Each week on 5 Minutes With, our hosts Mike White and Gary Spurgeon talk to experts in the media industry who know a thing or two. Today, our hosts talk to Dan Pincus from World Golf Network. World Golf Network is a 16 year old executive networking organization that focuses on relationships (because that is how business happens). WGN is unique because in addition to members having access to thousands of business owners and senior executives they also network regularly with the other members. To learn more, visit www.worldgolfnetwork.com
Mike White
Welcome back to BluHorn TV I’m Mike White. Joining me today is Gary Spurgeon and we interview business executives all over the country talking about what’s important in the industry. Today we’re talking about network marketing. How do you see marketing coming back to the grip and grin, the handshake, and actually having a personal relationship with someone you’re buying from?
Gary Spurgeon
I still think that’s paramount. It’s that personal interaction and no matter what, I think we’re always going to see that that personal connection means everything just to say hey how are you doing.
Mike White
Well joining us today we have Dan Pincus with the World Golf Network, joining us from New Jersey. So Daniel welcome to the program. What is it you guys do in terms of networking with your clients.
Dan Pincus
Right so as you guys said we believe that face to face networking is the most valuable way to get to know someone and people do business with people they know like and trust and we create an environment where people get to build relationships and get to know each other before they do business together.
Mike White
Tell us a little bit more about who you connect.
Dan Pincus
Right. So golf is actually a very strong way to build relationships. People really get to learn. If you cheat if you lie how you handle stress. They learn all about you as a person and when you’re on the golf course. So one of our main components of our program is actually putting people on the golf course together based on who’s good for business. So people get to really get to know who they’re dealing with and whether or not they trust and want to work with that kind of person. We work with mostly business to business companies because we try and match people up based on who can refer each other business rather than who can sell each other.
Gary Spurgeon
How do you pre qualify someone?
Dan Pincus
That’s a great question. We have an application process but in addition it’s a referral based program. So our members are the ones who actually refer in the members into the group. So part of the membership is that we will bring out a guest for a member who will be good for their business and they’ll bring out someone they know like and trust that might be good for the network. And the other thing is that our program is a corporate membership not individual. So any owner or partner or a senior executive the firm could use that membership but we don’t allow non decision makers to make sure that the program is worthwhile for everyone using it.
Mike White
When someone joins your program. Are there usually others whether the chamber or something else that that are part of at the same time or are you typically a standalone program for those corporations.
Dan Pincus
We actually recommend that all of our members belong to a minimum of one or two other networking organizations because you’re only a strong and powerful as the people you know. And therefore we think it’s great to be involved in more than one organization so you can cross pollinate the people you know and help each other and do more business with each other.
Gary Spurgeon
So you’re in the New York and New Jersey area right now. Do you see yourself expanding outside that network base.
Dan Pincus
Yes we currently have people looking at potentially partnering with us and opening up territories in other parts of the country. If they do end up getting involved in what we do we will do all the back end for them and their total role is just to basically build relationships with their own community and we’ll support them on all their back end such as the Web site, the paperwork, administrative processing, and financial part of their business.
Mike White
Well Dan thank you for coming on our program today. And to find out more about Dan’s company, World Golf network, visit us at BlluHorn.com. thank you for watching BluHorn TV. We’ll see you next time.