw fish, peel potatoes and wade barefoot

through fountains – but all in a good cause!The members of Cork’s Treaty Chapter

were among scores of Limerick businesseswho turned out in their droves a few weeksago to support a restaurant charity treasurehunt organised by their chapter colleague BridFox of Cater Care Limited.

Surprised to discover that they would notonly have to travel throughout Limerick, butalso around Clare and Tipperary, they wereeven more perplexed to learn that they need-ed to perform a variety of unusual tasks ateach stop in order to earn the next clue!

Bríd said: “Everyone enjoyed themselvesand we raised €5,500 for ‘People in Need’.

Contact Brid on +353 (0)61 469 008.

A real treat as Cork members fillet raw fish!

Jude – the not so obscure!

Jude Thompson, Chapter Directorat Kidderminster, may share his firstname with the ‘obscure’ central char-acter of Thomas Hardy’s famous novel,but that’s as far as any likeness goes.

For the one certain thing you can sayabout Kidderminster’s Jude is that he doesnot keep himself hidden: in fact, his photo-graph has been appearing in West Midlandsnewspapers on a regular basis, because of hisbusiness links with newly-promoted PremierLeague football team,West Bromwich Albion.

As Managing Director of Stourbridge-based CSCM Ltd, whose computer supportdivision pioneered Albion’s ground-breaking

‘Stilecard’ security access system for support-ers, Jude and his team have been regularlymaking the headlines – thanks to his imme-diate predecessor in the chapter director’schair, PR expert Louise Jew who generated allthe publicity, and to another BNI colleague,photographer Carl Bridgewater, whose pic-tures were snapped up by the media!

Over the past five years, Jude’s companyhas developed a highly successful workingrelationship with the football club. It alsoruns the busy CSCM Learning Centre-basedalongside Albion’s ground) which offers‘Learn-Direct’ courses to local youngsters,ranging from IT to business and manage-

ment skills and care industry qualifications.You can contact Jude on 01384 866

866 and Louise on 01384 872776.

A PREMIER SUCCESS! Jude Thompson (right) with Phil Everittchecks the new security system at West Bromwich Albion FC.

READY FOR FUN: Treasure hunt organiser Bríd Fox (left) with hercolleagues, Aoife McMahon, Ellen McEniry and Chevy Johnston.

EVERYONE WINS: Joel Smith (left) and Andrew Macdonald outside their Chapter venue –scene of some lucrative referrals that will help more small and medium sized businesses inthe Yorkshire region gain broadband internet access.


THAT WAS THE WEEK TH

Once in a lifetime voyage of luxury on QMBy Malcolm Grosvenor, SuccessNet Editor - (who felt obliged to be a paying gue

It simply could not have been any better! That was the consensus among BNI’s luckydraw winners from the recent chapter development drive, after soaking up one of themost luxurious and pampered weeks of their lives – aboard Queen Mary 2, the world’snewest, largest and most sumptuous liner.

We’d just eaten, drunk, danced, playedand generally cavorted our way 3,500miles across ‘the pond’, easily adjusting tothe unfamiliar surroundings of the trulyrich and famous and, for an all-too-briefsix days and nights, forgetting completelythat a ‘real’ world was still out there,beyond our temporary fantasy cocoonedwithin 150,000 tons of pure pleasure.

Being a sceptical soul, it hadn’t felt like that aweek earlier when, bracing myself for the poten-tially dubious pleasures of a gale-ridden AtlanticOcean, sickly fellow travellers and long days andnights spent watching a stormy horizon disap-pearing behind 30 feet waves, I joined BNI’s merryteam of 11 (mainly) first-time cruisers and part-ners for champagne cocktails on one of QM2’sendless aft decks as we slipped silently downSouthampton Water on a sunny May evening.

The lull before the storm? After all, this wasonly her second ever Transatlantic voyage to theBig Apple, and already tales were legend aboutthe ship’s stormy maiden crossing to New Yorkjust a fortnight earlier. Any repetition would soonwipe those self-satisfied smirks from our faces….

Into the English Channel and, as we donnedformal attire for the first of several evenings ofspectacularly lavish wining, dining and entertain-ment, still the seas gave forth barely a ripple.

Gosh, were we sup-posed to sleep likeangels throughoutour first night atsea? Sunday cameand went, a movingfeast of deluxe

meals, endless social activities and, for the few sillyfolk in our party, a bit of serious exercise in theQM2’s health spa or gymnasium. Tut, tut. Then itwas time to stroll along to the Winter Gardens forone of the week’s few formal events: the BNI win-ners’ reception hosted by national directorsMartin and Gillian Lawson.

