When it comes to making the most of your BNI membership, there’s one often-overlooked tool that could be the difference between gaining a referral or missing out completely: your BNI Connect profile.

In a lively and insightful presentation at BNI, digital marketing expert Darren Jamieson shared a compelling message: you wouldn’t pay for an advert and leave it blank—so why are so many members doing just that with their BNI Connect profiles?

Darren blends personal anecdotes, real examples, and some eye-opening statistics to show how a little effort can go a long way toward getting more referrals.

“You wouldn’t pay for an advert and leave it blank—so why are you doing it with your BNI profile?”

Let’s start with a quick thought experiment. Have you ever advertised in Yellow Pages, Yell.com, or local flyers? Most hands in the room go up when Darren asks this. Now imagine paying for those ads… and leaving them completely blank.

Sounds crazy, right?

Yet that’s exactly what many BNI members are doing with their BNI Connect profiles. And it’s costing them real opportunities.

BNI Connect is part of your membership. It lets you showcase your business—your services, ideal clients, referral partners, contact info, website, logo, and more. Yet many profiles are either incomplete or entirely blank.

Here are some stats Darren shared from his own chapter:

• 1 member uses a product photo instead of a profile picture.
• 2 members have no photo at all.
• 10 members have no business description.
• 12 haven’t added their website.
• 15 haven’t added social media.
• 24 haven’t uploaded a video.

Only 3 members have fully completed profiles with video: Darren, Ry, and Tony.

“If you can’t be bothered to add your details to BNI Connect, I can’t be bothered to hunt you down for a referral.”

Darren highlights this with a real story.

While sitting in a meeting, he got a WhatsApp message:

“Can you recommend a builder in BNI you or someone you know has personally used?

Perfect. Darren turned to two nearby members who each recommended someone. He searched the first builder on BNI Connect. No profile photo, no email, no phone number. Nothing. Darren moved on.

The second builder had a full profile—photo, contact info, logo. Darren screenshotted it and sent it. That builder got the referral.

“It’s that simple,” Darren says. “You miss out if you’re not showing up.”

Another example involved his daughter in Liverpool, who left a hob on for several days—yes, days—and blew the electrics in her flat.

She needed an electrician, fast.

Darren turned to BNI Connect to find someone local. Out of five electricians in Liverpool, two had no information listed. One specialized in commercial work. But one had a photo, full description, and contact info.

“If you’re sending someone to your daughter’s house, you want to know what they look like.”

That electrician got the job. Again, it came down to simply showing up professionally online.
“If they don’t take their BNI profile seriously, they probably won’t take a referral seriously either.”

Darren also shared how fellow member Dave Bundy looks for electricians nationwide using BNI Connect. His filter? If a member’s profile is bare, they’re unlikely to treat referrals with the seriousness they deserve.

It’s not just about filling in a form—it’s about building trust.

What Makes a Good BNI Connect Profile?

To hammer the point home, Darren reviewed several profiles from his chapter:

1. The Good – Mike

Mike has a profile photo and phone number—great start. But his business description is just “Painting and Decorating.” Darren suggests being more specific about services to help others identify ideal referrals.

2. The Better – Richard

Richard has added a clear business description, ideal referral types, top products, and his logo. This extra detail makes it easier for fellow members to refer him confidently.

3. The Even Better – Kieran

• Kieran’s profile includes:
• Full business description
• Social media links (Pinterest, TikTok, you name it)
• Business logo
• Favorite BNI story
• This level of detail gives people confidence and context when referring him.

4. The Best – Darren (yes, he’s biased!)

Darren walks the talk. His profile includes everything mentioned—plus a video.

“Embedding a video isn’t taught at BNI, but it’s a game-changer.”

It shows your personality, your voice, and your professionalism. It helps the person referring you and the person receiving the referral feel more confident and connected.

Take 10 Minutes—Get More Referrals

Darren’s message is simple: your BNI Connect profile is a free, powerful marketing tool that takes less than 10 minutes to optimise.

• Add a photo.
• Fill in your contact info.
• Write a clear business description.
• List your ideal referral, product, and partner.
• Add your logo and website.
• Include your social media and (if possible) a video.

These are not just checkboxes. They’re trust-builders. They’re what stand between you and a missed opportunity.

“Please don’t leave it blank. If you want more referrals, make it easy for others to refer you.”

Key Quotes from Darren Jamieson:

“Imagine paying for a Yellow Pages ad and leaving it blank—that’s what you’re doing with an empty BNI Connect profile.”

“If they haven’t filled in their profile, they probably won’t take a referral seriously either.”

“If someone’s going to your daughter’s house, you want to know what they look like.”

“A complete profile isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s the difference between getting the referral or not.”

Full transcript

Last year, my daughter—who lives in Liverpool—somehow managed to blow up part of her electrics by leaving the hob on for, I presume, four or five days. Don’t ask me how. But this continues the theme of lifelong learning—clearly, it’s working.

