BNI LuminarusDurham
Your trade, held. Nobody in the room sells what you sell
A new BNI chapter is forming in Durham. A short chat with the local director about whether it would suit the work you do.
Why the room works
One seat per trade. Nobody in that room sells what you sell.
One business per category, so the people around you can recommend you without a second thought.
Your category is held
One business per trade sits in the room. The person opposite you is not competing with you, so they can put your name forward without a second thought.
Work arrives introduced
You are handed to someone who already trusts the person making the introduction. That is a very different first phone call to a cold one.
The same room every week
Once the chapter is running, the room meets every week and does not change. People learn what a good job looks like for you, which is what makes them spot one when it comes up.
A reason to be visible
One booked morning a week and a short turn to speak in front of the room. Most owners never build that structure on their own, and it is the part they say they would miss.
In their words
Two minutes with someone who joined a nearby chapter
Filmed at a chapter morning nearby, by us and not by an agency. Subtitled, so it works with the sound off.
The morning
What actually happens
How a chapter morning runs once Durham launches. It is the same every week, so you will know what to expect before you walk in. During the launch phase there is no meeting to visit yet, so the first step is simply a chat.
You arrive
Someone meets you at the door and walks you in, so you are not stood on your own.
Coffee first
Twenty minutes of ordinary conversation before anything formal starts.
The welcome
The local director explains how the morning runs and who is in the room.
The structure
Everyone gets a short turn, then the room passes work to each other.
After you join
What it looks like once you are in the room
Not a promise about results. Written from what members in nearby chapters describe, so you know what you would be taking on.
Your first month
Once the chapter opens you turn up, get walked in, and listen more than you talk. People start asking what a good customer looks like for you, and you find out that is harder to answer than you expect.
By a few months in
The room knows your work well enough to recognise it. Introductions come with a name, a reason and a phone number, and you start doing the same for other people in the room.
A year in
The weekly morning is just part of how the business runs. You have a set of local people you would trust with your own clients, and they treat your name the same way.
Common doubts
Answering the doubt
The things people say before they come, answered straight. If yours is not here, it is a fair thing to raise on the chat.
Is this just a room full of people selling to me?
No. The morning is built around passing work to each other, so the person opposite you is looking for someone to recommend, not someone to pitch.
I tried networking before and nothing came of it.
Plenty of people in the room said the same before they came. Have the chat, ask what the last few months have actually produced, and judge it on that.
I do not have a morning a week to give.
That is a fair thing to weigh up. The chat is the place to work out whether the time would pay you back, and there is no obligation either way.
What happens after I get in touch?
The local director gives you a ring for a short conversation. Nothing is signed, nothing is booked, and you can leave it there.
Who you will speak to
Robin Hancock
Director Consultant, Durham
A short chat, no pressure and no obligation. Twenty minutes on the phone, or a coffee if that suits you better. You will hear how a chapter morning works, what the Durham launch involves, and whether it fits the kind of work you do.
The chapter is forming now
Founding members are already meeting.
One to one chat
Ask for a chat
A few details, then the local director picks it up. Nothing else happens until you have spoken to them.