Don’t BNI-ers ever stop networking? Perhapsit was the copious flow of bubbly, maybe just thesheer intoxication of our surroundings, but sssh,whisper it quietly, yours truly knows that seriousbusiness was being conducted amongst ournumber, long after the brief formalities were over.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday….why was itthat the days of the week had ceased to matter?Well, having the choice of an incredible array ofround-the-clock activities, from golfing to ball-room lessons, sports competitions to pub quizzes,might be one reason. Not your style? Then howabout celebrity lectures (did I mention all of thewell-known faces on board?), jazz, pop and classi-cal concerts, variety shows, cabaret, spectacularformal Balls, countless restaurants offering all theworld’s cuisine, endless bars and cocktail lounges,library, art gallery, casino, the biggest health spaon the high seas and, oh yes, and Commodore

DO I LOOK SMUG IN THIS, OR WHAT? A member of BNI’s party can’t hide the sheer indulgenceof basking in a hot tub on one of the ship’s many aft decks - with panoramic Atlantic views!

AREN’T WE THE LUCKY ONES!? Our Chapter Development Drive winners have plenty of reasonsto feel pleased with themselves, as they gathered for the formal BNI Reception.

“ ”The cruise itself was one hellof a prize - with a whole lot ofwow factor, but the extrabusiness I have received bytaking part in the competi-tion has been the real reward.

- David Vizard, EnterpriseChapter, Watford.

“ ”The ship was huge and itsfacilities were incredible.Having experienced just howfantastic the prize is, I shouldwarn everyone that I definite-ly intend to be in the reckon-ing again next year.

- Lesley Woolhouse,Coventry Chapter “ ”

There were so many magical momentsincluding the unforgettable arrival into NewYork harbour.... In BNI, networking neverceases, even on holiday, and it was excitingto exchange business cards with a fellowlawyer on the way to JFK airport, who canhelp me achieve a good result for a client.

- James Bell, Eardwulf Chapter, Carlisle.

PURE LUXURY? You’d better believe it. TheBritannia Restaurant - just one of many on board.


HAT WAS!

DWARFING NEW YORK’S HARBOUR: The QM2 offers winning BNI members a spectacular viewof the Empire State Building.

PLEASE PUBLISH THIS PHOTO! That was the plea from Karen Wright of St. Georges Chapter,Whitstable, pictured left with QM2 Commodore Ronald Warwick and colleague Michelle Cole.

M2 for BNI’s lucky winnersest to report on the extent of members’ ‘suffering’….)

Ronald Warwick’s ‘at home’ where, if you werelucky (and pretty) enough, you might be pho-tographed with Cunard’s Master Mariner. Andeverything rounded off by wonderful, old-fashioned English service.

The whiskered old sea dog had obviouslybeen requested to chart a ripple-free coursefor his BNI cruise virgins because, on Day 4 -or was it Day 5? - his midday message, deliv-ered in the laconic tones of one who hadbeen obliged to do it several thousand timesbefore, was to advise us that in all his years ofplying the northern Atlantic, he’d neverknown a more tranquil crossing.

And he was right. The sheer unadulterat-ed opulence one feels when sitting in one of

QM2’s many frothing hot tubs high on adeserted deck, sipping something suitablychilled and alcoholic served by constantlyattentive waiters, whilst gazing out over hun-dreds of miles of deep blue duck pond andlight blue skies, is simply indescribable. But,“out-of-this-world” would come close to it.

The single ‘problem’ with a mere week’scruise on this vast ship is that no matter howhard one tries, it is physically impossible totake in all of its attractions. And yes, they areattractions. You want to cram them all in, butyou can’t. So, like the child who knows he’sabout to forfeit his favourite toy, you becomepossessive, hurrying about all of the ship’s 13never-ending decks, briefly stopping off hereand there, to get a taste of everything onoffer. Silly really, but then who knows whenwe’ll all get another chance of a lifetime?

Settling down in our premium balconycabins on the final night, before the super-liner’s scheduled dawn rendezvous with theNorth American coastline, what was thisstrange feeling. Sorrow? Regret? Surely not.But yes, like all of my BNI colleagues we’d fall-en in love, with a beautiful lady of the seas,and with the deliciously decadent lifestyleshe’d given us, albeit all too briefly.

By a strange quirk of irony, just an houroff the landmark Verrazano Narrows Bridgewhich heralds the outer limits of New YorkHarbour, the heavens opened and we wereawakened to a vociferous coastal thunder-storm. Easing under the bridge, up theHudson River and past the Statue of Liberty,Manhattan’s skyscrapers glowed eerily, illu-minated by repeated lightening strikes. Yet,barely an hour later, as we disembarked atPier 92, New York smiled and greeted us with

bright Spring sunshine and temperaturesthat soon soared to 80 degrees. A fitting endto a fantastic week!

If cruising is an acquired taste, then thereare at least two dozen new BNI addicts whowill be trying even harder to win a repeat tripfrom the next chapter building drive. And, tothe scores of you unfortunate qualifierswhose names did not come out of the hatthis time, I can only say: you missed a trulyincredible experience!!

“ ”We particularly enjoyed being waitedon hand and foot. The service waswonderful. Nothing was too muchtrouble and the crew were superb.Having time to relax and take advan-tage of everything the QM2 had tooffer was the real luxury - fabulous!

- Valerie Gunning, Wells (WestMendip) Chapter

ALL QUIET ON THE ATLANTIC FRONT: This was the sereneocean - enjoyed by BNI’s winners all the way to New York!

