Top 5 Professions in BNI for Success

Although all businesses engage in referral marketing there are specific professions that rely heavily on word of mouth advertising.

Businesses that rely on referrals to grow their sales benefit from business networking groups.  “Making money, having fun, and personal development are all part of profitability,” says Tom Fleming, Executive Director of Business Network International West Central Florida and Director of Training at the Referral Institute in Tampa.  While every business can benefit from a professional business networking group, there are certain types of professions that can reap the rewards of a networking organization.

These are the top 5 professions in BNI that rely on referrals to achieve profitability:

• Chiropractor:  The chiropractic industry is primarily reliant on satisfied patients.  If the patient’s condition improves they will share their experience with others.  When it comes to health most people will ask someone they trust to refer a good chiropractor.  

• Accountant:  A trustworthy accountant is important to maintaining accurate financial records.  Finances can be a touchy matter so most people seek referrals before they decide on the services of an accountant.

• Bankers:  Bankers fall into the same category as accountants and handle everything from personal loans, commercial loans to investments.  Ever since the Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme people are even more careful about getting a trustworthy referral when it comes to money matters.

• Computer Consultant:  For people that rely on their PC for many things including their work a great computer consultant is a valuable resource.  For this reason, people generally seek referrals to someone who is competent and trustworthy.

• Attorney:  People always ask for a referral before choosing an attorney regardless if it is personal injury, real estate, business, family or other.  They prefer to do this instead of relying on an ad or selecting an attorney at random from the phone book.

These are some of the most common professions that are part of the 40 plus chapters of BNI in the West Central Florida Area.  There are many other professions that are members of BNI WCF which Mr. Fleming refers to as the “F I R M” which are:

• Financial Planners
• Insurance Agents
• Realtors
• Mortgage Originators

BNI members also consist of entrepreneurs in a wide variety of industries with many of the BNI chapters that have large financial institutions represented in them as well as financial planners from large firms such as Raymond James and John Hancock.  However, 70 percent of the members are sole proprietorships that benefit the most from referral marketing and business networking.

Dr. Ivan Misner, Founder and Chairman of Business Network International and known as The Father of Networking says, “Networking and Referral Based Marketing is more about farming than it is about hunting.”  Mr. Fleming of BNI WCF says, “What this means is that in troubled economic times businesses with a well established network have a team of people to tap into to sustain business growth in a less than desirable economy.  If you have a network of people that do business with those they know, like, and trust, your business will last for the long term regardless of economic conditions.”

About Tom Fleming and BNI:  
BNI is the largest business networking organization in the world and offers members and prospective members the opportunity to share business referrals or initiate a local chapter of BNI.  

Tom Fleming is the Executive Director for BNI in West Central Florida and the Referral Institute.  When Tom acquired the region, BNI WCF had one chapter with 13 members.  The region now has over 40 chapters with 1600 members passing $50,000,000 in business to each other in the past year alone.

Tom is sought out as a local, national and international speaker on the subjects of marketing businesses by referral and organizational development.  He is also a contributing author in two best-selling books on referral based marketing and has been recorded on many educational CD’s produced from his speaking engagements.  Prior to beginning his career as an entrepreneur, Tom worked for various Fortune 500 firms, earned an MBA from Babson College and a Bachelor’s Degree in business from Boston University.   

Visit BNI West Central Florida at www.bniwcf.com.