Membership Information about Northwest Florida Alliance

Membership Packet

Your NFBA Membership

HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR NFBA MEMBERSHIP

Review the website to see what members’ businesses relate to yours or to the needs of your customers.
Connect with members that have businesses related to yours via email or in person to review how you might benefit each other.
Read this Member Packet thoroughly. It’s full of ways to help you get started getting the most out of your membership.
Arrive at the meeting early to visit with and get to know other members.
Schedule a Member Presentation as soon as possible so the membership will get to know you and your company quicker.
Attend all parties, social functions, and activities you can.
Sit at a different table each week to meet other members and learn what they do.
Review the website whenever you need to purchase a product or service.

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS

Regular, steady and punctual attendance is the key to making the most of your membership. This is the only way the Group can fulfill its objective of enhancing each member’s business and your professional life. No member may miss more than 2 meetings per Qtr.
Membership Substitutions: If a member is unable to attend a meeting, he/she may send a substitute up to two times per Qtr. The substitute must be a partner/principal, key employee or family member. The membership chairman should be notified prior to the day of the meeting when the designated substitute is going to attend.

CODE OF ETHICS

PREAMBLE: The position of each member in NFBA is unique in that he/she is the only member in the Group in his/her particular profession. As such, he/she owes a high professional duty towards any referrals or information furnished by his/her fellow members, while at the same time he/she also occupies a position of trust and loyalty to his/her own profession.

THEREFORE:
I BELIEVE IT TO BE MY RESPONSIBILITY:

To hold my business in high esteem and strive to maintain it’s prestige.
To respect any fellow member’s confidence and hold in trust personal information.
To rigidly adhere to the observance of the highest standards of business and professional conduct.
To conduct my business on such a high plane that others emulating my example may help the standards of our vocations.
To respect the rights of and cooperate with all other members whose services are constructively related to my own in meeting the needs of my customers.
To recommend to those outside the NFBA the products or services of those in the group.
To aid my fellow members by any ethical means whenever possible.
To attend meetings on a regular basis.
To attend the social functions of the Club on a regular basis.

COMPLETING THE WEEKLY REFERRAL SHEET

The Referral Sheet is a very important document in NFBA. One is distributed to each table each week. Each member is expected to record any referrals or leads that they received and the approximate / projected value of the sale. This information provides information on how well we are doing supporting each others businesses.
To eliminate confusion as to what you indicate on the Referral Sheet here is an explanation for each column:

Write or print your name legibly. List the names of fellow members who you gave a referral to. List the date the referral was given and a brief note about what the referral was.

WHAT HAPPENS AT A NFBA MEETING?

Before the meeting:
Many members enjoy coming early and spending time talking and networking with other members. Get your breakfast and pick a table. Try to sit at a different table each week to get to know different people.

Referral Sheets:
Once you’re at your table find the Referral Sheet and write down all your activity for the week. (Details about how to fill out a Referral Sheet can be found on another page in this packet.) If you didn’t receive any referrals during the week, write your name down anyway. Attendance will be counted from the Referral Sheet

Opening:
Each meeting begins with welcoming guests and announcements about community activities, business changes, awards, and other milestones.

Speakers:
A typical meeting will feature one member presentation. Each speaker is given about 15 minutes to talk about his or her back ground, business, changes in the industry, new products or services and what represents a good referral for their business. The Secretary is responsible for scheduling the speakers. Once you’ve gotten a couple of meetings under your belt, talk to the Secretary about scheduling your presentation.
Most speakers also enjoy distributing samples, information about their business, give- aways or even door prizes.

Giving Referrals, Leads, Contacts, Thank You’s and Announcements:
The Referral Master will recognize each member briefly giving them a chance to report on his or her referral and contact with other members during the week. (It pays to have them written down before the Referral Master gets to your table.) Most members begin by giving their name and business name, then briefly listing the referrals given or received during the week. Many members also take the opportunity to thank people from whom they received referrals or had direct contact during the week.
The order of Referrals / Leads and Speakers may vary from week to week.

Ending the Meeting
The President will call for Referral Sheets and any other announcement or business.

NFBA TIPS FOR GIVING A GOOD PRESENTATION

Here are a few tips that will make your presentation more interesting, informative, and most important of all, let the membership know how they can help you get more leads and business.

Be yourself and relax!
Don’t consider it a “speech,” but just talk as if you were talking to a prospect or customer.
Tell us about your background, experience, education, etc.
Describe and summarize your product or service, especially if you are talking for the first time.
If you have a new or additional service or product, present or show it.
Be informative! Talk about new happenings in your industry, or laws that may affect or change your industry or consumer purchasing decisions.
Give illustrations as to how your product or service can benefit the customer.
Tell the membership how they can help you and what type of business you look for.
Be creative! Use props, handouts, etc.
Put your business card and other material on the tables.

Utilizing a few of these ideas will make your talk easy and enjoyable.
The most important thing to remember is consider yourself just talking to a client, prospect, or customer and not giving a speech.
A door prize or give away is always appreciated by the members. If you have advertising specialties, gift certificates or a product to use as a door prize, it would make you talk more memorable. You may want to purchase an inexpensive door prize. However, please understand that a door prize is not mandatory.

YOUR MEMBERSHIP, PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS, AND GUESTS

Your membership in NFBA is of great value and should not be considered lightly. You are the only member of your profession in the Group, and as such you owe a responsibility to the Club to attend the meetings regularly in order to become familiar with all the members and for them to get to know you.
Sometimes an overlap or professional conflict may occur. In addition to your primary product or service, you may handle a product or service which conflicts with another member’s primary line. Such overlaps do exist and it is important for you not to publicize that phase of your business which is not your primary membership category when it conflicts with another member’s primary membership category.
You are encouraged to invite guests and prospective members to the meetings. If you bring a guest (business associate, friend, relative, etc.) you should sit with your guest and introduce him or her to the group when it is your turn to introduce yourself. You must attend and be on time if you have a guest or prospective attending.
If you would like to bring a prospective member to a meeting, you must contact the Membership Chairperson first. This will eliminate any possible conflicts and uncomfortable situations if there is a conflict of professions.

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