“ ”Getting dressed up for the evening’sendless entertainments - especially thetheatre productions - was wonderful,and we especially enjoyed relaxing inthe Spa and jacuzzis on the open deck!I am inspired to win the similar cruiseprize next year - although I know thecompetition will be tough.

- Jeremy Taylor, Worthing Chapter.

“ ”From the moment we boarded atSouthampton, we were made to feelspecial, and the ship was totally luxuri-ous. We were fairly awestruck for thefirst couple of days, by its size and theamazing service we all received. I’ll def-initely be going for the prize next year.

- Colin Sadler, Falcons Chapter,Newcastle upon Tyne.



Cheshire mortgage broker DavidRandall has a lot of reasons to feelpleased with his progress this year.

Not only is his own business doing rathernicely, thanks to BNI, but he’s also just launchedhis first chapter as an Assistant Director – andwon gold, silver and bronze medals as one ofthe UK’s best long-distance swimmers!

“I guess you could say it’s been a good firsthalf of the year,” said David.“My own company,DJ Financial Solutions has benefited from BNIfrom the moment I joined the Brooklands/SaleChapter four years ago, and even though I’vejust moved to my local Hale Eagles Chapter, Ireckon we’ll still earn commissions wortharound £50,000 from business that comesthrough BNI referrals. That represents mort-

gages worth £4 million a year, so you can seewhy I’m enthusiastic about BNI.”

So keen in fact that David recently becamean assistant director for South Manchester andsaw his first chapter, Bowdon Falcons,launched last month. “BNI is so popular thatwe’re already building our fourth chapter inthe area. I don’t subscribe to the view that youcan’t have several BNI groups in close proximi-ty. There is plenty of business to go round.”

David’s personal sporting triumph came inthe Spring when he took part in the GreatBritain Long Course Championships and sur-prised himself by winning Gold in the 1500metres, a silver in the 800 and a bronze in the400 metre events.

Contact David on 07767 833 951

It took just a fortnight for two of ournewest members to find the mutual ben-efits that only BNI can provide.

Graphic designer and artist Duncan Redpathmet professional magician David Faulks whenboth were invited to join the new SwadlincoteChapter in Derbyshire, and just two weeks laterDuncan had conjured up a superb caricature forDavid to use in all his promotional literature.

Now David is so delighted with the resultthat he has spread the word around fellowMagic Circle members that they should seek outDuncan’s artistic talents for their own marketingneeds.“With his talent for design, he deserves toget lots of referrals, and I hope I can help by pro-moting his skills to fellow magicians,” said David.

Both David and Duncan have already report-ed significant benefits from BNI membership .

Contact Duncan on 01283 536 169 andDavid on 01283 219 580.

Everyone in BNI talks about the realbenefits of Giver’s Gain but, in practice,how far are we prepared to go, to ‘give’freely of our time and expertise to some-one else, without knowing what (if any)the returns will be?

The answer, in the case of WinchesterChapter members Emma Pirie (Education Co-ordinator) and Lynne Wardale (Membership Co-ordinator) is a classic lesson in BNI’s philosophy.

Emma runs ‘the wedding you want’ consul-tancy and, earlier this year she took a stand at alarge wedding exhibition. Enter Lynne, whose‘Tall Hats Catering’ business had alreadyworked on many weddings arranged by Emma.“As soon as I heard Emma would be spendingthe weekend on an exhibition stand, I offered tohelp out,” said Lynne. But how does giving upher time for Emma, help Lynne’s business?

Emma said:“Firstly, the more Lynne ‘gives’ tohelp me win clients, the more business I’mgoing to be able to give her. And, giving up herweekend to work on my stand, reinforced myopinion that Lynne is an excellent supplier, soI’m looking to give her even more businessthan just the leads generated from the show!”

Emma reckons she has been able to referaround £30,000 worth of catering business toLynne, “For me, a far more valuable BNI benefithas been the new contacts I have made and theextra networking I have been able to do.”

Many BNI members know only too wellthat it can be difficult explaining their busi-ness to other people – even colleagues.

That’s how it was for Norwich CityChapter’s Toby Wise, until he decided toinvite the entire 40-strong group down to hismulti-media equipment company, SnellingBusiness Systems, to let them see his busi-

ness in operation, and ‘play’ with some of thelatest audio visual technology.

“I joined BNI last year and it has beenvery good for us, bringing in £40,000 worthof business, but I found it difficult explainingwhat we do to my colleagues – especially in60 seconds – so I thought the best way wouldbe to let them see us at work,”Toby said.

Members needed little per-suasion to relocate their break-fast, especially when they heardthat most of the meeting wouldbe spent sitting in deep com-fortable armchairs in Snelling’saudio visual theatre, watchingtheir one-minute infomercialsfilmed and broadcast on huge100-inch plasma screens.

Contact Toby Wiseon 01603 711 111

Norwich’s big screen performances

HAPPY EVENT: Emma (pictured right) with one of her manyhappy wedding couples, for whom Tall Hats did the catering.

Conjuring a winner

David’s BNI progress going swimmingly

Givers gain all the way in Winchester

NOT YOUR TYPICAL BNI BREAKFAST: Members of Norwich’s City Chapter getfirst hand knowledge of colleague Toby Wise’s audio-visual business.

