Featured Presentation Q and A

In BNI Featured Presentations, it's generally NOT recommended to ask for questions at the very end. Instead, it's better to invite people to schedule one-on-one meetings or write down their questions on a business card for later review. This helps keep the presentation focused and prevents it from being derailed by a Q&A session. 

Here's a more detailed explanation:

• Maintaining Focus:

  A Q&A at the end can easily deviate from the intended message and goals of the presentation. By inviting people to follow up with specific questions, you maintain control and ensure your key points are the focus. 
• Time Management:
• BNI presentations have a limited time slot. A Q&A session can easily eat into that time, potentially leaving you short on time to share your most important information. 
• Referral Focus:
• The primary goal of a BNI Featured Presentation is to generate referrals. Inviting one-on-one meetings or business card questions allows you to focus on building relationships and understanding the needs of the audience, which is more likely to lead to referrals. 
• Alternative Approaches:
• If you do want to address questions, consider incorporating a Q&A section in the middle of the presentation or dedicating a portion of the time to it. This can be a valuable tool for engagement and clarifying key points, but it's important to manage it effectively.

• Planting Questions: Another alternative is to plant questionsAsk one or two people to ask a question that you can answer in a show andeffective way.

• Example:
• Darren from BNI Education Slots suggests not ending a presentation with a Q&A, as it can derail the intended message. 
• 
  
• By focusing on a clear message and inviting further discussion through scheduled follow-ups, you can maximize the impact of your BNI Featured Presentation and increase your chances of generating referrals. Plus, you are respecting the time allotted for your presentation.

VCP - The Basics

The VCP acronym is one you will hear about in BNI quite a bit and there are many articles and podcasts on these principles, i.e. Visibility, Credibility, and Profitability.  Let’s examine the basics from the perspective of becoming a new member in a new chapter or core group. 

Visibility – In order for the other members to get to know you, you have to show up.  Attendance is key.  In Podcast #329, Woody Allen said that 80% of success is showing up.  In BNI, you’re not just a name on a roster.  We have an attendance policy which is to help all the members.  You paid to be part of a group that works together to help each other to grow their respective businesses. Visibility is the first step in getting referrals and training your referral team.

Credibility – Think of someone you trust.  You probably trust that person because you know they will do what they way.  Building your credibility in BNI, is building relationships with your fellow members by doing what you say you will do when you say you’ll do it.  It starts with showing up for your meeting each week on time or being early is even better.  Dressing the part, even on Zoom.  And being prepared with your part of the meeting and your weekly presentation.  After all, this is your time to train your referral team.

Also, consistently inviting and having visitors is another great way to build credibility with your referral partners, because visitors equate to possible business for someone in the group and possibly a potential member. 

The third element of VCP is Profitability – That’s what we’re all here for, right?  To get referrals.

-       You cannot have profits if no one knows you

-       You cannot have profits if no one trusts you

How do we measure VCP?  By the referrals we receive.

So, in order to get the results you desire, you must learn to do the activities efficiently and effectively.  Statistics have shown, the more you learn, the more you earn.  Be open to learning how to network differently and more effectively.

So, ask yourself these questions…

-       Are you willing to do the activities, i.e. the Key Performance Indicators to get the results you say you desire?

-       Are you willing to accept feedback to improve your results?

-       Are you coachable?

-       Are you willing to be held accountable?

This is a process that’s all new to most of us.  For the process to work, we need to be ‘all in.’ 

BNI provides us most everything we need to be successful; we just have to come with a positive attitude, be prepared each week to learn, and work the process.

In appreciation,

Annette

Area Director

The Importance of BNI Member Success Program

 This article was written by Sam Williamson a BNI Member from New Zealand.

Online BNI Member Success Program (MSP) Training

1 November 2019 by Sam Williamson

Member Success Program (MSP) training which is completed via our BNI University online learning platform is very important to each members success. MSP is core learning that every new member needs to complete to get up to speed with BNI for two reasons:

1. To ensure that they get value from BNI themselves. 

2. That they become and effective team member for the benefit of their fellow members.

The online MSP is easy to do, doesn’t take much time and the feedback we have had from members has been very positive. MSP is continuing education, just like is found in other professions e.g. legal, accounting, insurance, real estate etc.

