Friday's Internet Edition, May 09, 2008.
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“I built my business from absolute zero to a sizable income in less than two years,” Beck said. “It was primarily because our BNI.”
BNI is short for Business International Network, which was founded by a man named Ivan Misner a few years back in southern California. The Chair City Chapter of BNI started about three years ago. Beck, who joined the local BNI chapter about six months later is currently its president.
“I have a steady stream of clients and referrals who came to see me through BNI,” the home inspector said. “We’re basically a group of business people who carry one another’s cards, and we pass them out to our friends, associates and business clients who have similar needs. It really does work.”
The chapter held a gathering Tuesday at Big Game Safari Steakhouse “to educate, encourage and inspire fun for the businesses in the area,” according to a newsletter provided by the chapter. With Thomasville Mayor Joe Bennett in attendance, different local business leaders discussed their products or services to the group of a little over 60 people. This was an invitation-only meeting, but the Chair City Chapter holds more open meeting every Thursday from 8 a.m. until 9:30 a.m. at Colonial Country Club.
“We would invite any interested business person to come to our Thursday morning meetings,” said Lynn Brady, a BNI member. “It’s a good way for us to help each other grow our businesses.”
Brady is a business adviser with Triad Telecom. Don Annas, president of that company told the gathering what it could do for them. Debbie Fanary, of Mountcastle Insurance, told the crowd of ways they could save money on commercial insurance.
“We thought we would help small business owners save money and cut their bottom line,” said Fanary, who serves as events coordinator for the BNI chapter. “When we get to know each other as well as we do, it makes it easy for us to refer business.”
While the Thursday meetings are open to just about anyone (a person cannot attend more than twice without joining), membership is limited to one person per profession. If someone wants to find out if his or her profession has already been filled in the chapter, he or she can call Kevin White, membership committee member, at 472-3527.
“We’d love for people to come visit at our meeting,” said White, a financial adviser with Edward Jones. “I’d be more than happy for anyone to call me.”
White gave a presentation on IRAs, while Stacey Matthews, president of Managers of Money Inc., spoke of online banking.
“It was great that we were able to deliver some positive information to the community,” Matthews said. “We’d like to be able to turn the economy around that we’re going through.”
Vivi Starnes of Ecoquest International serves as the chapter’s events coordinator.
“As education coordinator I bring a tidbit about networking to the meeting,” Starnes said. “We always trust a business that someone has referred to us because there is a relationship there. That’s what BNI is all about.”
Staff Writer Kevin Reid can be reached at 472-9500, ext. 230, or at reid@tvilletimes.com.