Members and guests attending the launchof the new Fakenham Chapter in Norfolk had abonus ingredient when they found themselvessitting down to breakfast with rock legendAlvin Stardust – there to lend his support to theBNI philosophy.

In fact the Sixties and Seventies superstartook a whole day out of his still busy perform-ing schedule to learn about BNI’s own businesssuccess, not least through the words of hisdaughter, Sophie Jewry, who was the Chapter’sfounding inspiration and is its firstMembership Co-ordinator.

Sophie, who now runs Media8, a growinggraphic design and print business, told

SuccessNet: :Before I’d heard of BNI, I was lack-ing direction as to how to make progress withmy business and it was a bit of a struggle.”

“Then my partner (past Norwich CityChapter Director Dan Kelly) introduced me toBNI, and from the moment I attended the firstmeeting I thought it was fantastic. Initially Itried to join the Kings Lynn Chapter but myposition was taken, so I decided to form a newgroup in Fakenham. Without Dan’s help andthe other core members, I couldn’t have doneit, but we had 19 members by launch day and,after only a few weeks, we’re delighted withour progress.”

Sophie’s family – Dad Alvin, her mother(actress Lisa Goddard)and her step fatherDavid – also played keyroles in her businessregeneration “Theyhave been very sup-portive, which is why I’dhoped they could all bethere to share theexcitement of ourchapter launch, butMum and my step dadwere stuck in France.

“Even so, I was veryhappy that Dad took

such an interest. The launch gave me the per-fect opportunity to show him how I haveturned my life around. By coming to thelaunch, I knew he would get a far better idea ofhow much I’ve moved on. I think he was pleas-antly surprised,” Sophie added.

In fact Alvin was very impressed, both byhis daughter’s achievements, and BNI’s consol-idation as the UK’s most successful businessnetworking organisation. He told members: “Ihave always believed that the best way toapproach any business deal is to be involvedwith people you know and trust. BNI is built onthe same concept and I wish all members ofthe new Fakenham Chapter every success.”

Ccontact Sophie on : 01485 529 129



BNI is perfect therapy for Jason

Alvin is the real thing at Fakenham

Take your chosen vocation, developan outstanding business idea from it,and then join BNI. It’s a sure formula forsuccess, according to Jason Parlour,whose Therapy Agency is now making abig name for itself with a little help fromhis Reading Chapter colleagues.

Jason had long believed that complemen-tary therapies were widely under-utilised inpromoting wellbeing, and he recognised thedivide between such therapists and businessclients. To fill the gap, he developed a freshapproach to bring together providers andusers through his new The Therapy Agency.

“One of the biggest problems faced by solotherapists was promoting their services, whilemany would-be clients did not know how tofind local practitioners they could trust,” hesaid. “What we needed was a central, high-quality database of carefully chosen practition-ers to bring supply and demand together.”

The Agency was founded two years agobut it reached a new level when Jason joinedBNI last year, tapping into the expertise ofchapter colleagues, including website designerVimal Patel, marketing expert Mike Abbott andsolicitor Bill Montague who all helped develophis business into a thriving national consultancy.“Without BNI, we would have taken a lot longerto reach this stage,” added Jason.(pictured left)

Contact Jason on 0845 458 1977

A NEW STAR IS BORN: Fakenham Chapter’s founder and Membership Co-ordinator Sophie Jewryat the group’s launch, with Dad (rock star Alvin Stardust) and Chapter Director Richard Hewitt.

Name change honours director

Members of West Swindon Chapterare mourning the untimely death oftheir first and inspirational ChapterDirector Tony Read.

Now, as a tribute to Tony, who was killed in amotor cycle accident, his colleagues haveagreed with BNI’s Executive Director Paul Clegg,that their group, based in Wootton Bassettshould be re-named the Read Chapter.

Paul said:“News of his death came as a terri-ble shock to us all. Only days earlier he hadpresided over a very successful visitor day andwas talking enthusiastically about his plans forthe Chapter’s development. Tony was one ofthose people you could not help but like, andwho left you feeling the better for having methim. . Everyone in the Chapter respected andappreciated him for his commitment and gen-erosity. He was a kind and considerate man.

“It would have been necessary to re-namethe West Swindon Chapter as part of BNI’s moveaway from geographical titles, so it was fittingthat members should want to honour Tony (pic-tured below) by naming the group after him.”


E d u c a t i o n & T r a i n i n g

Maximising the value of every net-working meeting and event, meansfirst identifying and evaluating our‘prospects’ (people whom we think wecan do business with) and thenremoving the barriers between our-selves and them.

There are two main obstacles preventingus from reaching prospects - physical barri-ers and psychological barriers.These must beovercome if prospects are to see us as solu-tion providers rather than sales people. Wealso need to overcome these hurdles toensure that we are engaging with realprospects rather than “tyre-kickers”.

Physical barriersProspects have a nasty habit of putting

barriers in place to prevent us reachingthem. They erect these to prevent outsideinterferences from disrupting their lives andmaking unwarranted demands upon theirtime. And they are right to do so.

