People do business with and refer those they know, like, and trust. With that said, how do you 'show up' and present yourself to your fellow members? It's not so much what we say, as how we show up and what we do. This quote about sums it up -
'What you do thunders above your head so loudly, I cannot hear the words you speak.' ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Here are some things to think about to build trust and to be more referable:
- Attendance - Low absences equal more referrals. In podcast #436, goes deep in reviewing the attendance policy. Did you know that all of the BNI policies were/are created by members, i.e. the International Board of Advisors made up entirely of BNI members. In this podcast, Dr. Misner talks about the results for two chapters and what happened when they started adhering to the attendance policy. The bottom line, when people show up consistently, they are going to build relationships, they are going to get to know and trust each other better, and they are going to be more committed to giving referrals. The "why" for making sure you have regular attendance is that it has a direct and dramatic linear correlation to referrals.
- Being on time is part of showing up. If you frequently arrive late, you become less referable, because not showing up on time makes you seem less reliable. People will assume that if you show up late to your BNI meeting, you'll show up late to appointments and miss deadlines. Show up to your meeting on time. It's your credibility and your reputation-and participating in open networking leads to more referrals. Read the entire transcript of Podcast #583 with Hazel Walker, 'How late is late?' Hazel says about people who consistently come late, "what you do some of the time is what you do all of the time. If I am going to refer you, I need to know that you are going to do all the things that you could possibly do to make me look good when I give you the referral. If I give you a referral and you are going to show up late, that does not make me look good, so the likelihood of me giving you referrals dwindles every time I see you come late, especially if you do that consistently. So it is going to impact your referrals over time because it is impacting trust and credibility."
- Presenting yourself and being referable. In Podcast #577, Meaghan Chitwood talks about not being referable due to her appearance and not making a very good impression. Per Meaghan, 'I always thought credibility came from knowing what you are talking about, being effective, and things like that. That's what I was focused on, was making sure I was a really good business coach and that I was effectively communicating, but I didn't look the part of a business coach. Perception is reality. So imagine that something as simple as adjusting the way you look, looking more professional to improve your first impression, can lead to more referrals.'
- Full Participation. In Podcast #545, Dr. Misner talks about full participation during the meeting. Putting your phone away. Participate 100% in the meeting. Treat whoever is speaking as if they were the biggest client you could possibly land. You have to earn trust by showing your fellow members how professional you are and by treating them like prized clients. You wouldn't sit and text on your cell phone in front of a prized client would you? No, you would give them your full attention. By not giving your fellow BNI members your full attention during the weekly meetings leads to the assumption this is your MO. And they will not want to trust you with their prized customers. In Podcast #385, tells about a visitor who didn't want to join a BNI Chapter because so many people were using their cell phones during the meeting.
- Weekly and Featured Presentations. In Podcast #532, Tiffanie Kellog joins Dr. Misner and explains why members aren't getting more referrals based on their weekly and featured presentations.
Here are some common mistakes -
- Weekly Presentation Mistakes
- Reading your presentation. It's better to practice than to read, and better to have a few bullet points to remind you what you want to say than to read your whole presentation.
- Being vague. Remember, "specific is terrific," especially if you only have 30 seconds. Focus on one product, or service. Never say "anyone" or "everyone."
- Giving up your weekly presentation when you do a featured presentation. Your weekly presentation can be a great introduction to your featured presentation.
- Focusing on your history instead of why you do what you do and how you help your clients. Remember the goal is to drive referrals.
- Not making an emotionally charged connection. People won't do business with you if they don't know, like, and trust you.
- Staring at the screen. Reading your slides will send your audience to sleep. Use images and a few bullet points in your slides.
- Opening up for Q&A. This can take your presentation far off track. Instead, invite people who have questions to schedule a one-to-one with you or ask them to write it on their business card so you can answer later.
- Saying "I haven't had time to prepare." You've had six weeks. Saying this makes you look unreliable.
- Spewing tons of details about your business (verbal vomit). People won't remember it all anyway. Share a couple of points people can hang onto.
- Givers Gain - finding referrals for fellow members. In Podcast #379, Dr. Misner talks about being in sync with our fellow BNI members. Holding one-to-ones with each other to learn more about one another's business, asking each other how can you help, having that Givers Gain focus is really an effective way of staying in sync and supporting your referral partners. We all need to make a commitment to maintain focus on how we can help each other in business. To look for ways to help each other and to be in sync with one another. Relationship building is all about collaboration and cooperation and being in sync.
- One to Ones - In Podcast #570, Dr. Misner goes over the statistics that show that more one to ones equal more referrals. Those who do three or more 1-2-1s per month give and receive twice as many referrals as those who do one or fewer 1-2-1s in a month. In Podcast #562 gives strategizing tips on how to be more effective in your one to ones and how to give and receive more referrals. Scheduling and preparation. Sending Gains profile. Interviewing fellow members to get the most information possible to help find them referrals.
- Follow up. As the old saying goes, 'The fortune is in the follow-up.' That means following up with fellow members, referrals, clients, etc. In Podcast #623, Dr. Misner goes over a 24/7/30 plan for follow-up.
- Always learning. What's not working? In Podcast #590, Dr. Misner and Meaghan Chitwood talk about if something is not working, perhaps we need to change or eliminate what we're doing. - If you're doing something that works for everyone else and it's not working for you, ask yourself "How can I do this differently and get a better result?"- Take a look at the tasks you're engaging in-both within and outside of BNI-and eliminate the tasks that aren't getting results. If you think BNI is taking too much time, talk to your director consultant about how to work your BNI program more effectively.- If there's a skill you need to hone in BNI, search BNI University for that topic and you'll find tons of resources.
- Take a Leadership role - Show Up, Participate and Step Up. In Podcast #383, Dr. Misner interviews Don Romero. 'Dan estimates that he could cover 650 years of BNI dues in what he gets out of one year's membership in BNI. His business has so far gathered $25,963,639 in assets from referrals or referrals that come from referrals. For Dan, the ROI of BNI membership is impressive indeed.'
- Time - In Podcast #596, Dr. Misner talks about the time it takes to build good business relationships and when the referrals start clicking in BNI.
Here are four questions to ask yourself to gain perspective on your efforts and results. Keep asking them until the answers become obvious.
- Am I being realistic about the amount of time it will take in my profession to gain the critical level of confidence I need?
- Am I regularly making stimulating, educational presentations to my fellow networkers about the value I provide my clients.
- Am I doing business with others in my network so I can give them dynamic testimonials and steer business to them so they will return the favor?
- Am I meeting regularly with my networking colleagues to learn about their businesses so I can confidently refer my contacts to them?
It takes time to build relationships. The best way to speed up the process is to spend time in the process.
For more information check out the videos and podcast listed below.
Your Support Team is here to help you, i.e. Your Director Consultant, Area Director, Senior Director, and Executive Directors. If you or your chapter needs help, support, or have questions, reach out.
For previous articles refer to my Notably Green Blog.
And join the Facebook Group - Notably Green
In appreciation,
Annette
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