# Photography, Pruning, and Growing a Statewide Network with Michael Preece Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-growth-equation-7144122/photography-pruning-and-growing-a-statewide-network-with-michael-preece Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-growth-equation-7144122/photography-pruning-and-growing-a-statewide-network-with-michael-preece.md Podcast: [The Growth Equation](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-growth-equation-7144122) Published: 2026-06-17T14:00:00+00:00 Episode link: https://www.evolvetogrow.com.au/ Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/722bf8ea-a3b0-4fd8-83e6-e800e16609ca.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-growth-equation-7144122/episodes/photography-pruning-and-growing-a-statewide-network-with-michael-preece Duration seconds: 1841 ## Resource In this episode of The Growth Equation, I sit down with Michael Preece, owner of BNAA Tasmania , to explore a different perspective on business networking, referrals, and long term business growth. Michael's journey spans more than four decades in business, beginning as a professional photographer before moving into sales and eventually building BNAA into one of Tasmania's leading relationship focused networking organisations. We discuss why many networking groups get referrals wrong, how genuine relationships create stronger business opportunities, and why forcing referrals often leads to wasted time and poor outcomes. Michael also shares how BNAA contracted during COVID before experiencing significant growth as business owners rediscovered the value of face to face connection. If you're a small business owner looking to generate better referrals, build stronger business relationships, and create sustainable growth, this episode is packed with practical insights. What You'll Learn In This Episode Why the best referrals come from strong relationships, not pressure or obligation. How Michael Preece built BNAA into a thriving networking community by focusing on trust, education, and genuine connection. The surprising lesson a wedding photography business taught Michael about sales, communication, and understanding people. How COVID became an unexpected catalyst for growth and created new opportunities for businesses willing to adapt. The difference between transactional networking and relationship based networking—and why one consistently delivers better results. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Networking in Tasmania 02:08 Michael Preece's Journey in Business 11:09 Growth and Development of BNAA 14:52 The Future of Networking in Tasmania 17:46 Building a Digital Platform… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-growth-equation-7144122/episodes/photography-pruning-and-growing-a-statewide-network-with-michael-preece/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-growth-equation-7144122/photography-pruning-and-growing-a-statewide-network-with-michael-preece.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.