Normally we generate a huge amount ofactivity in trying to overcome the resistancecreated by theses barriers, through a varietyof tried and tested – though often ineffective– sales and marketing techniques, includingsales calls, phone calls, letters and advertis-ing. Many of us are familiar with the morecommonly used term “the numbers game”. Ifall this sounds familiar, there is a better way:networking.

NetworkingYou can overcome all physical obstruc-

tion - and speak directly to prospects - sim-ply by inviting them to a networking event,

which might be a visitors’ day, a businessconference or expo, or indeed just lunch witha few others. Whatever their size, networkingevents place your prospects right there inthe same room as you. So, by organising andparticipating in networking events, you liter-ally transcend the barriers erected by yourprospects. That is why networking works.

Psychological barriersNow, even though you are confident that

there are ‘prospects’ in the same room, youdon’t know if they are in the market for yourservices. How can you find out? And, evenwhen you do ffind out, how can you givethem the instant confidence to accept thatyou are the solution provider they are look-ing for? How can they possibly be sure?

These two great barriers can be over-come by a single action: the introduction of acommon intermediary or, what we in BNI calla referrer - someone who believes in you, andbelieves that you honour your promises,

delivering the required solu-tions. In short, the referrercan give the prospect con-fidence in you.

That same referrer,without pressure ormanipulation, can discoverif prospects in the roomare in the market to dobusiness and whetherthey are open to meetingwith you, through BNI’ssimple but highly effectivenetworking process.

‘Givers Gain’ approachThe key to securing appointments is to

use the Givers Gain approach. At the end ofthe event, when the dynamics and energylevels are high, ask guests: “Who is the oneperson in the room you would most like tomeet?”- and arrange the resulting connec-tions right there.

Time after time we have seen appoint-ments secured and business flowing fromthis simple, practical approach. So, to thosewho, like the member that recently told methis method was ‘pushy’ and felt we wereasking too much of our guests, I’d remindyou of the alternative - leaving networkingevents with names, but no appointments.

In such cases, all people are doing is col-lecting business cards, perhaps followed-upwith a phone call. Having gone cold by now,the prospect will say ‘Call me back later. I ambusy just now’. When you phone again s/hewill say ‘I will call you back as soon as possi-ble’. Doesn’t this sound all too familiar?

Compare this to the infinitely better sce-nario of leaving with appointments,arranged by our mutually respected inter-mediary – the referrer. He or she enquires ofa prospect whether they would be “open tomeeting with you during the coming week”.The referrer will only do this if he/she feels itis in the prospect’s interest to meet with you.

Networking works because the barriersto reaching prospects are overcome. Yourprospects are right there in the room withyou. Your referrer is also there working onyour and the prospect’s behalf. And, by usingGivers Gain, you get appointments notjust names.

Ask yourself: Is your networking workingfor you? If it isn’t, you know what to do.

Why Networking Works

FOLLOW THE BNI SYSTEM: So says Executive Director MortMurphy, who has some practical advice on better networking.

As every seasoned BNI memberknows, networking works. That iswhy BNI has grown so dramaticallyover the past 20 years – and whythousands of UK and Irish business-es have grown as a direct result ofmembership. But why does this net-working work so well – and how canwe maximise the business potentialfrom every networking opportunitywe get. Mort Murphy, BNI’s ExecutiveDirector for Ireland South and WestRegion, explains.

(And why you should leave networking events with appointments not names)

“It depends….”So, would you kiss on a first date? Well it

depends! Some of you may have met yourpartners when your eyes met across a crowd-ed room. It’s a common way for people tomeet but, to stay married to them for thenext 35 years is all in the follow up work! Weall know that this is the number one charac-teristic of a master networker! In a businesscontext, how fast you get a return on invest-ment depends on many complex thingswhich are personal to us all as individuals.

Get rich quick?We hear consistently that our member-

ship is not a get rich quick scheme? But canit be? Yes. Is it always? No! Business rela-tionships are just relationships and they workin the same way as all other relationships.Some develop faster than others! Any rela-tionship I have ever damaged or destroyedwas the result of something I did or didn’t do.

Remember that everyone you meet hasthree invisible words written on their fore-heads – Handle with Care. A clear under-standing of some facts may help:

• Know what type of person you are.• Know what type of person you are with.• Understand that people move at

different speeds.

TimeTime affects our relationships and it’s not

only your perception of time that counts. It isthe other person’s too. It will take us longerto trust some people, dependent upon ourprevious experience, the profession and thequality of the education we receive. And, allthe time in the world will become irrelevantif there is one ingredient missing: trust.

TrustTrust can build quickly. I asked Roger

Hughes, the Chairman of Imperial Business

Interiors (a member of Bristol’s ComptonChapter) how he gets potential clients totrust him early in the relationship. Hisresponse was simple. “I ask the person totrust me!” He went on to explain that thereare three types of people he encounters dur-ing an office refurbishment or new designproject – a high value business in which theaverage project costs around £150,000.

