What’s that pin?

Yesterday (Saturday) I went to see a prospective new customer (a partner in an International company) and as we were talking he asked me what the pin was on my jacket. I looked at the pin, twiddled it a little, and replied that it was my BNI pin. Obviously he asked me what BNI stood for.

I explained that BNI stood for Business Network International and that we are the world’s largest referral organisation. He then asked what we did. I briefly took him through the meeting format and explained that we all supported each other and shared referrals. His next question was about the sort of businesses made up a group. He was very interested in our single category policy and surprised at the size of our chapters; I told him that chapters ranged in size from around 20 members to as many as 80 members and that we had just about every type of business as a member from Accountants and IFAs, to every type of trade, to driving instructors and tailors. He said that he was surprised that he had never heard of us.

I knew that because of his job he was not a potential visitor (never judge anyone!), but that like all successful business people he just wanted knowledge of things he didn’t know about and should.

He then surprised me by asking if I could recommend a good electrician.Of course I said I could, and he asked if I could put him in touch. I found out a little more about the work he needed doing and then texted my electrician just under an hour later and passed the referral.

The thing about this is that it would never have happened if I wasn’t wearing my BNI pin. Now, I’m not a crazy person swapping my BNI pin onto every jacket I own before I go out, but I do have a pin on just about every jacked I have; around nine I think.

The BNI pin is a conversation starter and you never know when someone might ask you what the pin you are wearing is. So if you don’t wear your BNI pin please do because it can’t harm you; whereas not wearing it certainly can. And, if you only have one pin and would like more, just ask your BNI Director for some as I’m sure they will be happy to supply you.

The lesson here is that finding referrals doesn’t have to be hard work and that doing the little things can make a big difference.

Note: In case you are wondering this is a true story and happened exactly as I have told it.

Martin Lawson

My first memory of Martin was when he and Gillian ran workshops together. They were very useful workshops, but it was the dynamic between the pair that really made them special events.

I also remember Martin presenting the Member Success workshop at BNI Head Office. Over the years I’ve seen many directors give this workshop, but none were a match for Martin. He made the BIN pin seem like the most important tool that your BNI membership gave you.

However it was a One-2-One that I had with him that I remember the most. I had recently trained as a BNI Director and thought that a One-2-One with my boss would be a great idea; luckily Martin did too.

So one evening I found myself at the BNI Head Office and shown into his office. Martin was surprised that I had asked for a One-2-One because not many directors did.

Having been trained well I thought I would play the ‘you game’ and ask about Martin first. But I was talking with a professional and it wasn’t long before we were talking about me.

Firstly, Martin asked about me, and my family, and how he could help me. Then he asked about my business and how he could help me there, and finally he asked about how I was finding being a BNI Director and if there was something he could do that would help me.

I got so much from my time with Martin that evening and it shaped a great deal of my thinking about BNI, networking and what was good referral-giving.

Just as a matter of interest – I did find out some fascinating things about Martin that evening; I will miss him.