Lost business

Sometimes I wonder if all BNI members actually want more business.

Why?

Well, this week I meet a member whom I had never met before, and asked if I could have their business card. Not that they knew, but I needed someone who did what they said they were brilliant at. But all I received in reply was ‘No.’

And, as it turned out, by the time they left that was all I got from them in total.

I couldn’t believe it, but far worse, I will never use them or refer them.

To start with I have three reasons;

1.    They could have written down their number,

2.    They could have asked for my business card instead,

3.    They could have asked me how they could help me.

And, of course, there are other things they could have asked or said. But, what did I get? Not a thing.

So, any possible business for them was gone in that moment. They had no idea who I was.

Plus, and I don’t think I need to explain why, I couldn’t refer them based on that type of action.

How you react is very important for future work and referrals, so please make sure that you always connect really well with the people you meet.

Got your business cards on you?!

Communication…

 …well lack of it!

Two members that I have contacted, for the first time over three weeks ago, so far have not sent me any type of reply. And I’m not talking about just sending an email here.

I have sent them a number of emails, text messages and a phone message.

Now it might be that they don’t think a reply is required, they have no time, or that they just aren’t interested enough.

There could be many reasons as to why I haven’t heard a thing from them. It’s even possible that you can think of a good reason yourself.

But, have you, and more importantly have they, thought about the comeback of no reply more deeply?

What does no response really mean?

Does it even matter?

Well the BIG answer is – yes it does!

When I say, yes it does, the reason is massive. But, it’s to them, not me.

As, long term, they will get fewer referrals.

But why, you may be thinking.

Know, Like and Trust.

If you are going to be referred confidently, your fellow members need to: Know you, Like you, and to Trust you.

What no communication means is that they don’t know if you will contact the person that they could refer to you.

They have no evidence that they can trust you to do so.

So, they don’t (refer you).

Which means for the best results, and the most referrals that you will receive, you need to communicate on every single occasion and without any delay.

Even if you are busy or because what you have been asked is not really for you, you must reply.

But, be careful, as to what you say.

And, here are a couple of examples: ‘I’m too busy’, could simply mean I’ve no time for any more work. The result could be fewer referrals. ‘Not my sort of job’, can mean other referrals lost; unless you explain why and do your best to help them with their referral. Recommend someone good who could do it.

Good communication is essential to build Know, Like and Trust with your fellow BNI members and have your referral rate grow and be better.

Who should you reply to today?

Have you a spare minute?

That’s all – no longer.

Many BNI members are so busy that they find it hard to find any real time to work on their BNI membership and so find true success hard to come by.

But, I imagine that your answer to my question is a ‘Yes. Of course, maybe even a little longer.’ However, a minute is all you need.

So, now you have a question, what for? The answer is, to help you grow your business.

Most of us joined our BNI Chapter to build our business, by receiving referrals (recommendations) from other members, that get to know, like and trust us, over and over again.

And, visitors are very important to this, as they build your number of contacts, help grow your Power Team, which in turn will enhance your level of achievement.

Imagine if your chapter had three visitors every week. In a year that would make 150 prospective new customers; all whom you would meet and who would listen to your sales pitch.

It doesn’t matter if they join your chapter; the most important thing is that you get to meet them and grow your possible connections.

The fundamental thing is that they come to one meeting; that’s all. Of course, if they like what they see, they will come again; maybe even apply to join. However, just coming once, is what means the most to your chapter.

Anyway back to the one minute.

It will take one minute to invite a visitor.

Do that every day and you invite five people a week. Do it for 46 weeks (I’m allowing for holidays here) that will mean you will have invited 230 people in a year.

Even if only one person in 30 comes that will mean you will have eight visitors.

For a minute think about how long it takes you to speak to eight prospective new customers a year? Longer than 230 minutes I bet.

One last thing before you get going, as I know you will. Start first with the people you know, as far more will support you.

And, this could be a surprise; it was to me. One of my best customers became one of our best chapter members! Plus, I doubled my sales with them.

Good luck and enjoy.

Do I have to have a Sub?

Over the years this comment has often been made to me, as well as many more, not so good, variations.

In truth, I guess the answer is ‘No’, but of course it would affect your membership.

But what’s truly important is why does BNI want you to have a great Sub?

Well, the answer is simple. And, what’s more, it’s to help your business succeed.

Now imagine this. You have booked and paid for a weekly advert in a local magazine. Why? So, that you can grow your business and get more new customers.

If one week the magazine ran a blank advert for you, what would you think? They must be mad. You are losing possible business. You want your money back. Plus, I expect, a fair bit more.

Now imagine if no one is at your meeting for you. No Substitute.

If you think, but that’s not the same, you are dead right. But I doubt that you are thinking it is far, far worse.