Professional Development

Who is in a trade or profession that requires them to complete professional development hours to stay up to date and on form

BNI is no different, BNI provides professional development modules via BNI University to assist you throughout your BNI Career and in your business.

One of the core learnings every member needs is our Member Success Programme (MSP) training. Think of this as BNI Basic training, it is designed to get the member up to speed quickly so that they get the most out of their membership and become and effective team member of the chapter.

It is also a suitable as refresher for longer term members.

Lifelong Learning is our 2nd core value in BNI – we believe in continuous improvement of personal and professional skills.

Success always comes through a process of expansion and learning!

The More you Learn, the more your earn.  Also, Members must complete MSP prior to being added to the speaker rotation.

Please speak with your Leadership Team or your Director if you have any questions.

In Appreciation,

Annette

BNI Area Director.

Relationships Matter

What You Did and What You Do

Will get You Through

Relationships Matter

Yes, relationships matter now more than ever.  Wow! Things have changed in just a few weeks!  And thanks to BNI for their innovation, we are still able to network, we just have to do it differently.

When thinking about relationships I'm reminded of the story of the Chinese Bamboo Tree  Like the story indicates, it takes time to build strong solid relationships.  The kind of relationships that will withstand and remain during this unprecedented time.  As Dr. Misner indicated in his podcast, we don't need to stop networking, we just need to do it differently.

Even though we can't meet face to face, we still are having our weekly meeting, via bni online.  And we can still and should have one to ones, we just do them virtually.  Checking in and keeping in touch with our referral partners is vital now more than ever.  Here is a good podcast to learn more about having meaningful one to ones.

Here are some other actions you can take at this time to keep your business in the forefront....

• Complete/Update your BNIConnect profile.  Your profile is public on the internet not just to other BNI members.  Often times in helping people with their marketing, I find that their BNIConnect profile will often come up in a Google search before their website.
• Complete your GAINS profile which is part of your online profile and share and/or review member's profile prior to having your one to ones.
• Schedule one to ones with your fellow members even if you've had one with them in the past.  Find out how they are doing personally as well as business. You never know how you can help them or they might could help you.
• Arrange a meeting with your Contact Sphere and work towards turning it into a Power Team.
• Reach out to other business owners and invite them to attend your bni online virtual meeting.  Those that perhaps you have invited before might be more receptive now.
• Have one to ones with other BNI members in other chapters, states, and even in other countries.  
• 'Visit' another BNI meeting even if your seat is filled, you can 'observe' and see how other chapters are doing at this time.  Could be a chapter near-by or a chapter in another state or cross country.  And for those who have a 'unique' seat that's not filled, you have a great opportunity to share your product or service with other BNI members.
• Use this time to use BNIUniversity to hone your skills.  Search for articles and courses that will help you be a better networker.
• And still do your reporting in BNIConnect or the BNI mobile app.

Remember V+C=P - Visibility + Credibility = Profitability.  Everything we do gives us visibility and attributes to our credibility.  When this is over, those who used this time to continue to work on their relationships and studied how to be better at what they do, will be the ones who will have the jump in their given industry.

On one call this past week, someone said if a member can't show up for a Zoom call, then how can I trust they will show up and service a referral given to them even in good times.  Our actions speak volumes.

What else would you add to this list?

I share this photo because it shows how BNI relationships help your business grow the longer you're involved.

Statistics have shown that a member's business will increase by 20% their first year with BNI.

It's said that if a member renews after their first year, they typically stay with BNI 5+ years.

BNI members' business usually increases by 20 to 30% each year they are a member.

As you can see by this photo, this member shows how their business has grown over the course of their membership.

Here are some additional resources for building meaningful relationships in BNI

Relationships are Currency - Dr. Misner

Building Referral Relationships - Dr. Misner

Conducting Meaningful One to Ones - Laura del Rosa

Using the GAINS profile for One to Ones - Hazel Walker - Also, watch her other videos series on the GAINS profile - #63, #64, #65, #66, #67

For previous articles refer to my Notably Green Blog.

And join the Facebook Group - Notably Green

I encourage you to access the podcasts via BNI University so that you show up on the Leader board for your Chapter and your area.  To make it easier, you can also download the app to your smart device.  It's available from ITunes and Google.  Also, be sure and report your CEUs, 1 hour = 1 CEU.

Let me know if you have any questions and how I can be of help.  