Out of interest—how many of you in the room have ever advertised on Yell.com, Yellow Pages, or Thompson Local Directory?
Dave’s hand is up already. How about flyers, printed materials, local business magazines? National newspapers? Local newspapers? Business cards?

Everybody, right? Everyone’s had business cards.

(00:34)
Now imagine paying for a Yell.com listing or a Yellow Pages ad—and leaving it completely blank. Would that make sense?

No. That would be crazy. And yet… some of you are doing exactly that.

As BNI members, you get access to BNI Connect, where you can showcase a lot about your business:

What you do

Who you’re looking for

Your phone number

Email

Website

Logo

GAINS profile

And yet—not everyone uses it properly.

(01:43)
I’ve got some stats here from our chapter of 27 members:

1 member has a photo of a product instead of their face—you can’t tell what they look like.

2 members don’t have a photo at all.

2 members have full-body photos, so you can’t clearly see their faces.

(02:27)
Ray, no—it’s not a faceless body. Keep it in the room!

8 members haven’t added their ideal referrals, top product, top problem solved, or ideal referral partner.

10 members haven’t added their GAINS profile. And you’d be surprised—these aren’t new members.

10 members haven’t written a description in their “My Business” section.

10 members haven’t added a logo.

12 members haven’t added a website link.

(03:03)
That’s vital for digital marketing. Your BNI profile links back to your own website—this is great for your Google rankings. It’s a free backlink that takes 30 seconds to add.

15 members haven’t added social media profiles.

24 members haven’t added a video.

Only myself, Ry, and Tony have uploaded one.

(03:38)
So what’s the point of all this? Is it just BNI box-ticking?

No. Here are three real-life examples that show why this matters.

(04:13)
Example 1:
I was in a meeting with some BNI folks. Just before it started, I got a WhatsApp message:
“Can you recommend a builder in BNI—someone you or someone you know has used?”

I was sitting next to Mike Hannigan and Dawn Toner. They both recommended someone. I opened BNI Connect on my phone, searched the name… no photo, no phone number, no email.

What now—Google their name? Their business? If they couldn’t be bothered to add their details, I wasn’t going to chase them down.

I tried the second builder. Typed in the name—boom. Photo, phone number, email, website, logo.
I screenshotted the profile and sent it via WhatsApp. He got the referral.

(04:45)
Example 2:
Back to my daughter in Liverpool and the hob incident. I needed an electrician—but Liverpool’s a bit far for Dave to drive through the tunnels.

So I searched BNI Connect. Found five electricians in Liverpool.

Two had no details at all.

One was a commercial electrician—didn’t fit the need.

One stood out: profile photo, nice logo, full details.

He got the referral.
When you’re sending someone to your daughter’s house, you want to know what they look like, that they’re legit, that the branding matches.

(05:51)
Example 3:
Mr. Bundy here uses electricians around the country. He searches BNI Connect for them. If there’s no photo, no info—they’re likely not taking BNI seriously, and they probably won’t take the referral seriously either.

If they do have a full profile—Dave contacts them.

(06:24)
And if they haven’t got a description—which many of you haven’t—you’re not going to be considered.

Now, very quickly, for lifelong learning, I’m going to go through four member profiles. Don’t panic—these are good ones.
Better. Better-er. Better-er-a-ist.

(07:03)
Profile 1: Mike Corner
He’s got a profile photo—already better than that builder. He’s added his phone number. In “My Business,” he’s written: “Painting and Decorating.”

Good start—but we can improve that. Let’s look at…

Profile 2: Richard (LW)
Not here today, but he’s done more. Phone number, logo, description: “Specialist in pensions, investments, estate planning…” He’s added his GAINS profile, ideal referral, top problem solved, etc.

That’s better.

(08:05)
Profile 3: Kieran
Also not in the room. I could’ve used Martha’s—they’re the same standard.

Kieran has every social media link you can think of—Pinterest, TikTok, everything. He’s added a massive description, logo, and his favorite BNI story. Really useful when trying to generate referrals.

(08:34)
Profile 4: Mine (the better-er-a-ist!)
I checked—it kept coming back as mine. I even embedded a video.

I could’ve used Ray’s or Tony’s—but I’m giving the talk, so I picked mine.

Video isn’t taught in BNI, but it’s easy to add—and it shows who you are, what you sound like, what services you offer. It helps the person feel like they’ve already met you before that first call.

(09:07)
If anyone wants to know how to add a video—like Phil Skeggs or Tom—just ask me afterwards. I’ll show you. It’s a little hack, but super effective.

I’ve filled out everything—just like you can.

(09:36)
So please—don’t leave your BNI Connect profile blank.
Don’t leave stuff out. Add your website—it’s a free SEO boost. Fill in the rest, too. It only takes seconds.

Thank you very much. 👏