Visitors are important for the growth and survival of BNI chapters. Bringing visitors provides opportunities to generate referrals, even if the visitors don't join. Members should invite people who are looking for more business and live close to the meeting venue. When inviting visitors, members should ask open-ended questions to spark discussion about business needs and availability without overly explaining BNI. Good sources for finding visitors include local advertising contacts, business acquaintances, and people who cold call for sales. The key is to simply invite people to observe a meeting to see the business networking opportunities.

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Visitors

2. We don’t know
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• How many people know someone who wants to
join BNI?
• How many people know someone that wants
more business?
• That is the key to bringing visitors to our Chapter
meeting

3. Why Visitors
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Why Visitors
Visitors are the lifeblood of every BNI Chapter.
Bringing in a visitor is just as good as a referral
– because now that person can become a referral ,even if they never
join
Visitors are the key for our Chapter’s survival and for the
growth of our business through BNI.
And – even visitors that do not become members provide us with one-time shot at
referring business to us from their contacts and they themselves can become
someone’s best new client.

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Eligibility

6. 1 People looking for more business – not just a lead or a job
People who live or work within 30 minutes of your Chapter venue
People whose category is not already taken
People who are not already a BNI member – although
companies with members in other chapters are fine
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Remember …
You are inviting them to a meeting…you are not trying to get them to join!
It is about ‘who wants more business’ not about ‘who wants to join BNI’

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How to Start discussion …

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Four Initial Questions to Ask….
to open up the discussion!
1. How’s Business?
2. Are you able to cope with more business
at the moment?
3. What are you doing next Thursday
morning?
4. Would you like to meet the best
business people in the area that can help
you generate more business?

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Where can you
Find Visitors ?

11. Local press-people spending money on advertising!!
Free papers, local magazines
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A person who cold calls you trying to sell you something is
someone who should be in BNI – They are looking for more
business!! Don’t just try to get rid of them, talk to them about
their business – invite them to the meeting.
Day to day business contacts while you are out and about-have your
BNI card folder with you- it will automatically get people asking
‘What’s BNI?’ Use the told BNI has given you

12. Don’t talk too much when inviting visitor. The more
you say, the more you might talk them out of it.
Seeing is believing!
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Text Message
Social Media- Post our meeting as an event in LinkedIn,
Facebook and then promote the fact that we are looking to refer
business to a status updates
How do you invite visitors?

13. How to handle them?
Everyone is tempted to explain too much, we get enthusiastic and they
start to feel they are being sold
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Remember, your mind set is that you have been asked to recommend a good
and that is why you have called, to see if they can handle extra business. We
want to meet people who are at least open to new business. If they are not
that ambitious, (many people in business aren’t) do we want them?

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• TWO reasons why BNI members do not bring
visitors on regular basis:
– We don’t know how to invite
– We do not spend time on inviting people
Which one are you?

15. Thank you!
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