 

To Your Success,

 

Annette Mason

Area Director Consultant

Why am I NOT Getting Quality Referrals?

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.
  Featured Presentation Mistakes
  • 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.

1. Am I being realistic about the amount of time it will take in my profession to gain the critical level of confidence I need?
2. Am I regularly making stimulating, educational presentations to my fellow networkers about the value I provide my clients.
3. 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?
4. 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.

Here are some additional resources:

Show Up Make Money

The Art of Being There

Open Networking

Maximizing Your Professional Image

Collecting Business Cards is not Networking

For previous articles refer to my Notably Green Blog.

And join the Facebook Group - Notably Green

In appreciation,

Annette

What to do when you get a Bad Referral

From time to time we receive referrals from other members that are not good referrals.

So what is a bad referral?  Most often, the complaint I hear is, a referral that does not have valid contact information, no phone number or email.  The member states - 'I gave them your card.'  'I referred you on Facebook, Nextdoor, etc.'  I agreed, these are not valid referrals.

While giving member's business cards to prospects is good, the member should ask, 'May I have them call you.?  If yes, then you provide the contact information and that is a good referral.  If no, then send the member an email and tell them you gave someone (give their name) your card.  If they call you, let me know if they contact you so that I can turn it in as a valid referral.  Same for recommendations made on Facebook/Nextdoor.

So what do you do when you get a bad referral?  Talk to the person who gave you the bad referral. Ask questions about the referral. Ask for the contact information.  If the member says they don't have it or perfers not to give the information to you, explain that you would appreciate next time that they wait until the person is ready and willing to talk and provide their contact information before passing the referral.  Refer to Podcasts #281 and #439.

Other steps that can be taken, schedule a One to One.  Educate and discuss in detail with the member on what are good referrals for you and what are bad referrals for you.  Ensure that you are being laser specific in your weekly and featured presentations what good referrals are for you.  So are you receiving bad referrals because you are being to general in your Ask?

When you give a bad referral you are damadging your credibility.  From podcast #303 Dr. Misner says, 'The first time I give a poor referral, it's my fault.  But the second time I give a poor referral, it's probably the receiver's fault.  Why?  Because they didn't provide me feedback the first time or they aren't educating me on how to find good referrals for them.'

If you have given feedback to the person who is giving you bad referrals and it continues to happen, go to your membership committee with examples.  Chapter Membership Committees can set rules in regards to what is a valid referral.  Chapter are also encouraged to have 'Referral Reality' checks each week.

What is a 'Referral Reality' check?  The Membership Committee pulls a couple of referrals from previous week's slips and asks the receiver if the referral was a good referral.  Typically if it was a good referral, they call on the member who received the referral and ask them to tell about it at the next meeting.  If it was not a good referral, then the Membership Committee needs to explain to the giver of the referral the parameters of what defines a good referral.  Refer to blog post - 'Definition of a Good Referral' for what is considered a good referral.

Let me know if you have any questions and how I can be of help.  

 

To Your Success,

 

Definition of a Good Referral

"A Referral is an opportunity to do business with someone in the market to buy your product or service."

It is not a guaranteed sale, but an opportunity to discuss the possibility of doing business.

In BNI we are all about Referrals and Lead is considered a four letter word.  What most people sign up for is to give and receive qualified referrals, not leads.

What is the difference in a Referral and Lead?  

- A Lead - The prospect is not expecting a call and it's really not much better than a cold call.
- A Referral - You've been given the prospect's contact information.  The prospect knows who you are and what you do.  The prospect has talked to your mutual acquaintance and is generally expecting your call.  They know you'll be calling and they know what the topic will be.

There are three people involved in a referral - 

-  Referer or the Qualifier - This is the member who is giving the referral.  The member who is asking the questions to qualify the referral.
- The Receiver - Is the member who will be receiving the referral and is expecting the referral to be qualified.
- The Referral - The person is wanting/needing the product or service.

There are Three Key Ingredients of a Quality Referral - 

1. You talked to the prospect about your fellow BNI Member
     - Bonus - You gave a testimonial about your fellow BNI Member.
2. You asked permission for the BNI Member to call/contact the prospect
     - You gave them the BNI Member's card/contact information
3. You gave ALL the pertinent information, i.e. Name, phone number, email, details of the referral, and level of interest to your fellow BNI Member.
     - via BNIConnect in a timely manner.

