At the end of this month’s Oxfordshire’s Bigger Business Breakfast, on Friday, we held a Bonus Session to show members what is already live online, what is coming next and how they can get more value from OBCN between meetings.
The goal of the breakfast is very simple: get good people into a busy room, make it easier for them to have proper conversations and help those relationships turn into introductions, opportunities and business.
That will always be at the heart of what we do.
But we also have a growing membership full of brilliant Oxfordshire businesses, and I want OBCN to do more to promote those businesses outside the room as well.
The OBCN members’ directory is now live
Over the last six months, members have been invited to build a profile with a photograph, company logo, website, LinkedIn page and a straightforward explanation of what they do.
Those profiles are now appearing in the public members’ directory for everyone who has opted in.
The important words there are “opted in”.
We need members to log in, complete their profile and tick the box giving us permission to publish it. Profiles are checked and approved before they go live, and changes are currently uploaded in batches rather than appearing instantly.
You can access the portal at:
The directory is deliberately quite simple at the moment, but the ambition is much bigger. I want it to become the first place people look when they need a good, independent Oxfordshire business.
If somebody needs an IT company, recruiter, photographer, solicitor, coach, marketer, accountant or any of the other services represented in the room, they should be able to find the right person through OBCN.
Turning profiles into genuine lead generation
This is not meant to become a directory that looks nice but does very little.
The next stage is to add lead-generation forms to member profiles. That means somebody visiting the OBCN website will be able to read about a member, understand what they do and contact them directly.
The profiles should also help members in two other ways.
First, every profile links back to the member’s own website, helping search engines connect the business with its services, location and expertise.
Second, the clear, structured information should make it easier for AI tools and agents to understand who our members are and when they may be relevant to somebody searching for help.
We will continue improving the profiles, including adding more social links and a fairer way of ordering members so the same people are not always shown first.
Connecting the directory with “Who’s in the Room”
Members already have access to “Who’s in the Room” through the OBCN portal.
Members can see everybody attending an event, while guests can see the members. That is one of the practical benefits of membership.
Now that public profiles are live, the next step is to connect the two systems properly. Instead of only seeing somebody’s name and sending them a message, attendees will be able to open their profile, learn more about them and then make contact.
That should make it much easier to plan who you want to speak to before an event and follow up properly afterwards.
Putting OBCN members at the centre of our marketing
We spend a significant amount of money advertising Oxfordshire’s Bigger Business Breakfast and bringing new people into the room.
Rather than sending all of that money to large social media platforms, and giving them another two percent in Digital Services Tax, I would much rather use more of the value to promote our own members and keep it in the local economy.
The plan is to invite members into our studio in Eynsham and help them record a simple 20-second introduction.
It does not need to be a polished television performance. We will coach people through it and make it as easy and natural as possible.
Those introductions can then become individual adverts showing the real people who make up the Oxfordshire Business Community. Each advert can lead to a page where somebody can book the next Bigger Business Breakfast and contact the featured member.
With around 115 members, that gives us around 115 different pieces of creative rather than one generic advert trying to represent everybody.
We may also use the studio to record short, informal conversations about what members do. Talking to another person is often far easier than staring straight down a camera and trying to become a presenter overnight.
A more useful OBCN blog and newsletter
OBCN has a blog, you’re reading it now! It has not had much attention since I took over, but that is changing.
The plan is to publish regularly, ideally every week, beginning with updates and useful points from our meetings.
We will also invite members to contribute guest articles.
These need to be useful, expert-led articles rather than disguised adverts. A photographer might explain how to compose a stronger image. A video specialist might explain why sound matters as much as the picture. An HR expert might explain a change employers need to understand.
The principle is the same as good networking: help people first.
Walking up to somebody and saying “hello, buy my stuff” rarely works. Sharing useful advice, demonstrating your expertise and giving people a chance to know, like and trust you works much better.
Members with genuinely useful news, events or community activity may also be featured in the blog or newsletter. A member holding a workplace wellbeing event with a charity, for example, is a useful local story. A basic sales offer on its own probably is not.
