A key message is public relations tool defined as: “A short, concise and memorable sentence used to convey an important message during an interview”.

I get to hear, on average, about 70+ sixty second presentations every week, and it always amazes me how we all – myself included – see the need to say something different week in and week out.

Sure, variety is important; and perhaps we feel uncomfortable repeating the same presentation on a regular basis.

However, repetition is important if you want your message to be remembered – so changing every week does nothing for making you memorable.

One way to kill both birds with one stone is to develop three or four key messages. Just one sentence long, each message says something compelling, memorable and important about your business.

For example: “John Green Landscapes are the premier sustainable garden creators in Auckland”.

Develop three or four of these key messages; then use them liberally throughout your sixty second presentation to make sure the important messages and benefits are getting through, without making yourself appear to be repeating yourself Ad nauseam.

Colin Kennedy is a public relations consultant, copywriter and speaker. He is also the outsource Marketing Director for BNI New Zealand and assistant director for the South Central region of BNI.

Photos by Rosemary Meyer. See www.prmeyer.com. Thank you Rosemary. Top: Fiona Powell and Colin Kennedy. Below: The Howick seminar.

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Together BNI Millennium Chapter and SANZ raised $9,000 to be shared by North Shore, Warkworth and Northland Hospices. Our thanks to Warkworth Golf Course for providing the perfect venue – and throwing in perfect weather!
Of course the golf day was possible only with the help of the individuals and businesses who generously donated their time and money, plus thousands of dollars of products and services. Our sponsors:
Albany Insurance Services, Amac Automotive, Asparona, AXA, Barfoot & Thompson, CM Digital, DRG Technology, Fraser and Jim Lamb, Fullers Paihia, FunctionEight, Furlong + Associates, George Deeb & Associates, Jack Property Maintenance, Kevey Collision, Kumeu River Wines, Lion Nathan, Mark Adams Brand Stories, Mark Greenslade/Edge Mortgages, Millennium Institute, Orb Communications, Parkland Products, Sacred Hill Wines, Scholastic, Signtech, Start Smart – and principal sponsor Propella Software.
So thank you everyone, organisers, players and sponsors – see you again next year!

BNI Millennium Chapter Contact: Tom Kelly 027 262 6777 tom@jackofalltrades.co.nz
SANZ Contact: Cedric Braby 0274 742 264 cbraby@crownrelo.com

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Sometime later, you call the prospect and introduce yourself: “Hello, Ms. Prospect, my name is John Businessman. Larry Source recommended I call you. I’m an accountant…”

Handling referrals this way, as you might expect, gets minimal results. Your chance of converting the referral into a customer will be greater if your referral source:

1. Makes the initial contact with the prospect (his acquaintance) to assess her need and, if appropriate, alerts her that you will be getting in touch;

2. Sends the prospect background information about you and your business;

3. Lets the prospect know the nature of his relationship with you;

4. Gives the prospect a brief description and endorsement of your products or services;

5. Arranges to introduce the prospect to you;

6. Follows up with the prospect after you contact her.

Unfortunately, if you don’t ask your prospective referral source to do some of these things, he probably won’t – not because he isn’t willing, but because he doesn’t know how these actions could make a big difference; doesn’t have enough information about you or your business, or simply doesn’t know how.

Make it your goal to communicate to your sources the actions you wish them to take and then provide them with all the materials necessary to accomplish those actions.

If you do this, I guarantee you’ll get better-quality referrals that will more quickly turn into actual business

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$289,000.00 raised since 2005

BNI New Zealand and Hospice New Zealand renewed their partnership agreement this week with a signing ceremony between BNI National Director Graham Southwell and Hospice New Zealand Chairman Wilf Marley in Auckland.

Hospice New Zealand also presented BNI with a certificate acknowledging the contribution of the organisation and its members in raising $289,000.00 since 2005 for hospices throughout the country, as well as the sponsorship of 42 BNI Palliative Care Education Scholarships awarded to healthcare workers involved with hospice.

The goals of the national agreement are to raise funds for local hospices through local BNI chapters countrywide, to continue to provide multidisciplinary scholarships for palliative care health workers and to raise awareness at a national level through collaborative and national awareness activities.

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Professional associations, or knowledge networks, have been around longer than almost any other kind of group, from the medieval guilds to crafts associations to today’s professional groups and industry associations.  The primary purpose is for the exchange of information and ideas, whether intraindustry or interindustry.

Some of these groups limit membership to their own industry, but quite a few groups that represent industries other than your own will allow you to join as an associate member (as opposed to a full member). This can put you in contact with a concentrated target market, including many top-quality potential contacts.  Many of your best current clients, looking for their own competitive edge, may be members of industry associations.  Ask them which open-membership groups they belong to, and try to join a few of them. This can give you an opportunity to meet prospects of the same quality as your clients.

