How many times have you been invited?

12/7/12
I’ve mentioned this before but one thing that I’m often given as a reason for not having visitors is that everyone has been invited; there is an over-saturation of chapters so there is no one left to invite.

First let me put on record that we are far, very far, from over-saturation, and I can prove it. And, it’s not just because three out of the four visitors at my chapter this morning had never heard of BNI.

But, before I prove it, how about a reason for why some people hold this view. It’s because they don’t really think. Google any category in your town and there will be dozens of results (obviously less if you are in the middle of the moors). I Googled a category recently and there were 287 companies in the area. Chapters? Two! That meant there were 287 people to invite and 285 of them couldn’t get in to BNI even if they wanted to.

However, we don’t even need to go that far for a reason, because every member should be using their own personal database. And no two members will have the same database – it’s impossible. In fact I would go further. I would be surprised if more than a couple of percent were the same contacts, even if you live close to another member. Assuming you take out your fellow BNI members of course!

But, here’s the killer. If you live in what you consider to be an over-saturated area, you must have been invited dozens of times to visit another chapter. Again I would be surprised if you have been. And please don’t think that’s because other members know you’re a BNI member already. They don’t! I’ve been a member for nine years now, and I’m pretty well known in BNI circles, but only last week I visited a nearby chapter for the first time and met someone I knew (only the third person that I have ever met in BNI that I already knew) and neither of us knew the other was in BNI!

So, please never use over-saturation as an excuse for not inviting anyone. Instead, think, and invite those closest to you.