“Some 25% of clients know what budgetthey have and tell me, a further 25% have noidea, and the other half know what budgetthey have, but won’t tell me. This makes mylife and theirs complicated! Early on in theprocess I ask for the person’s trust. If I havebeen recommended by someone they trustthis is easier; if this is not the case, I have torely on my own credibility of 30 years experi-ence, a track record of great projects, I amnice, up front and honest.”

We can use our own system of measure-ment to decide if we trust someone. Howsomeone conducts themselves, how muchtheir product or service costs, their profes-sionalism and whether or not we like themcan all contribute to our ability or desire torecommend them.

The mind works in mysterious ways, wehave to like them too. How many times haveyou heard the name of a new baby and

instantly disliked it because you once metsomeone horrible with that name?! We mustkeep ourselves in check that the decisions wemake are rational.

ExpectationIn the same way that our definitions of

time and trust vary, we also have differentexpectations too. Look at how not sharingexpectations can contribute to the success orfailure of a relationship. What if I was expect-ing a kiss on the first date and it didn’t hap-pen? Conversely what if I absolutely did notfeel that this was appropriate? Either way Icould have just missed out on a life longhappy marriage.

Complex but Simple!I believe that the most enjoyable and

most cost effective way of growing our busi-nesses is to do so by word of mouth market-ing, inside and outside of BNI. Just like allrelationships, although complex it can bereally simple!

With a better understanding of how time,trust and expectation can impact on our rela-tionships in business there will be no need totry new techniques at every turn. We have achoice, we can just keep doing the simplethings which, done consistently over a periodof time, will result in making more moneywith our values intact - or we can make itmore complicated!

Contact Sarah on 08700 150 4661 oremail her at: [email protected]


E d u c a t i o n & T r a i n i n g

Do you kiss on the first date?!

Business relations are exactly like any other – personal, friendship or family. Sosays Sarah Owen, Regional Director for Avon and Monmouth, BNI’s fastest growingregion in the UK with the highest average chapter size over the past year. Here sheexplains why a member’s success within BNI depends largely on how effectively heor she develops strong, personal relationships with other members of the group.Concentrating both on quantity and quality of members will, she says, result in bothquality and quantity referrals.

SARAH OWEN: Developing sound business relationships isno different to building strong personal relationships.

CATCH THEM YOUNG: Sarah’s five year old son Nicholas getsan early introduction to the BNI principles of networking.

I have been a member of the Norwich City Chapter for four yearsand, while we have always been a strong group in terms of the quali-ty and quantity of referrals passed amongst our members, I always feltit would be a good idea to introduce a way of recognising the effortsof those who have worked particularly hard to gain a referral or go out

of their way to help another member within the chapter!The opportunity to do something about this came during my

recent term as Chapter Director – and it arose from something thathad evolved over a period of many months. During my time in theChapter, I had started to sign off my 60-second and 10-minute pre-sentations with a strap line for my business, saying… “So for signs andprint, who’s the man?” - and the whole chapter would, embarrassingly,with one accord would shout back;“Dan’s the man!”

From this, came an idea for creating the weekly DAN Award whichhas seen individual members modestly rewarded for their extraefforts by Chapter colleagues.

During my six months in office, I encouraged all Chapter membersto nominate weekly those people who they felt were deserving ofrecognition for a particularly good referral or service, and then theindividual with the most nominations would receive – to greatapplause - the Dynamic Active Networker Award, an Oscar-style stat-ue which, over the months, came to mean something quite special.

I am a great believer in encouragement, recognition and givingthanks for things well done, so it has been a real privilege to be able topresent the weekly DAN Award to members of the Norwich CityChapter, and I am delighted that my successor Ian Fitch is continuingthe theme with the IAN Award.

Dan Kelly can be contacted on 01603 893 497.


I n t h e D i r e c t o r ’ s C h a i r

By Danny Davey,Chapter Director, IpswichCobbold Chapter

What makes a goodChapter? The great British break-fast? A venue on the river? Maybe ahappy-go- lucky Leadership Team?

I would liken the creation of a good,strong chapter to building a jigsaw, whereit is important to first get all the edgepieces in place, because this gives us agood base from which to complete all thedetails. Your Leadership Team must notbe weak or “have bits missing”.

Next, it is important to check that allthe pieces are there, and that they are aproper part of the puzzle. If members areregularly absent or do not fit the positiveattitude of your chapter, it may well bethat the you are better off without them.

A small but strong and motivatedchapter is worth ten large weak ones.Remember that each piece of a jigsaw willonly fit in one particular spot and it maybe helpful to obtain some help in sorting

out the pieces. InvolveALL your members bygiving them a role tohelp run thingssmoothly, from beingresponsible for sta-tionery to takingmoney on the door.This will keep every-one actively involvedand at the same timehelp raise members’profiles within thegroup. In turn, this will generate greaterconfidence for them and eventually resultin more referrals.