Of course people will miss your advert (60 Seconds), visitors will totally miss you, and of course, you will miss your fellow members' adverts, plus more.

But, the real damage is that you will be losing future business (referrals), because people will wonder if you are reliable. If they recommend you to a good contact, can they guarantee that you will turn up? And the answer is no.

Now, before you jump up and down and say that’s not true - people know me. I’m not talking about the people that know you well; I’m talking about new contacts and new business.

So, if your main reason for being a BNI member is more business, then brilliant Subs will help you very much indeed.

How to get more referrals…

 It doesn’t matter who you are, or how many referrals you receive, because getting some more would be very useful. Plus, if you are unlucky, and don’t get the number of referrals that you would like, then this would be amazing.

Now before you think, he’s going to say, ‘You've got to do lots more work’, let me stop you, because you don’t.

You have to do a little, but small changes can make a large difference to the number of referrals you get.

Just imagine improving by just 10% on the things you already do, what effect that would have combined in total. It would be massive.

Here are a few things to think about: attendance, 60 Seconds, your Feature Presentation, referrals given, visitors, workshops, One-2-Ones, testimonials, social events, your Power Team - for starters.

Just a small improvement on all of those, would have a very visible result overall. More referrals.

One of the things that you could do is to update your BNI Chapter website; certainly your part of it. What’s your presentation like on it?

I looked at some BNI Surrey chapter websites last week and many members could do a little more. In fact some members could even make a start!

More than one member, not only didn’t have a photograph of themselves, but worse still, had no copy at all. This will mean that they are losing referrals.

Trust me, it’s a fact.

This one thing will take just a few minutes. Add a photo and some text. Talk about how you help people, not about you. Try to avoid using, ‘I ….’

Doing this will improve your referral rate, as over the years I have meet many people who have ‘passed on’ when they have found a member with very little info about themselves on their BNI website.

Make a start now – it will only take a few minutes. And, you will be one step toward a better referral rate.

Have you invited a visitor this week?

It’s a simple question, and if you haven’t, why not?

Inviting visitors is probably the easiest thing that you can do in BNI; not just for BNI but, more importantly, for you; as the result is more business being passed.

So, the question is, why don’t you invite more people?

Now an answer I’m often given is because it’s hard. But, believe me, it’s not. In fact it’s so easy, I’m surprised you don’t do it every day.

But, BNI members have excuses for not inviting (some have not had a visitor for a year or more) and two reasons tend to be mentioned often.

One is that they don’t know if BNI will be good enough for them. Well there are many answers to this, but there are two very important ones. First, you joined BNI because you saw it as very promising, and second, it is up for your contact to decide; not for you to decide for them.

So, invite your contacts along.

Reason number two is often that you don’t know someone who would want to join your BNI chapter. And the answer here is very simple. You don’t need to. As all you are looking for are business people, who want more business, and can come to one meeting. That’s it, nothing more at all.

So again, invite your contacts along.

Inviting is simple, can lead to lots more business, and often comes with a BIG thank you.

I know that you could invite someone this week. So, why not do it right now? Use a text, email or phone call.

It will take you just 30 seconds.

7 Weeks!

 The start of the New Year and the beginning of your businesses extended future plan; where you hope to be in the years to come.

As with all plans, however distant they are, there are things that must be done today, if you are going to succeed.

And, a seven-week plan, for your BNI success, is a great way to start, not only for your BNI Chapter but also for you.

Often your chapter will have a goal and all the members will be given targets to meet. New targets (plans) are essential to your success, as otherwise, if you keep doing the same things, you will just get the same results.

Now chapter plans are sometimes difficult for some members and easy for others. For example, as a member you are asked to bring along five new members a year. If on average you invite 11 a year (and they attend) it’s very easy, but if last year you didn’t have one visitor, then it could be very hard.

And, that’s why I love the ‘7 Week Resolution’. It’s your commitment to your chapter, chosen by you. Signed and sealed! But, there is one condition; your commitment has to be better than your normal activity; based only on your actions.

The things to cover are: visitors, referrals, One2Ones and workshops.

So, if in seven weeks you would on average have three One2Ones, then in the next seven weeks you would commit to having, say five. With workshops you might not often attend, so your commitment would be to attend one. Referrals you might give 10, so you could commit to giving 12. And, with visitors, you may not have had one for months, so you would commit to bring one. But, if normally, you might bring two visitors, then you would commit to bringing three.

What’s great about the ‘7 Week Resolution’ is that is what you choose and commit to doing, and when every chapter member commits to doing this the results are often outstanding.

But, the best thing is that it’s part of your future business success. So, if you are truly serious about your future, then the BNI ‘7 Week Resolution’, is a must do.

Note: If you would like a '7 Week Resolution' form then let me know or ask your BNI Director.