Most BNI chapters follow a standard script when it comes to delivering the visitor statement. It’s formulaic, familiar, and gets the job done. But what if that script is actually costing you conversions?

In this BNI Education Slot, Darren Jamieson challenges the traditional approach. Rather than treating visitors to a corporate-style sales pitch, he proposes a more human, personalised way of presenting the value of BNI — and the results speak for themselves.

Why the traditional visitor statement falls short

The term “visitor statement” itself is, as Darren puts it, a little off-putting. It sounds rigid and formal, almost confrontational. Most chapters deliver it as a script: a list of commitments, prices, and steps to join. Visitors are hit with details before they’ve even decided if BNI is right for them.

Worse, it often comes across as a hard sell — the kind that turns people off rather than drawing them in. According to Darren, confused minds don’t buy. If you overwhelm a visitor with pricing structures and membership rules in the middle of a pitch, you’ve lost them before the Q&A even starts.

A more effective alternative

Darren’s approach is different. It’s built around persuasion psychology, conversational structure, and genuine engagement — not pushiness.

Here’s how it works:

Personalisation comes first

Throughout the meeting, Darren makes notes of each eligible visitor’s name. When it’s time to speak, he opens by thanking them personally. This immediately creates a connection and shows that the meeting has been tailored, not templated.

Ask, don’t tell

Instead of reeling off the BNI joining process, Darren asks each visitor to consider two questions:

Are you good at what you do?

Can you handle more business?

These are simple but powerful. Almost every visitor will answer “yes” to both, mentally qualifying themselves. This gets early buy-in — a key principle in sales.

The ‘Who It’s For, Who It’s Not For’ technique

Next, Darren explains who BNI is suited for — and who it isn’t. The aim is to trigger a clear reaction in the visitor: “That’s me,” or “That’s definitely not me.” By drawing these lines clearly, he helps visitors self-select, reducing friction and increasing confidence.

Examples include:

• BNI is for you if you’re good at what you do, want more business, and have a process to handle referrals.
• BNI is not for you if you’re poor at your job, don’t want more clients, or have no structure to follow up on leads.

Ending this section with a positive reinforcement — “BNI is definitely for you if you want 30 business owners promoting your business every week” — reinforces the opportunity without overt pressure.

Let curiosity drive the close

Pricing, commitment, and logistics aren’t ignored — they’re simply postponed to a more appropriate moment. After the statement, each visitor is invited to speak with the member sitting next to them. That’s where the details are discussed, in a one-to-one, no-pressure environment.

As Darren explains, a confused mind doesn’t buy. By simplifying the group pitch and letting trained members handle the specifics afterwards, the conversion process feels much more natural.

Creating urgency without pressure

Visitors are invited to fill out an application form there and then — not to pay or commit, but to protect their category. This introduces urgency without creating resistance. They can still change their mind later, but the message is clear: act today, or risk losing your place.

Why it works

This delivery isn’t about manipulation. It’s about alignment — helping visitors decide for themselves whether BNI is the right fit, using techniques that make sense in any sales environment.

Visitors feel welcomed, understood, and in control. There’s no awkward pricing slide, no overcomplicated savings spiel, and no pressure-filled call to action. Just clarity, relevance, and choice.

Want to try it?

Darren is clear that this isn’t the official BNI script — it’s just what works for him and his chapter. But if your current visitor conversion rate isn’t where you’d like it to be, it may be worth trying this more conversational, psychology-led approach.

The full transcript is included below. Give it a try, adapt it to your own style, and see how your chapter responds.

Video Transcript

Darren Jamieson:
BNI is definitely for you if you want 30 business owners going out every single week to their clients, to their contacts, to their family, to their friends, and promoting your business.

[00:20]

On this BNI Education Slot, I’m going to go through something a little different, and that’s the part of the BNI meeting known as the visitor statement.

Now, even the term “visitor statement” is a little in your face, a little off-putting for visitors — as though you’re making a bold statement at them — when it shouldn’t really be a statement at all.

BNI has this script that you read out, and if you go to any other chapter meeting, the vast majority will read this script. But we’ve changed things a little in ours. We still go through what’s important, so the visitors still leave knowing what the costs are, what the commitment is, and what the process is. We just do the visitor statement very differently.

We use techniques learned and honed over many years of selling, because when you’re at a BNI meeting, and you’re the members and they’re the visitors, you’re selling the meeting. You’re selling the idea of being at BNI. So it makes sense to use the same techniques you’d use in selling.