A jigsaw needs to be built on a suit-able surface. In the case of a BNI chapterthis means being based in the rightvenue, which should present a profes-sional appearance, be easily accessible,and have plenty of space for parking. Anddo not over-concentrate on the breakfastelement. For example, during the 60-sec-ond presentations, it is not a priority to beworried about finding the salt, or gettingyourself another cup of coffee, but rather

to concentrate on each speaker.Sometimes it is difficult to see the

right piece of the jigsaw, no matter howhard you look, which is why it is beneficialfor all your members to attend several BNIworkshops. Not only does this help youto see more clearly, it also shows how themissing “pieces” can affect your chapter’soverall performance.

Rest assured, once all the pieces fittogether properly, the whole wonderfulpicture WILL emerge.

Danny Davey can be contacted on01473 255 970 or 07939 877 384.

Building a great and successful chapter

Recognising – and rewarding - extra effort

PIECES OF THE JIGSAW: Members of Ipswich Cobbold Chapter are all crucial elements that makeup a whole vibrant networking group, says Chapter Director Danny Davey (kneeling, right)

HIGHLY MOTIVATED: Norwich City member Michael Lockwood (left) receives the Chapter’s coveted DAN Trophy from its creator, past Chapter Director Danny Kelly.

By Danny Kelly, Immediate Past Chapter Director of Norwich City


G i v e r ’ s G a i n i n A c t i o n

Birmingham’s Great Barr ChapterTreasurer Charlie Robinson hasembarked on the toughest challenge ofher life, after pledging to raise £1 MIL-LION within two years, to provide a con-ductive education centre in the regionfor children with cerebral palsy andother genetic disorders.

She has been made a “fixer” for RainbowHouse, a national charity whose aim is to vastlyimprove the quality of life for youngsters dam-aged by genetic disorders, and their families.Charlie, a former leisure centre marketing boss,was sought out by the Lancashire-based chari-ty after it heard of her networking skills and,barely four months into her new ‘role’ she hashad to abandon her own thriving health andnutrition business to concentrate full time onfund-raising.

Naturally, she wasted no time in persuadingBNI colleagues across the West Midlands tohelp in her bid, and happily members haveresponded with huge enthusiasm and gen-erosity.

“I’d hoped that the spirit of giver’s gainwould prevail but a true example of the powerof BNI is that in addition to substantial supportfrom my own chapter colleagues, I have hadmany offers of help from members in the

Bournville, Cannock, Stone, Lichfield,Tamworth,Birmingham Victoria and St. Philips Chapters,”she said.

“I’ve been amazed by their willingness toget involved, despite having such busy lives. Mychapter’s car leasing specialist ran a big promo-tion at the NEC raising cash for the charity, ourgarden designer and personal trainer are bothoffering free services in return for donations,and our web designer, telecoms and cleaningsupplies companies, have all pledged a per-centage of their new business profits or dona-tions for every new order.”

Charlie added:“After receiving a phone callasking for my help, I visited the existingRainbow House centre in Chorley and wastotally amazed by what this charity does.WhenI watched a child take his first step at the age offive and saw the delight on his face, I knew Ihad to get involved. Driving back toBirmingham, I wasn’t sure whether my offerwas brave or just stupid, but one thing is cer-tain: without being a member of such a fantas-tic networking organisation I would never haveeven considered taking on the challenge.”

If you can help Charlie’s bold fund-rais-ing effort, call her on 07939 279129 or01543 682070, or email her at:[email protected]

Members of the Nexus Chapterwhich meets at Eaglesham just south ofGlasgow, have come up with a novel ideato boost fund raising for their nominat-ed charity, Cancer Research.

While many chapters chart their members’external one-to-one meetings with the help ofthe ‘dance card’, Nexus tracks its ‘one-on-one’meetings with a simple, enlarged Excel spreadsheet, providing a very visible indication of thelevel of ‘dance’ activity. The chart is easy toupdate and tracks home and away one-on-one’s, allowing both arranged and completeddances to be recorded. The number of newdances that take place are reported every week.

Now, to help their charity and in the truespirit of giver’s gain, Nexus is offering a copy ofits Dance Chart to all other chapters in the UK,in return for a charitable donation of £9.99.

Chapter Director, Charlie Gallagher said:“We hope that by offering the ready-madechart in return for a nominal donation, otherchapters will be encouraged to help them-selves and boost our charity fund raising. Thereis a direct correlation between referrals and thelevel of one-on-one activity, and our chartenables us to easily monitor this.“

Copies of the chart in Excel file format canbe obtained by calling Doris Robertson on01355 230099, or sending an e-mail [email protected]. Cheques for£9.99 should be made out to Nexus and sent toDoris Robertson, Concept Consulting, WalterScott House, East Kilbride, Glasgow, G74 4AA.

Members of Loughton’s Spirit in BusinessChapter, Essex, are certainly living up to theirname, by supporting a £1million charity appealto provide new premises for pre-school chil-dren with special needs and their families.

It began when Chapter member GrahamPlayle from Creative Business Services wasasked by colleague, charity fundraiser ChristineBaker, to create a special design for the First

Step charity appeal which now appears onposters, folders, leaflets and stationery.

Now, thanks to his work, the unusualdesign features on key rings - in the form of atoken - which are used to lock and unlocksupermarket trolleys and lockers in the area.Meanwhile, his chapter colleagues are busyselling key rings that also sport the charity’sdistinctive logo, and Essex members will find

these being sold in retailand service businessesaround the county.

