But, I'm not getting any referrals…

Duane Plapp - Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Referral Marketing Expert
Duane Plapp - Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Referral Marketing Expert

by Duane Plapp

What are the three most common mistakes BNI members make every week?
Ever hear I don’t get referrals from BNI?
Here are 3 of the most common reasons WHY?
1-      They don’t network – The first fifteen minutes of a BNI meeting is meant for networking, it’s not a buffer to get there late. Because the meeting starts fifteen minutes after the start time people think that is the time which allows me to get there late.  Wrong, this is the time to network and set up one to ones and start creating relationships.  It’s not the time to answer emails.  I was at a meeting the other day and one of the members was sitting with his computer and answering emails. He was not talking to anyone and when asked a question he said “I’m too busy”.  When you come to BNI, be prepared to ONLY work on BNI.
2-      They sell not educate – The goal of your BNI meeting is to educate your sales team so you can tickle their brain to create referrals.  You’re telling them who would be a good referral, why and what you can do for them.  Don’t stand in front of everyone and try and sell the people in the room your services, they will buy from you after you’ve build a great relationship.  You get to see them every week and at 1-to-1’s, they’re not going anywhere.  Everyone knows 250 to 300 contacts, you just need to figure out how to make 1 of those stick out.  Your fellow BNI members are your sales team and the more you treat them that way the more referrals you will obtain.
3-       1-to-1’s – These seem to be a foreign subject t some members.  In order to create referrals, you need to develop strong relationships with your sales team.  The better the relationship, the better the referral.  Good referrals are in direct correlation to relationships.  The stronger the relationship is, the more often you are thought of by your referral partners.  The more you are on their mind, guess what…MORE REFERRALS!
STOP SAYING I AM NOT GETTING REFERRALS, because it’s all YOUR FAULT. You’re not emerged in the basic concepts of referral marketing.  You have to network, educate and develop strong relationships to make it happen.

Duane Plapp is a professional business coach with The Referral Institute Cincinnati.  Duane can help you create “Referrals For Life”.  If you’re interested in learning more about referral marketing you can contact Duane at duper2947@aol.com or 859-240-6428

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