Early BNI Networking Mornings

The story of where I head every Thursday morning at around 5:45. The alarm goes off, morning shower, I get ready, get in the car, and drive through the nearly empty streets of Riga towards the city centre - to one of the hotels or restaurants reserved for the event. A name badge with my company and BNI logo is pinned to my lapel. A dose of coffee. A bit of preparation. And networking can begin.

BNI Wagner informational meeting at Albert Hotel, 31 March 2015, photo by Aiga

The BNI informational morning agenda

I first came across the abbreviation BNI this March, when Aiga Veckalne invited me to an unusually early networking morning starting at 6:45 am. I remember reading a couple of articles online in English about Business Network International - the world's largest referral organisation - and preparing my elevator pitch in English. But on 17 March, arriving at Mercure Hotel for the very first BNI informational morning in Latvia, I found about 50 local entrepreneurs and managers - and the working language was, and still is, Latvian.

As then, so now - the agenda for these informational events is always the same: an introduction to the organisation's givers gain philosophy, information about the experience and statistics of other BNI groups around the world, exchange of business cards by all present, a 30-second presentation by each attendee, benefits and investments (time and an annual membership fee of EUR 850 + VAT), as well as breakfast (buffet) and networking. Each guest pays EUR 10 in cash for breakfast - a fairly reasonable sum.

In the "salesperson's minute" - the 30-second presentation - you must manage to say: your name, company name, business sector, and what you are looking for. Ideally, a short, engaging story with a clearly formulated need for a specific kind of contact.

About BNI worldwide and in the Baltics

These early morning events take place practically all over the world - in most European countries, in the Americas, in Asia. At the time of writing, the BNI networking organisation spans 63 countries with 7,100+ groups and more than 170,000 members. Among the Baltic states, the first to form such groups were the Lithuanians, who now have 5 active groups with 2 in the process of formation. The largest group - BNI Žalgiris with more than 60 members - is in Kaunas.

To date, Lithuanian BNI members have passed around 8,400 referrals among themselves, generating revenue of EUR 3,600,000. Latvia's BNI Wagner group results to date: more than EUR 100,000. So things are happening! In Estonia, a BNI group has been established only very recently. Finally, Latvians have managed to surpass their northern neighbours in at least this one activity. :)

A BNI member has the right, with prior registration, to attend networking breakfast meetings and arrange one-to-one meetings in all countries worldwide where BNI operates.

 
BNI Vivaldi informational meeting at Stargorod, 3 September 2015, photo by Aiga

At the end of the informational event, those for whom this format of networking, contact-building, and referral-giving feels right, familiar, and interesting enough have the opportunity to fill in a candidate form to join the organisation and operate at full capacity for the full year (membership is purchased for a year). The atmosphere and the involvement of everyone present in networking were fantastic - so I filled in the candidate application already at my very first event. At that time, the first BNI Wagner group in Latvia was being formed (it was officially launched on 1 July 2015 with a grand event attended by 150 guests at Aldaris's premises). I am a member of the second group, BNI Vivaldi - but more on that a little later.

From the first meeting to today, I have attended 21 BNI events - it is finally time to write about it all. I plan a series of articles to follow BNI Latvia's activities and to evaluate, purely from my own business perspective, how worthwhile it was to get involved in this organisation, and whether it can truly be the only sales and marketing tool that generates profit.

BNI Vivaldi informational meeting at Neiburgs Hotel, 5 November 2015, photo by Inga

I also made a promise to Gatis Zamurs, one of the BNI Latvia directors: I will write about everything I like and have found worthwhile, as well as everything that is bad or unacceptable to me. Challenge accepted - and it only makes me want to get more involved and more active in this organisation, to achieve the best possible result.

The BNI Vivaldi group is still forming and its operations will only begin at the start of next year - but among the most active members, things are already happening: participation in organising materials, welcoming guests, one-to-one meetings, and even the first mutual referrals (warmed-up contacts for collaboration discussions).

What I like about BNI

• A clear formula - Visibility + Credibility = Profitability - that is the foundation of any brand's (company's or personal) success story
• Every BNI member is accountable for their own reputation - you trust and give your best contacts to others, and others in turn trust and recommend their best contacts to you and your business
• Everything is tracked - attendance, number of guests invited, one-to-one meetings held, number of referrals given and received, profit from referrals (in figures)
• The ability to block competitors - only one representative per sector
• Learning to network, deliver a compelling elevator pitch, and speak in front of a fairly large audience
• At each such morning, the opportunity to meet interesting and useful people (a wide circle of contacts)
• Discipline - all year long (and beyond), once a week, you need to be on time at around 6:00 am
• Networking as a permanent part of your working routine (for the past six months I have given up cold calls entirely)
• Receiving and giving referrals (what a fantastic feeling when someone has recommended and referred you to someone else!)
• The atmosphere - no one is left standing on the sidelines; everyone is involved
• Everything is in your own hands - the more active, engaging, professional, and trustworthy you are, the more you receive in return (as Gatis often emphasises in the morning presentations: BNI works for every business without exception, but it doesn't work for every person)

However, there are also aspects that I am not happy about. Thoughts have circulated among members and guests about changing certain rules - for example, introducing a commission fee on referrals received, or allowing representatives from several sectors if a very large and prominent brand comes along that takes some people's breath away.

There are also people who treat their participation in BNI as some kind of extracurricular activity rather than part of their daily work. For example: "I didn't come because I had a meeting with an important client scheduled." In my view, the BNI philosophy and schedule have not been fully understood in such cases. The only legitimate excuse is illness - when you physically cannot make it to the event - or other force majeure circumstances.

Failure to follow etiquette: not following up with the contacts you have warmed up and passed on, having asked the other person to make sure they accept the meeting. If someone behaves this way, it damages not only their own reputation but that of the entire BNI organisation. I very much hope that time and the majority's adherence to the BNI members' code of ethics will put everything on the right track.

If any iinuu.lv reader is interested in coming to the early morning breakfast and experiencing the BNI atmosphere first-hand, telling others about their business, and doing some networking - write to me by email and I will add you to the guest list.