Anything short of the description above, send an email to your fellow BNI member and tell them that you passed their card or information to someone (give their name) and if they contact them, to please let you know so you can turn it in as a true referral.

Remember the philosophy of BNI is Givers Gain.  You receive what you give.  By giving quality referrals, you will receive quality referrals.

So what do you do if you get what you consider to be a bad referral?  Read the blog post - 'What to do when you get a bad referral.'

Let me know if you have any questions and how I can be of help.  

To Your Success,

 

Building Credibility - Using Substitutes Effectively

During the summer months there tends to be more substitutes than normal at BNI meetings.  How can we build credibility when we need to have a sub?

The original intent of the sub program was to have someone to represent the member when they could not be at the weekly meeting, i.e. vacation, corporate conference, etc.  Interestingly, it was never Dr. Misner's intent for substitutes to be able to give their own infomercial presentations. When the same substitute attends frequently and talks about his or her own business, it's good for the individual, but not for the chapter.  As important as substitutes are to a membership, I think it is also important to understand the effective use of the substitute program. Your sub is a reflection of you and you want to position your substitute to maximize your credibility as a member of the chapter.  

There are some real positive uses of the substitutes, one of which is bringing in fresh faces rather than the same person coming for a member again and again.  From the very beginning, the sub was there to represent you, not just to fill a void. So if you are just trying to fill a void you are missing the point of the whole substitute program. It has to be somebody who is there to represent you and support you and also be of value to the chapter.

Here are some suggestions:

1. Ask a good client to sub for you.  Instead of giving your client a written infomercial, ask them to give a testimonial about the work you've done for them.  When you have a sub there who really hits the nail on the head and talks about you and how good you are at what you do or how good your products or services are, that is almost better than you talking about yourself.

2. Ask someone who might be a potential member. Perhaps someone you've asked or wanted to ask to attend your BNI meeting.  This gives another opportunity to see what BNI is all about and may encourage them to become a member.

3. Try to use a different sub each time, rather than the same person from your office each time.  By bringing in fresh faces each time, you're bringing potential business to your fellow members.  Remember visitors/subs to your chapter typically brings $1000 to $1500 worth of business to the chapter and your fellow members.  So it is potential TYFCB to you.  This builds your credibility with your fellow BNI members.

4.  Carefully choose who you are going to use as your substitute and train them about the meeting, what to expect.  When they are to give your infomercial.  When they will give their infomercial.  When they will give your referrals, testimonial, etc.  

5.  Plan ahead. Make a personal sub list of several people who would be willing to sub for you and represent you well.  Ask them ahead of time if they would be willing to sub for you when the need arises.

Other thoughts and considerations -  

As a member, you bring value to your chapter meeting. When you are absent, you bring negative value. When seeking a substitute, strive to replace your value with a positive professional who could potentially become a part of your referral network. They may be willing to help you out by substituting for you, and they will have the opportunity to see the value of BNI® for themselves. An excellent substitute may also be someone who may bring referrals to the other members or a client/customer whom would provide a positive testimonial about your products and services. 

Some Chapters mistakenly believe that having a list of willing Members and ex-Members from other Chapters is a good way to solve the “substitute problem.” In reality, while it undoubtedly appears easier for Members if they don’t have to find a substitute for themselves, in the long run, they, and everyone else in the Chapter, will get less business. 

Every substitute should be a potential customer for other Members in the Chapter. This is an important entitlement of BNI Members, which is lost when the same few faces turn up every week, representing a different Member’s business on each occasion. More importantly, while many genuine substitutes become interested in joining the Chapter they visit, “professional” substitutes never do because they realize they are getting a free membership in your Chapter. Not only do the Members pay for their membership, they also ascribe to the BNI Code of Ethics and the BNI Policies. Substitutes are not held accountable for their professionalism. 

Chapters are stronger, grow more quickly, and pass more business when they discourage regular substitute lists and encourage all Members to find their own substitute when necessary. 

To discourage repeat substitutes, it is strongly suggested that repeat substitutes do not give a Weekly Presentation on their business and only represent the Member’s business. 

