I am in a network group of business people here in my local community. We meet once a week over breakfast and trade referrals and job leads with one another. It really is a neat way of generating business. It also gives me a list of other service businesses to help my customers out if they are looking for something that I do not provide.

We try to let only one person or business from a particular industry in the group. Last week we were talking with different car insurance companies to try to fill that position in our network. I personally meet with five or six over a week.

I would invite them to the meeting to be there as a guest and then if they liked it they could sign up and lockout their competition; other car insurance companies in this case. I told them that people are always searching for better car insurance rates and that a referral group like this could really help their business.

I did not take long before the car insurance companies wanted to sign on and we had to make a decision as to which one we would let in. It was basically first come first serve, or in this case whichever insurance company wrote the membership fee check the quickest was the one that would get in.