Inviting visitors to BNI can become something members know they should do without giving much thought to why. In this education slot, Darren Jamieson of Engage Web encourages members to consider what those invitations could mean for their own businesses and the people around them.

https://youtu.be/Y8-eMMnHFgY

It is easy to associate visitors with membership growth. Someone attends a meeting, likes what they see and decides to join. That is a positive outcome, but judging every visit by whether it produces a membership application overlooks much of the value of bringing new people together.

Business relationships need a starting point. Before someone can recommend a business, become a customer or make a useful introduction, they usually need some familiarity with the person behind it. A networking meeting gives that relationship somewhere to begin.

There may be no immediate need for each other’s services. A visitor might leave without buying anything, requesting a quote or arranging another conversation. That does not mean the meeting had no value. They have met people they did not know before, and those people may come to mind when circumstances change.

For members, this is a useful reason to look beyond the immediate outcome. Business development often involves conversations whose value only becomes clear later. An introduction today can lead to an enquiry months down the line, or a recommendation to someone who was never in the room.

A growing network also gives members more ways to help others. Knowing a wider range of reliable professionals makes it easier to respond when a customer, colleague or friend needs support. Those connections are part of what makes networking useful, even when the person making the introduction gains no immediate business from it.

Darren’s message is that inviting visitors should be understood in that broader context. It creates opportunities for the visitor, the person inviting them and the chapter as a whole. Focusing solely on what BNI gains misses the reasons members chose to network in the first place.

Of course, an invitation is only the beginning. The experience someone has when they arrive matters too. A room full of established relationships can feel welcoming or difficult to enter, depending on how members behave. Taking the time to speak to someone new gives both people a chance to discover what they might have in common.

The same applies after the meeting. Relationships develop through continued contact, interest and trust. A first conversation opens the possibility, but members still need to recognise it and make the effort to stay connected where there is a reason to do so.

For anyone who has started to see visitor invitations as another task to complete, this session offers a useful change of perspective. Each invitation creates the possibility of a relationship that would otherwise never have begun.

The question is therefore bigger than whether a visitor will join. It is what could become possible when someone new walks into the room.

Full Transcript

00:12 | Darren:
“I don’t invite visitors to BNI because I don’t want BNI to make any money.”

00:19 | Darren:
I have [clears throat] heard members say that. There was a member of this chapter, who’s no longer here, thankfully…

00:26 | Darren:
Would frequent… [laughter] would frequently say to me they don’t invite visitors because they don’t want BNI to make money.

00:35 | Darren:
That’s strange.

00:36 | Darren:
I know they don’t want the DC, or at the time it was Paul Murray, to make money, and now it’s Mike Hanigan. They don’t…

00:44 | Darren:
Want Mike Hanigan to make money. They don’t want Ewan Sturman to make money. They don’t want BNI to make money, which is why they don’t invite…

00:51 | Darren:
Visitors to BNI. And that is possibly the most self-defeating attitude I’ve ever heard in my life. Now, I’m sure there’s nobody in this room who thinks…

01:00 | Darren:
Like that. I hope there isn’t, because this is recorded and this is going out. There may be members around the UK.

01:05 | Darren:
There may be members around the world who do think like that. So, it’s important to address it. If a visitor comes to BNI and they like it and they…

01:15 | Darren:
Apply and they join, yes, BNI will make money from it. Yes.

01:20 | Darren:
Yes, the area director or the managing director makes a little bit of money from it. Yes, the director consultant makes a little bit of money from it.

01:27 | Darren:
It’s peanuts, really.

01:30 | Darren:
But that is not why we’re inviting people to join, why we’re inviting people to come along. We’re inviting people to come along because, funnily enough, the more members in the room, the more money we make.

01:42 | Darren:
We’re a chapter of 15 right now. If there were 50 people in the room… Morning, Callum. Morning. You good, guys? Sorry.

01:49 | Darren:
If there were 50 people in the room, we would make far more money than we will if there’s 15. That is an undeniable…

01:57 | Darren:
Fact. A chapter of 50 makes more money than a chapter of 15. So why do we invite visitors?

02:06 | Darren:
Let’s give you some reasons now on exactly why visitors should be invited.

02:11 | Darren:
The first and foremost is the most obvious. They might join and become members.

02:17 | Darren:
And that helps us. More members, more referrals we get.

02:22 | Darren:
But it also means the more referrals we’re able to pass, because the smaller the chapter gets, the more difficult it is to pass referrals because there’s fewer people to actually refer.

02:34 | Darren:
Now, right now, we are really looking for a will writer in the room because Richard can really pass referrals to a will writer.

02:41 | Darren:
Now, Richard could give those out to a random will writer that he doesn’t see every week, but the chances then of Richard getting business back is lower.

02:51 | Darren:
Whereas, if Liam were to join us, and we’re hopeful you do enjoy it today and you do join us, if Liam were to join us, Richard will be able to refer Liam each…

02:58 | Darren:
And every week. For every client that Richard sees, he will be asking them if they need a will or if they’ve got a will, because they do need a will.

03:06 | Darren:
Obviously, wrong question. “Do you have a will?”, not “Do you need one?” You need one.

03:12 | Darren:
And then Richard will be able to pass referrals to Liam each week. And then Liam might be able to give business back, but Liam might also be able to give business to other people in the room. And we can give business to Liam.

03:22 | Darren:
That’s why we want more members in the room.

