The purpose and overview of BNI is to increase business for its members. The primary core value of BNI is “Givers Gain” so when you give referrals to others they are motivated to give back to you as well.

Time is priceless. Once you have spent it, it’s gone and cannot be returned. Thus, when a member or a guest of the member arrives for a Business Networking International (BNI) meeting, the meeting will start on time and end on time. They soon learn that meetings are facilitated to the maximum value, develop relationships and impart knowledge.

Of course, there are expectations from BNI for each member, which are agreed to when a new member is approved by the membership committee. If you are wondering why you should invest your priceless time, here are the top 18 Reasons to Join BNI.

Feel free to use these ideas during the “purpose and overview” portion of the BNI meeting!

18 Reasons for Joining BNI

1. The primary purpose of BNI is to increase business for its members. What goes around comes around. You send business to members, they’ll send business to you.
2. We allow only one member from each profession into the chapter. No member will have to be concerned about another member of their industry receiving referrals.
3. As a member of BNI, you’ll begin to feel like the membership is your own group of personal salespeople. Each member has a BNI card file with everyone’s business cards in it. Members can then distribute those cards to others outside the group.
4. “Word of mouth” remains the best way to advertise, even in this Digital Age. BNI’s structure allows for developing and exchanging quality business referrals. If you need referrals, then you need BNI.
5. BNI teaches business people to develop relationships that result in referrals for each other. It is not about you and your business “hard selling” to others. You may actually become personal friends with members which could last a lifetime.
6. BNI isn’t the only business network around. Each member has their own personal and business network. That “extended network” may be a source of many weekly business referrals. On average, each BNI Chapter (three months old and older) hand out more than 60 referrals each month to its members.
7. How you increase and maintain your word-of-mouth-based business depends on the BNI process. Each member educates each other about what they do and the kinds of referrals they want. Our success is tied to your success in business.
8. Because of your business is the only one of its kind in BNI, you will have an edge over your competitors. None of your competitors can join this chapter. Only one person per profession.
9. BNI is a coalition of businesses. Each industry is represented by one person. This mutual support system helps each other increase business by giving each member referrals.
10. Referrals are key! Members may get most of their business from referrals. After all, BNI is about GIVING BUSINESS to its members.
11. We allow only one member from each classification into the chapter. Some enterprising companies are actually having one of their employees placed into every chapter that is opened. In our area, only one person from your business category will be able to join a chapter this year. As we grow, you will see some visitors who wish they could be members but whose category is already filled.
12. BNI® is a business and professional networking organization that allows one representative from each classification to join. The sole purpose of the group is to give its members more business. It’s based on the concept that what goes around comes around. If you give business to me, I will give business to you.
13. Being a member of BNI® is like having _______ sales people working for you. Members carry a card file with everyone’s business cards in it. When they speak to a client, associate, or friend who mentions a need represented by the group, members can provide a referral to fill that need.
14. Referrals are the most cost-effective form of advertising possible. BNI® provides a structured environment for the development and exchange of quality business referrals for both men and women. If referrals are an important part of your business, then BNI® is the organization for you.
15. There is a network beyond members of each chapter. Each member knows dozens of people, who in turn know dozens of people. Through this “extended network” come most of the business referrals that are given each week. The average chapter of BNI®
    (that is least three months old) gives over 60 referrals per month to its members.
16. BNI® teaches business people that networking is more about farming than it is about hunting. It is about developing relationships that result in referrals for each other.
17. Increasing and maintaining your “Word-of-Mouth” based business depends on the BNI® process of members educating each other about what they do and what kinds of referrals they want. Our success as a chapter is tied in with your success in business.
18. As business professionals, we all need an edge over our competition. How many people are doing what you do in the area? Well, in BNI® you have an edge over your competitors because none of them can join this chapter – we only allow one person per classification.

So, when our BNI Capital Business Alliance Chapter meets every week, we have a tight and set agenda, with roles for everyone, including guests. It’s essential that we don’t waste anyone’s time. We are all business owners or operators who are quite busy and want to achieve the best use of our time when we meet.

One of the many reasons that BNI is such a successful networking organization in the DMV/Washington, D.C. Beltway area is that we recognize that small business owners wear many hats and have to do a lot of tasks in their workday. Networking can be a chore for many of them, so BNI has designed its meetings to be built around one main goal: Building Relationships.

Now, “building relationships” may sound rather generic or boring vanilla, but it isn’t for our networking chapter! It is through building relationships with our fellow business owners, that we learn, assist and even patronize. You cannot help someone unless you get to know them.

Finally, BNI is a structured, organized and goal-oriented relationship-building place for small business owners who want to give referrals, receive referrals and build lasting business and personal relationships. It is designed to make networking efficient and fun.

To find out more about BNI visit the global website, www.bni.com, and find a meeting near you. You can also visit our Bethesda Maryland Chapter website: http://bnicentralmaryland.com/bnicapitalbiz, or contact our 2018 president, Brian Loebig of Loebig Ink, LLC: brian@loebigink.com.