The OBCN online learning area
Our learning management system is also close to launch.
The first content will include recordings of previous bonus sessions, including sessions with Rebecca Lisi and Rich Waterman, plus our session on getting more from networking.
We are also looking at behind-the-scenes content from the Business Brunch, practical AI content and a proposed wellbeing session.
The bigger opportunity is to involve more OBCN members.
Members will be invited to deliver expert-led bonus sessions, either individually or in collaboration with others. These do not all need to be two-hour presentations. A group of focused 20-minute sessions may work extremely well.
There is no speaker fee, but the session will be recorded and placed in the membership area with a profile and lead-generation route for the speaker.
The best sessions will give people something genuinely useful they can put into practice. If you have a five-step process, perhaps you can teach the first two steps properly. People receive real value, understand how you work and may then ask for help with steps three to five.
That is how modern content works. Help first, prove your expertise and earn the conversation.
Invite & Earn
Members now have an individual Invite & Earn link inside the portal.
The aim is to make it easy to invite a good client, supplier or business contact who would genuinely benefit from being in the room.
Using a member’s personal link, a new member can join and get their first 3 months for the lowest cost available anywhere, with no long contract holding them in.
They pay for their own membership and can cancel at any time. If they stay beyond the initial period and continue as a full-paying member for the following three months, the person who referred them receives half-price membership for three months.
There are larger rewards for members who successfully introduce several people, including the potential for longer half-price periods or free membership. Full details are in the members portal.
It costs a fortune to reach good local business people through online advertising. I would rather reward members for introducing the right people.
The more good people we have in the room, the more conversations, leads, introductions and opportunities can move around it.
More opportunities through Get Radio and the Business Brunch
We also discussed the Business Brunch on Get Radio.
The programme has run for more than five years and airs at 11am on Sundays. Ben Thompson normally hosts three guests for a relaxed discussion around a business topic.
It is not a formal presentation and guests do not need to prepare a speech. Ben is exceptionally good at asking questions, keeping the conversation moving and drawing useful information out of people.
The programme is broadcast on Get Radio across Oxfordshire, released as a podcast and supported by video content. Guests also record a short station tag that continues to play between songs after their appearance.
Members with the right topic or expertise can put themselves forward. Ben chooses and approves the final guests, but OBCN and Get Radio can help make the introductions.
We’ll be recording an episode at the August edition of Oxfordshire’s Bigger Business Brunch in front of a live OBCN audience. This is a really exciting opportunity for members and guests to get involved. Get your tickets for the next edition of Oxfordshire’s Bigger Business Breakfast here.
Supper clubs and a Christmas event
Finally, we’re bringing back the OBCN supper clubs!
These are deliberately small dinners, normally around 15 to 25 people, at a really good venue. Previous evenings have included The Chequers at Burcot, an Oxford University venue and the Old Parsonage.
They sit outside the normal membership fee, and they only work if people book quickly. If we can launch one and fill it without spending money advertising it, we can run them regularly, perhaps every six to eight weeks, or around six times a year.
We are also looking at the feasibility of a larger Christmas event in December, potentially with a proper Christmas meal, games, a bar, music and dancing.
That one is still an idea being worked through, but there was enough interest in the room to keep developing it.
What members should do now
There are four simple actions:
- Log in at hub.obcn.co.uk/portal.
- Complete your profile and opt in to the public directory.
- Check your personal Invite & Earn link.
- Tell us if you would like to contribute an article, record a member introduction, deliver a bonus session or be considered for the Business Brunch.
Some of what we discussed is already live. Some is being built. Some consists of ideas I have now said out loud in a room full of members, which means I am probably committed to making them happen.
That is fine.
OBCN should not just be a breakfast people attend once a month. It is a community and a platform that helps good Oxfordshire businesses become better known, build stronger relationships and win more of the right work.
The more members who take part, the more useful it becomes for everybody.