First Step, based inthe London Borough ofHavering, works with spe-cial needs youngsters andhas found larger premis-es, which means raising£1million to re-fit thebuilding. “It is a fantasticcharity and we are allpleased to support it inthis way” said Graham.

Midlands members are Charlie’s ‘Angels’

Loughton’s keys to business spirit!

THE KEYS TO SUCCESS: Loughton Chapter members with the keys they are selling to help raisefunds for the First Step Charity Appeal in Havering.

BRAVE, OR FOOLISH? Great Barr Chapter Treasurer CharlieRobinson isn’t sure, after pledging to raise £1 million for charity.

Nexus ‘Dance Chart’is No. 1 for charity


T h e L a s t W o r d

SuccessNet is published quarterly and distributedfree of charge by BNI to all members. We are delightedthat with each successive edition, we receive more andmore of your emails, letters and calls, asking us to includeyour news or picture item in the newsletter.

However, the advent of electronic mail is causing usa real headache, because more than half the emails wereceive don’t contain any contact details, other than thesender’s email address. Since not everyone checks theiremail accounts frequently, this leads to considerabledelays and extra work in following up your submissions.

If you want your item to be considered for inclusionin SuccessNet, make sure you include your phone num-bers (office and mobile) and your address! But note that,faced with up to 200 editorial contributions per issue, wecannot squeeze all of them into our 16-page publication.Some stories may be held over for a later edition, but itmeans some of your contributions may never see thelight of day. Please don’t be deterred from sending in yournews and views because we DO want to hear from you.

Executive Editor: Gillian Lawson, BNI National Director

Editor: Malcolm Grosvenor, WriteAngle Communications,New House, Palmer Crescent, Kingston Upon Thames,KT1 2QT. Tel: 020 8541 0600. Fax: 020 8546 1611.Email: [email protected]

Artwork and Production: Damon Segal, Action GraphicInternational. Tel: 020 8385 5050. Email: [email protected]

Printed by: Tony Batkin, Alpine Press. Tel: 01923 269777.Copyright © BNI 2004. All rights reserved.

You & SuccessNet

Is there any less likely pair to havedone business with members ofStaffordshire’s newly formed PagetChapter than the chart-topping duo,The Cheeky Girls?

The Transylvanian pop twins became thesubject of a referral passed by Linda Jones ofPR firm Passionate Media to her namesakeLinda Hill from venue and events managementexperts Meriden Associates at the first meetingof the recently launched group, which meets atPenkridge’s Chase Golf Club in Staffordshire.

Linda Jones explained: “One of our clientsholds an annual event and this year it is beingheld locally with the Cheeky Girls taking part. Iknew they would want to spend the night in

the comfort to whichthey have grownaccustomed so Iasked Meriden,who had alreadygiven the charityinvaluable adviceon staging theevent, to find suit-ably prestigiousa c co m m o d a t i o nfor them.”

Linda Hill com-mented: “It wasgreat to get such a bizarre referral but we hadto make our colleagues promise not to breakinto a chorus of ‘Touch My Bum’ (The Cheeky

Girls top-ten hit) when we entered the room.”Meanwhile, the entire chapter has reason

to feel rather special, having taken its namefrom royal inspiration! In Tudor times,16th century nobleman Sir WilliamPaget was sent by King Henry VIII, tomine the area’s mineral resources, andhe acquired Cannock Chase at theChurch’s expense. Assistant DirectorTracy Pound said: “We wanted a namethat would reflect our rich heritage. SirWilliam was a pioneer who maximisedthe use of the Chase, and we are doingthe same by passing business to thearea’s modern day entrepreneurs.”

When it was suggested that membersof Forest Chapter switch from their usualmeeting venue at Nottingham Forest’sfootball ground to the middle of the city’smain shopping mall, more than a few eye-brows were raised – not least by cateringstaff who couldn’t imagine dozens of busi-ness people sitting down to breakfast in ashopping precinct at 7am!

The fact that the venue switch was totake place on All Fools Day did not help to

convince sceptics either – but in the event,the Chapter’s transfer to the BroadmarshShopping Centre proved a huge success.

The one-off shift was agreed so that theChapter could support several of its memberswho were participating in a wedding exhibi-tion. Retiring Chapter Director Carl Oaklandsaid:“Even with only half an hour to go beforeour meeting started, the catering staff still did-n’t believe that 40 of us wanted breakfast inthe middle of the shopping precinct. WE CAN’T GO ON MEETING LIKE THIS!: Or can we? Members of

Nottingham Forest Chapter at their ‘new’ shopping mall venue.

Cheeky referral greets launch of BNI’s most ‘noble’ chapter

No April Fool as Forest goes shopping!

A ROYAL COMMAND PERFORMANCE: Members of the newly launched Paget Chapter in Penkridge,Staffordshire, decided to dress in period costume, in recognition of their noble connections.

summer 2004 belfast boost from tony's magic€¦ · 2 summer 2004 successnet focus on northern...

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