Excellence is an option with a BNI chapter and with the substitute program, but you have to use substitutes in the proper way and not use them as a crutch. Instead, use them as a benefit to what you have to offer.  If you expect the best, you tend to get it. If you expect less than the best, you tend to get it.  You have to have high expectations and invite people in to support you.  By effectively using the substitute program you are building your credibility with your fellow members which will lead to more referrals and profitability. That is what makes the most successful members and the most successful chapters.

Here are some additional resources:

There's No Substitute for a Good Substitute

Sub Abuse

Behaviors and Credibility

Your Business has a Confidence Curve

How Late is Late?

I encourage you to access the podcasts via BNI University so that you show up on the Leaderboard for your Chapter and your area.  To make it easier, you can also download the app to your smart device.  It's available from ITunes and Google.  Also, be sure and report your CEUs, 1 hour = 1 CEU.

Let me know if you have any questions and how I can be of help.  

Happy Networking,

 

Annette Mason

Area Director Consultant

Annette@BNIatl.com

Getting More Referrals - Having Effective One to Ones

From March 2019

 The purpose of having One to Ones is get to know your fellow members in order to build relationships which build credibility and lead to profitability, i.e. to give and receive more referrals.  Statistics show that members who are having 3 or more one to ones per month receive twice as many referrals.

So where are you with your fellow members?  

- Visibility - I remember you and I may know your name and what you do.

- Credibility - There are two parts of Credibility

- Early Credibility - I know more about you and I like you

- Deep Credibility - I trust you and I may pass referrals to you. 

- Profitability - I refer you consistently because I trust you and know your business so well.  When I win a client, you win a client.

 

So how do we move the relationships with fellow members from Visibility to Profitability?  By having more effective One to Ones. i.e. Getting to know your fellow chapter members at a deeper level, getting to know more about their business, what good referrals are for them, and who are good referrals partners are for them.  So how do you do that?

Most One to Ones are more 'coffee talks' and are not effective one to ones.  

An effective One to One takes planning.  Here are the steps:

1.  Schedule ahead of time allowing at least an hour especially for the first One to One.

2. Start first with the members who are in your contact sphere because 70% of your referrals will come from your contact sphere.

3.  Complete the GAINS profile sheets.  This step is extremely important.  (GAINS stands for Goals, Accomplishments, Interests, Networks, Skills)

a. The GAINS profile sheets include a list of your last 10 clients. The sheet has areas for notes about one. All of this information helps your fellow member understand the type of work you do. Rank your last ten clients on a scale of 1 to 10 (#1 being the best) according to good, better, best. Make notes as to why the top 5 are the type of clients you're looking for. Share this list as it will help your fellow members understand the type of clients you are seeking. Even letting your fellow member know what are NOT good referrals is good information.

b. Also, part of the GAINS profile sheets is Contact Spheres. Contact Spheres are businesses or professionals that provide a source of referrals for one another. They are good Referral Partners/Sources. For example: A good referral source for a chiropractor would be a Personal Injury Attorney. A good referral source for a pressure washer would be a painter. A good referral source for a home inspector would be a Realtor. Don't just think of who you can get business from, but who can refer business to you. Share this list also. (You can also use the Referral Hub for this). Many times an introduction to a Referral source will lead to a referral that just keeps on giving. And guess who gets the credit for TYFCB.

4. Send your completed GAINS profile sheets and your bio to the person you have a One to One scheduled with.  Send these a couple of days ahead of time to give each other time to review and make notes for questions, discussion points, etc. you would like to have.

5. Plan to meet at a location that is not loud and you won't be interrupted.  Meeting at a fellow member's office/work is always good.

6. Time for a One to One - Typically a good One to One can be done in an hour.  This gives each member 30 minutes to explain their business and answer questions.  Please be considerate and don't monopolize the time.

7.  

THE PURPOSE of a One to One is to learn about the other person's business so that You can identify and find referrals and referral sources for them.  

 

IT IS NOT to try and sell them your product or service. Your fellow referral partners will be turned off by this tactic. By asking who do they know who would be interested in your product or service, they may refer themselves. But NEVER try to SELL to your fellow BNI Members. You will receive 0 to no referrals by doing so.

8. Questions to ask: (Remember you are there to find out how to refer business, find referral sources for this person, and to strategize as to who else you need to invite to be part of your referral team, so ask questions that will help you understand who to look for.)

