As a business owner myself and knowing exactly what my friend is going through I told him that there are number of great ways to let local community know who you are and what you do. One way, and perhaps the best option for his type of business is to join a local BNI chapter.
Unlike other membership groups BNI only allows one business identity per chapter. That means that if my friend joins he will be the only one who offers Yoga lessons, he will not have any competitors. BNI also is structured in a very deliberate way, it starts with 20 min. networking, followed by a time where everyone has a chance to say something about their business, and ending with networking time, and you do this every week.
This structure allows you to form partnerships, perhaps pass referral on to others, and for you to receive referrals. My chapter has over 50 people, so that means that every week I remind those 50 people on what I do. So after the meeting, it as if you have 50 sales people working for you. The whole concept is rooted in a notion that “givers gain” that is if you help, you will get helped.
Of course don’t expect that you will get referrals the very day you join. That just does not happen; it can, but highly unlikely. For instance I have been in my chapter for 7 months, and I am just starting to get my first referrals. Also some industries do better then others at BNI. As an example if you are personal financial manager, you will wait for a long time; 2 years before you get a referral. But if you own a flower shop, or a plumber, you will get a referral much quicker. So you have to decide if it is right for you, and one of the best ways of doing that is to visit couple of chapters for free. During your visits you will have a chapter representative explain the details about the chapter, and I encourage anyone who thinks about joining a chapter to ask the members if they like it, and if it has been beneficial for their business.
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