The other part of your knowledge network should be groups in your own industry. Yes, you’ll be rubbing elbows with competitors, but there are advantages.  You’ll stay abreast of developments in your industry, find out what your competitors are up to, study the competition’s brochures and presentations, and discover opportunities to collaborate with competitors whose specialties are different from yours or who need help on a big project.

Knowledge networks present great networking opportunities. So if you’re looking to build more relationships and increase your word of mouth, start investigating local professional associations today, and find out which ones you might be able to join.

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BP doesn’t check water levels of vehicles on their forecourt, no matter how desperate the need of their customers (even the elderly) because the ‘rules and regulations’ don’t allow it… this blind adherence to bureaucracy landed BP on national television news, in national newspapers, on national radio.

It has not gone down well with the public, despite BP’s position that the ‘safety of their staff’ comes first (obviously they don’t believe their staff have the ability to act with common sense in assessing the situation).

Rules there may be, but if you want to receive goodwill (like positive word of mouth), you have to exercise goodwill. That means going the extra mile.

Sometimes we may not even get a thanks for ‘going that extra mile’. The customer may not give it a second thought. Our act of ‘bravery’, ‘goodwill’ or ‘initiative’ may go forever unappreciated… to all outward appearances.

But, and it’s a big BUT, I don’t believe any act of giving ever goes ‘unappreciated’. The customer will return (because you’ve not given them any reason not to); and each act of giving will build up your own character and habits and it will shape the kind of person you become.

So the more giving we become, the more it will come back to us. “Do unto others…”

My point? Your goodwill and your acts of giving may have limited effect on the recipient, but that doesn’t matter because each act is first and foremost an investment in yourself.

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Member of the organising committee, George Deeb, said a full field of 100 golfers turned out to raise funds for North Shore Hospice and the Warkworth Wellsford Hospice.

“The day featured a clinic from professional golfer Paul Holmes and an auction by Derrick Baldwin of Asset International Limited.”

Principal sponsor was Propella Software Limited (Business Management Software), joined by sponsors George Deeb (Barrister, Solicitor and Notary Public), Greg Frittelli (Insurance and Lending Group), Don Sykes (It outsourcing provider Asparona), Butch Mawdsley (RES Business Development Limited), Cedric Braby (Crown Relocations), Mike Hackner (Mike Hackner Architects) and Kit Lill (Bayvet veterinary clinic).

Among items auctioned as part of the fundraising initiative were three line trimmers, a golf cart, weekend holidays at a bach in Sandy Bay and Paihia, cases of wine, a year’s membership to the Millennium Institute of Sport and Health and year’s subscription to the New Zealand Herald.

Clive Scotten won golfer of the day and took home the floating trophy and prizes. CEO of Hospice North Shore Mike Franklin attended the event.

“The course was excellent and we were made to feel very welcome. I would like to extend a big thank you to all those who contributed,” said George.

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Hi Graham,

How’s things?

I was talking to a member of one of our BNI Chapters in London, Robin Bailey.

Robin is ex BBC Sports broadcasting and now is a professional video producer – and comes very highly recommended.

His next quest is to produce a video based around the Rugby World Cup and has asked for some assistance with connections in NZ. 

This is from Robin:

With regard to the All Blacks documentary for the next world cup if you can find a number for Keith Quinn and TV NZ that would be a great start. The people we’d like to talk to are David Kirk, Jonah Lomu, ex captains Brooke and Fitzpatrick, if Graham Mourie is still around I’d like to speak to him from his invincible era. We are hoping the film is distributed to the main rugby playing nations including the UK and the other area of interest is someone who is keen to sponsor the film. Commissioners are more and more keen to have “paid-for” programmes presented to them. We will have All Blacks sponsor Adidas on board and we will try to do a deal with them, but there may be a rugby nut CEO there who is willing to put in some money.

We anticipate this will be a film for the In-Flight market and possibly DVD domestically as well as for the broadcasters. So the exposure should be good.

I just wondered if you or your Director team have any connections into the Ex All Blacks or Broadcasters which may be able to help

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Say I knew roughly everything that was still going to happen. What would I do differently? Write a book immediately, or start a business and make sure I was very wealthy by the age of 20… but would I?

I would know when and where I was going to meet my wife Ursula, for example. Would I do anything differently? Probably not, because if I did, would that jeopardise one of the best things that’s every happened to me? Would it jeopardise the future existence of my children, friends, family – people I love, know and like?

Would my doing things differently jeopardise their very existence?

It was at that point that I realised the chance to do it differently is no dream at all, but a nightmare. Why? Because everything we are – even in business – is distilled down, in its purest essence, to the relationships we have. I would be terrified of missing out on all those people I’ve come to know, like or love.

They say we come in to this world with nothing, and we leave with nothing. It’s not true. We all come into this world with relationships, and we all leave with relationships. How healthy they are is up to us.

Networking, business, referrals, selling, marketing… it’s also all relationships.

If something is failing in your life, like business, referrals or sales – look to your relationships and you’ll probably find the problem there.

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