What’s in your network?
The word network means: connections, veins, web and I like to say it means pipes. What do I mean by pipes? I am in the water restoration business; pipes to me mean water pipes. Picture a big hot water heater connected to a supply of fresh water. The pipes go through-out the building, they are connecting all the sinks, toilets, bathtubs, water softeners, refrigerator, and icemaker, all connected to the supply pipe from the city and finally going into a hot water heater. If I asked you what was in the pipes, I hope you would say water!
What is in your network? Do you have a social network? Do you have a political network? Do you have a religious network? Do you have a philanthropic network? I think all these networks are awesome. We should be involved with all of these. Do you have a network with your industry, that would be a knowledge based network, as business owners we should be involved in our industry network.
BNI is a referral network. Referrals are in the pipes! You could call it referral marketing. I like to say it like this: I use referrals as a tool to market my business. I think for a business owner referral marketing is the best network. I believe that BNI is the best referral marketing organization. I call it the five connections of referrals.
Connection 1: I want to help my customer or contact by giving them a referral. Referral means to introduce someone to an expert in their field. When I give a referral to my customers or my contact, I help them meet their needs in a way I could not do except through a referral.
Connection 2: When I give a referral to my customer or contact to my referral partner, I help my referral partner receive a new client that they would not have received except through a referral. This is what BNI calls “Givers Gain!†“Givers gain†to me, means; creating a three way win. My customer or contact wins because they have their needs met through the power of a referral. My referral partner wins because they have a new customer that they would not have had except through the power of a referral. I win because I have two people that absolutely love me and want to give me referrals! The more experts I meet and trust, the more I can help my customers and contacts.
Connection 3: When I meet a business, in whose category I do not already have as a referral partner, I can refer my customers and contacts to them. I refer to them to help my customers and contacts and I also help my business because my customers and contacts are happy and I now have a new referral partner. I use referrals as a recruiting tool to attract new referral partners.
Connection 4: I refer my referral partners to my new referral partners or the professions I am recruiting. My referral partners need stuff, so if I meet someone new that can meet their needs, it makes my referral partners happy plus it allows me to recruit new referral partners.
Connection 5: I refer my new recruitment referral partners to my seasoned referral partners. I ask my new recruitment referral partners, what it is that they need? Then I refer them to my seasoned referral partners.
Connection 6 out of 5: I have customers and contacts that are always thinking of me to help them and I have seasoned referral partners that love me for sending them new clients and I have new referral partners that appreciate my new business and referrals. I become a resource for people. The more experts in their field that I meet, the more people I can help. The more people I help, the more people think of me and help my business. Zig Ziglar said “You can have everything you want if you help enough people get what they want.†I do not give referrals because I am in a referral group called BNI. I am in a referral group because I want to give referrals.