One of the strengths of BNI is that it attracts individuals from all sorts of industries. One important group of professionals that may not always immediately be associated with BNI, but are hugely significant, comes from the trades. Tradespeople, be they plumbers, electricians, painters or builders, make a huge contribution to BNI.
Some BNI chapters have such strong groups of tradespeople that they form ‘trade hubs’ within their chapters. Within these hubs the tradespeople work collaboratively – perhaps with other professionals like property managers – for their mutual benefit. Setting up a trade hub requires, obviously, a good number of tradespeople in any one chapter.
Challenges you might hear from tradies
Many tradespeople are sole operators or have small teams. They are often so busy working IN the business they don’t have time to work ON the business. This means joining structured networking groups like BNI can be initially seen as a challenge. Additionally, with the timing of the BNI meetings, they may lose a mornings work in order to attend.
If tradespeople are able to overcome these challenges however, they’ll find that BNI is hugely beneficial for their businesses. It’s a great way to add to their own word-of-mouth marketing efforts.
One example of a tradesperson is BNI Selwyn member Shane Hole, whose business Shane’s Gardening does landscaping work in the Christchurch area.
Shane always wanted to be his own boss, but during his first foray into business he was badly burnt. 17 years later in post-quake Christchurch, Shane realised that it was now or never and started his own landscaping business. Within a fortnight of starting his business he joined BNI.
Shane has received business from Selwyn District Council through BNI, as well as plenty of other referrals and the return on investment for him has been enormous. He estimates when all is said and done BNI will be responsible for about $20,000 worth of work per year not including follow on business.
Shane’s business is growing at a far quicker rate than his plan estimated and he’s already looking to add to his team. A major reason for this success is due to the relationships and referrals that have been generated through BNI. It’s a great example of a business that wouldn’t necessarily be associated with a networking organisation like BNI, but who has prospered greatly from the networking process.
Tradespeople are valuable individuals to have in a BNI chapter and their participation should be encouraged. If you have the opportunity, share Shane’s story and try to encourage other tradespeople to at least visit your chapter and get to see how they can participate in the BNI success.