1. From your review of the other member's GAINS profile, you may have questions for clarification.
2. Ask what you should listen for?
3. Ask what questions you should ask a potential prospective client for them?
4. What are good conversation starters?
5. Ask who are their 'bread and butter' clients?
6. Ask what would be their dream referral?
7. Who are good referral sources?
8. Who else would they want as a member of their Power Team?

9. Agree on a plan of action. For example, that could be an introduction to a potential referral partner and/or inviting a potential referral partner to your BNI meeting for an introduction.

10.  Schedule a time to follow-up and your next One to One.  Things change in a person's life and business.  It's good to have One to One's with your fellow members on a regular basis to get to know your referral partners better and to strengthen the relationship, especially your Power Team members as well as find out what's new with their business.

Here are some additional resources:

Effective One to Ones 

Getting to Profitability

Getting More Referrals

Doubling the # of Referrals

Why Have multiple One to Ones

Effective Questions to Ask

I encourage you to access the podcasts via BNI University so that you show up on the Leaderboard for your Chapter and your area.  To make it easier, you can also download the app to your smart device.  It's available from ITunes and Google.  Also, be sure and report your CEUs, 1 hour = 1 CEU.

Are You in Profitability?

From November 2018

VCP - Visibility + Credibility = Profitability

 

What is this formula and what does it mean?

 

Visibility is pretty self-explanatory. People know who you are and may know what you do.

 

 

Credibility means that people know who you are and understand that you do a good job at what you do. They may use your products and/or services.

 

Profitability is when someone knows, likes, and trust you, uses your products/services, and gives you referrals.  You will know you are in 'profitability' when you are getting tier 3, 4, and 5 referrals that resulted from your involvement with BNI.  

 

We all became a part of BNI to increase our business, get referrals, and make more money. Depending on a person's industry and how well they follow the BNI formula for success will depend on how long it takes them to get to Profitability.

VCP is a referral process, not a sales process. If the majority of your clients aren't giving you referrals, then you are only at Credibility with your clients, not at Profitability. It's possible that you can have a lot of Visibility and a lot of Credibility, but NOT have Profitability. Rather than a formula, VCP is a continuum. Profitability does not result automatically from Visibility and Credibility.

Getting to Profitability takes time and work. Here is one BNI member's story when asked does BNI work.

A member was asked about the investment and how much money he made in BNI as a member.  The member responded with... "In my first year in BNI, I made 4 times my membership fees investment.  It wasn't until my second year where I saw the real difference.  This year I have already made over 20X my investment and the year is only half way through.  It took me a year to learn how to talk about my business effectively, learn how to give and get qualified referrals, and conduct enough 1-2-1's to understand the other members in the room.  See BNI takes time.  There are no quick fixes and fast results here.  It takes time and work to do anything worthwhile and to build strong lasting relationships.  The VCP model takes time to move from visibility to credibility and it took longer to move from credibility to profitability.  I am now in profitability with my best referral partners."

 

Mike Barbieri, Executive Director adds - There is "WORK" in Networking.  We have many 90-minute members in BNI.  Where some of our members are present for the 90 minutes during our weekly meeting and forget about their BNI team until next week's meeting.  We are all busy.  That is not an alibi nor excuse.  I hear people say, "I do not have time to work on BNI."  What I hear is... "I do not have time to work on my business."  No matter what excuse you are telling yourself, you should not be working on BNI in the first place.  You should be working ON YOUR business.  Do you tell people that you are working on your CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system?  No, because that is a business software tool.  Why do you say I am working on BNI?  Isn't BNI a framework, a platform or a tool to help you and your business be accountable and generate more money for you and your team?  Maybe we should change how we think about BNI.  So, block some time each week in your busy schedule and work on your business.  Go out and network, meet new people make new friends, develop new relationships, invite new visitors, learn more, and generate more money.  They say that your net worth and your network is the new currency.  It is not always what you know, but who you know and sometimes how well you know them.

Here are some additional resources:

Podcasts - #420 - V+C Does Not = P

#580 - Keeping the VCP Process ALIVE

#528 - How many networks - How many hours?

Power Of One Podcast #233 - What is Missing in VCP

I encourage you to access the podcasts via BNI University so that you show up on the Leaderboard for your Chapter and your area.  To make it easier, you can also download the app to your smart device.  It's available from ITunes and Google.