[01:24]

What I do is, as each visitor makes their weekly presentation, I write down the eligible visitors’ names so I know exactly who they are. Sometimes substitutes are eligible because they’ve been brought as a visitor sub. Sometimes someone who looks like a visitor isn’t eligible because they’re a member from another region or represent the same business as someone else. You don’t always know at the start of the meeting.

As they go through, I make a note of each eligible visitor. Then, when I stand up to deliver the visitor statement, I address them all by name.

[02:00]

So I’ll say something like, “Thank you Sarah, John, and Debbie for coming along this morning. I hope you’ve enjoyed the meeting and seen why it is we get up at this very early hour every week to come to this venue and meet each other. It’s not for the coffee. It’s not for the breakfast. It’s not for the happy smiley faces. It is, in fact, for the business.”

That’s my opening.

[02:27]

Then, rather than saying, “Joining BNI is a three-step process…” I don’t do any of that. Instead, I say, “What I want you to do now is ask yourself two questions.”

The first question: “Are you good at what you do?”

If you’re sitting there thinking, “Yes, I am good at what I do,” then great — BNI is going to work for you.

If you’re sitting there thinking, “Actually, I’m not very good at what I do. In fact, I’m crap at what I do,” then BNI is not going to work for you.

Anybody who joins BNI and isn’t good at what they do is going to get found out. It won’t work for them.

[03:08]

So if you are good at what you do, great. BNI will work for you.

The second question is: “Can I handle more business?”

If you’re thinking, “Yes, I can handle more business,” then brilliant — BNI is perfect for you.

If you’re thinking, “I’m absolutely rammed right now, I can’t handle any more business,” then maybe joining BNI isn’t the right thing for you. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t. Maybe you could handle business in a couple of months. How are you going to get those leads?

Or maybe you want to scale your business, bring more people in, and grow. In which case, BNI can help.

[03:45]

So that’s my opener — I get them thinking about whether they’re good at what they do, and whether they can handle more business.

Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, the answer is yes to both. Everyone thinks they’re good at what they do. Everyone wants more business. Otherwise, why are they there?

[04:17]

Then I go through the “Who’s it for, who’s it not for” strategy — something I’ve been taught many times by different speakers on how to sell from stage.

You want the visitor thinking, “Yes, I’m the right person for this,” and also, “That exclusion definitely doesn’t apply to me.”

[04:48]

So I’ll say:

“BNI is for you if you are really good at what you do.

BNI is for you if you can handle more business and want to grow your business right now.

BNI is for you if, when someone gives you a referral or an introduction to a potential client, you can act on that quickly and get them on board.”

[05:16]

And then:

“BNI is not for you if you are terrible at what you do.

BNI is not for you if you can’t handle or don’t want more business.

BNI is not for you if you have no process for dealing with referrals and would just lose them.”

[06:02]

Then I finish with a strong line:

“But BNI is definitely for you if you want 30 business owners going out every single week to their clients, contacts, family, and friends, promoting your business — because that’s how BNI works.”

[06:25]

After that, I wrap up with:

“You’ve probably got questions. How it works, what the commitment is, what the cost is. In a few moments, you’ll sit down with the member sat next to you. Any questions you have — ask them.”

Then I say:

“There are two things I want you to consider. If you think BNI is going to be good for your business — and I hope you’ve seen that it is — you can fill in an application form today.”

[06:54]

The two things to consider are:

Filling in the application form today doesn’t cost you anything.

You’re not committing.

If you go away, speak to your business partner or life partner, and decide it’s not right for you, you can say no. No problem. But what you are doing by filling it in today is ensuring that none of your competitors can apply in your category before you.

[07:45]

If you wait until the weekend or Monday, someone else in your category could come next week and apply — and then it’s a race.

So fill it in today. It doesn’t cost you a penny, and you’re not committing.

[07:58]

That’s how we do the visitor statement in our BNI. I find it really effective. It works. People like it. They don’t get the hard sell. They don’t get a screen full of prices. They don’t get confused over percentages and yearly savings.

Because a confused mind doesn’t buy.

[08:29]

You don’t need to go into that in the meeting. As long as, in the Q&A, the member next to them explains the membership fee, application fee, meeting fee — then it’s fine. They’re trained to do that.

[08:40]

This approach is effective. I’m not saying you should do it — it’s up to you. But I’ll write it out below this video and in the blog that goes with it.

Give it a try if you want — and let me know how it works for you.

But know this: that is not how BNI tells you to do it. That’s how I do it.

Thank you.