03:27 | Darren:
But what about the visitors who don’t join? The visitors who come along, enjoy the meeting, they go away. Maybe we…

03:35 | Darren:
Don’t see them again. Maybe they come back, as Cleo’s come back a second time today. What’s the point of them being here?

03:45 | Audience member:
Maybe they could… They might get business.

03:47 | Darren:
They might get business. Exactly. They might get business out of the room. They might give us business.

03:55 | Darren:
I’ve had a lot of business from visitors over the years, as I’m sure many of you have.

04:01 | Darren:
Visitors are business owners. They are looking to grow their network. They are looking for people they can trust, people they…

04:09 | Darren:
Can rely on, and they may spend money with you. And maybe they won’t spend money with you today, but they might…

04:16 | Darren:
Spend money with you next week or next month or next year.

04:21 | Darren:
Because if at any point Cleo decides, “Do you know what? I do actually need an electrician,” she could pick up the phone book and…

04:29 | Darren:
Look for a random electrician. Or she could say, “Do you know what? I’ve actually met Dave Bundy. He’s an all right kind of guy. I like him. I know who he is.” It’s not a cold introduction.

04:39 | Darren:
It’s a warm introduction. If she needs a will, she’s met Liam.

04:47 | Darren:
If she needs a photographer, photography is a very personal thing. A lot of people don’t like having their pictures taken. Isn’t that right, Ray? She’s met Ray.

04:55 | Darren:
Maybe she likes Ray. Some of us do.

04:59:
[Laughter]

05:00 | Darren:
Does she like you? Maybe she’ll use Ray in future.

05:04 | Darren:
Having a visitor in the room is a warm introduction. And that, after all, is the whole basis of why BNI was created in the first place back in 1985. Because…

05:12 | Darren:
If you’re cold calling people, it’s difficult to get through to them. It’s difficult to convey your message. It was about warmed-up business referrals. And…

05:20 | Darren:
Every referral you get is a warmed-up business referral. Every visitor in the room is a warmed-up business introduction. And you should treat a…

05:27 | Darren:
Visitor as strongly and as seriously as you treat a referral. Yet I’ve been to some BNI chapters, not this one…

05:35 | Darren:
Thankfully, where when a visitor walks in, it’s like it’s a home invasion.

05:43 | Darren:
The members are stood there in their little huddles. “Who is that? What do they want?”

05:51 | Darren:
“Maybe we should go and speak to them.”

05:52 | Darren:
“No, don’t make eye contact. We’ll continue talking about the football and hopefully they’ll go away.”

05:59 | Darren:
I’ve genuinely seen that, and I don’t know why that happens, because that person is there to grow their network, to meet you.

06:08 | Darren and audience:
Darren: Now, has anybody tried cold calling in their business?
Audience: Yeah.
[Snorts]
Audience: No.
Darren: Does anybody like cold calling?

06:14 | Darren and audience:
Audience: No.
Darren: There’s one.

06:20 | Darren:
Other than Shaun, it’s hard. Would you agree? It’s hard to cold call.

06:26 | Darren:
Again, that’s why BNI exists, for warmed-up business referrals, and visitors are warmed-up business introductions.

06:35 | Darren:
Now, you could get a call from somebody: “Hey, how’s your accounts going? Do you need anybody to do your accounts?” That was my Zoe impression.

06:45 | Darren:
Or you might get, “All right, me old mucker. How’s your electrics doing?” Difficult conversations to have, because people don’t want to be sold to.

06:56 | Darren:
But it’s much easier than phoning up somebody to talk about your own business and try to sell to them to phone somebody up and invite them to a networking meeting which is going to be a benefit to them.

07:05 | Darren:
Now, I’ve done this before. If you’re looking for a particular introduction, [snorts] invite them to BNI, because then you can speak to them in an…

07:13 | Darren:
Informal way and talk to them. Now, Shaun and Kieran, whose 10 minutes it is today, both asked for the same thing in their weekly presentations.

07:23 | Darren and audience:
Darren: Anyone tell me what that is?
Audience member: High net worth.
Darren: No.
Audience member: Insurance.

07:29 | Darren:
No. What do they both ask for?

07:35 | Darren:
You guys are all listening. They both ask to have coffees with people.

07:41 | Darren:
They both ask to have coffees with people. All they need to do is sit down with someone and have a coffee with them because they both know that their…

07:48 | Darren:
Offering is so good and the way they build rapport is so good, that’s all they need is an introduction.

07:54 | Darren:
And if that person is right for them and they are right, they’ll probably do business. If they’re not, that’s fine.

08:00 | Darren:
When a visitor comes to BNI, they’re already here to have a coffee with you.

08:04 | Darren:
Which means a visitor to BNI is as good as a referral to these two because they follow them up. Every…

08:11 | Darren:
Visitor should be followed up. Now, the members who invite more visitors make more money.

08:19 | Darren:
That is an undeniable fact.

08:22 | Darren:
The more visitors you invite to BNI, the more money you will make.

08:26 | Darren:
Yes, BNI will make money as well if they join. That is a side effect.

08:32 | Darren and audience:
Darren: So, can anyone think of any reasons not to invite visitors to BNI?
Audience member: No.

08:40 | Darren:
No. Thank you. When you ask a hypothetical question, you can always guarantee Zoe will give you a non-hypothetical answer.

08:48 | Darren:
So, let’s all start inviting more visitors because there’s no reason not to. Thank you.