Saturday September 7 2024
Swindon & Wiltshire News
There was a special message for the founding members of the UK’s newest BNI chapter last Friday (March 28) – a video message from Californian founder and chairman Dr Ivan Misner.
Dr Misner recorded the two-minute greeting following a request from the chapter’s first director, Karen Shergold of KFS Business Solutions in Marlborough.
Congratulating members on their official launch, Dr Misner had a special message for visitors. “You will not meet a group of people who are more interested in helping you succeed in your business than the group that you’re with right now, he said.”
The inaugural meeting of the Merlin Chapter was held back in October, when six business owners and managers attended a meeting at Ogbourne Golf Club to find out more.
By Friday, there were enough core members – 16 in total – to form the chapter, and the special event attracted as many guests.
Introducing the video, Peter Jones, BNI director consultant Somerset and Wiltshire, said it was rare for Dr Misner to send a personal greeting to a new chapter.
There are now over 600 BNI chapters in the UK. In Swindon alone there are two, with a third to be launched in Old Town. And a Chippenham chapter called Junction 17 has just been launched.
BNI members increase the sales of their own businesses by acting as sales people for each other. Every week, members bring in business leads – called referrals – for fellow members.
During the meeting, 41 business referrals were passed between members, and the value of the previous week’s referrals was valued at £6,647.
Watch Dr Misner’s video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShhS8ldSc4o For more information about BNI Merlin, and to meet some of the members, click here
