Thursday, November 05, 2026
BNI's referral network generated over 4 million referrals in a single quarter, and its model rests on depth over breadth. Here is the Dream 100 method SME owners can use to make referrals a system, not a hope.
You can pay a few hundred dollars for an AI workshop in New Zealand, or several thousand. The price tells you very little. What matters is whether you walk out on Monday with one task handed to a tool, or with a folder of notes and a faint sense of guilt.
Disclosure: Simple-Growth publishes this guide and runs AI sessions for owners, so we have an interest. We have not claimed any option is better. Prices below are the public ones we could open, checked 6 November 2026. Confirm with each provider before you book.
Two published examples show how wide the range is.
That is roughly a 36 times difference. Neither is right or wrong. A short session suits an owner who wants to try the tools. A longer programme suits a leadership team that needs to change how work is done.
The ticket price is the small number. The large one is the tool you pay for every month and never use. Before you compare workshops, ask what you want to stop doing by the end of the month. If you cannot name a task, any workshop will feel interesting and change nothing.
Two public schemes are worth asking your Regional Business Partner about.
Funding rules change, and a workshop is not automatically eligible. Ask before you pay, not after.
If you want to start before you spend anything, the free two-minute ME4SME AI audit at me4sme.com shows where an AI tool is most likely to save you time. If you would rather talk it through, book a free 30-minute call with Kevin.
Prices and funding rules were taken from the pages linked above on 6 November 2026. We have not independently verified provider claims.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
The share of businesses reporting serious dead stock has doubled since 2024, new research found. Here's why rising revenue can still mean tightening cash, and the three numbers that catch it early.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
42% of business owners named efficiency their top 2026 priority, a US survey found. Here's Michalowicz's Clockwork system for building a business that doesn't need you in every decision.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
B2B win rates fell to 19-21% in 2025. Here's why a quiet Q4 pipeline is usually a budget deadline in disguise, and the three moves that use it instead of waiting for January.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Chemical and industrial distributors rarely have a product problem. Here is how to find the real constraint, escape the price war and build a 90-day plan.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
97% of small business owners believe branding matters to their success — only 18% have an actual strategy for it. Here is the 3-question Brand Key test that closes the gap without a rebrand.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Roughly 90 percent of companies never achieve sustained profitable growth. Here's Jim Collins' Hedgehog Concept for telling which growth opportunities are actually worth chasing.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
68 percent of US Google searches now end with no click at all. Here's what that means for small business marketing, and the fix that doesn't depend on getting the click back.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Most strategic plans are tactics with better formatting. Here's the one-sentence test, borrowed from Sinek's Golden Circle, that tells you if yours has a real why behind it.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
A private, unwritten goal succeeds about 35 percent of the time. One with a weekly accountability check-in succeeds more than 70 percent of the time. Here's why that gap exists.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Roughly 65 percent of small businesses are tied so closely to their owner they'd struggle to run without them. Here's Gerber's E-Myth framework for finally getting out of the technician's chair.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
42 percent of B2B businesses do nothing proactive during the pre-Christmas slowdown. Here's what the ones who keep selling do differently, and why January rewards them for it.
Monday, October 19, 2026
Is Vistage worth it? A fair, source-linked look at what peer advisory groups offer US business owners, a checklist for deciding, and how one-on-one coaching differs.
Monday, October 19, 2026
Most small business owners know they don't compete on price, but can't say, in one sentence, what they compete on instead. Here's the three-step framework that fixes it.
Monday, October 19, 2026
A strong December can feel like proof you're growing. It can also be the reason nobody builds the pipeline that carries January. Here's the three-question check to run now.
Monday, October 19, 2026
A good coach doesn't start with your goals. They start with three numbers most owners can't answer on the spot, and that gap tells them exactly where to begin.