This is a perennial question and one where I have shared my views with hundreds of accountants over the years. But not on my blog until now it would seem.
So I have taken a recent question I saw on a Facebook group and have amplified my response below. For balance I have also shared the most enthusiastic comments from accountants responding positively to the same question.
The Question
“Is anyone on here a member of a BNI group (or similar)? Is it lucrative? How many leads do you get?”
I replied as follows:
Probably not for you if you intend only to consider how many leads you could get. So much depends on the group, on your style/approach and on the type of leads you want. As well as your approach to generating leads and referrals for other members of the group.
These points apply to all forms of networking groups – of which BNI is just one approach.
What is BNI?
BNI stands for Business Network International and it is one particular style and approach to networking for small business owners. With a ‘one member per business category’ stipulation, the idea is that non-competing members from different industries meet every week to discuss their business and generate referrals for each other.
There are BNI chapters all over the UK (and the world – as the organisation started in the USA).
Unlike many other types of networking group, each BNI chapter will only have one accountant, one tailor, one conveyancing lawyer , one car mechanic and so on. If you become aware of a vacancy for an accountant you might want to contact the previous one to see how long they were there and why they left.
I know some accountants who love their local BNI group. I know far more who have concluded BNI is not for them.
Reasons may include:
- Early start each week. Most groups start with breakfast at 7am and the meeting is over by 9am. But do check as some groups start later.
- Obligatory attendance each week. This is to make it easier to build relationships with other members and to meet weekly visitors. If you can’t make it you need to supply an alternate.
- Attending regularly doesn’t equate with getting leads. There is a focus on referrals rather than leads as such. These typically only flow once the other members feel they can trust your abilities and service levels. They want to be confident that you won’t let them down if they refer someone to you.
- The commonly perceived focus and pressure on generating leads/referrals for other members. Every meeting celebrates the value of referrals passed between the members of the group. Each group is different and a well run group will seek to help members get a return on their investment.
- The formality and rules around the way meetings are structured and which services you are allowed to promote. Some groups will have separate ‘seats’ for an accountant, a bookkeeper and a tax adviser – in which case they must agree not to compete with each other for referrals from group members.
- Annual subs. Is this the best way to invest your money in terms of the ROI you could get from your time and money? The answer will depend on the other group members, their connections, your style, approach and ideal clients.
- Time required to attend regularly and to arrange 1-2-1s with other members (so you can source referrals for them and them for you). This can easily consume 4-7 hours a week, or more. Arguably you should be investing this time somewhere anyway if you’re looking to build your practice.
- The ‘quality’ of other members in your group (are you happy to recommend and refer them to your clients?). You probably need to attend at least two meetings before committing yourself to a specific group.
- How easy you make it for other members to identify the type of referrals you want? Many accountants tell me that the only referrals they received from their local BNI group were small compliance focused clients. This MAY be due to the type of fellow members of the group. OR it could be that the accountant didn’t adequately explain and make it easy enough for members to refer higher value clients.
The last two points on that list are not specific to BNI. They are true of all networking groups.
I would also stress that with BNI, as with all networking events and groups, you are not just networking WITHIN the room but also THROUGH the room, as that is what secures referrals.
In the same way that you would not recommend or refer anyone to a client if you didn’t have confidence in their work, do not expect anyone you meet at a networking group to recommend or refer you before they get to know, like and trust you.
You need to allow time to build relationships so that other members/attendees feel comfortable recommending and referring you to appropriate prospects.
Other respondents
It would be fair to say that the accountants who replied to the question on Facebook fell into the two camps I mentioned earlier. Many made clear they would rather do all manner of unpleasant things rather than (re)join a BNI group.
Endorsement
On the other hand a couple of accountants were more positive. One pointed out that had learned how to “USE” BNI rather than simply “GO” to BNI. In addition, he claims to have developed some wonderful business and personal relationships across BNI.
Once again I would suggest this confirms my earlier observation that much depends on your personal style and approach, your ideal new clients and the quality of the other people in your local BNI chapter/group.
The most enthusiastic respondent on the discussion thread was very positive about his experience in his local BNI group. He is now into his second year as a member.
To summarise, he said that it took him 3 months to get settled in and build some trust. Then he started to secure referrals worth about £1,500pa every 3 months,
He admitted that whether this is typical involves lots of assumptions (quality of room, your own conversion % etc) but nothing unreasonable.
“You’ll get some crap referrals along the way but you’ll get some great ones, maybe even the golden one that changes everything. My 12 month total is more than £29k at the minute”
Another positive respondent said:
“I was a member for 12 years. Only stopped as I moved abroad. Regular stream of new clients. Don’t expect instant clients. It takes time to develop trust. You get out what you put in. I was on the leadership committee for most of the time I was a member which is extra work but it raises your profile in the group and if you can perform that role well, it further builds the trust. Prepare your 60 seconds well, I’ve taken Jaffa cakes and gingerbread men with and without chocolate trousers to demonstrate VAT nuances. Case studios of tax savings made etc”.“It was definitely a great investment for me. Also helps to provide a solid network of contacts. I miss having a quick dial access to a plumber! Also got saved on a snowy day where transport ground to a halt and a BNI friend put me up for the night”.
Conclusion
It’s worth stressing that BNI is just one style and approach to local business networking.. If you do an online search for local business networking groups you will find various options (which will vary area by area of course). These will include ad-hoc (pay as you go) events run by local business associations, law firms or financial advisers. There are also lunchtime business networking groups such as the ladies only Athena Network.
Some of the benefits of BNI identified in the endorsements above are less about BNI specifically and more about committing to a specific group and learning how to network effectively.
The key to getting the most value from any networking group is to attend regularly, to nurture relationships with other members and commit to giving rather than just taking from the group.
Another approach – especially if you don’t want to commit to a regular group (with the benefits this can deliver) would be to seek out and attend ad-hoc events arranged by local law firms, financial advisers, banks or other businesses. They tend to provide unstructured networking opportunities over breakfast, lunch or evening drinks, before or after a short talk or seminar run by the hosts. The events are typically free to attend and focused on the firm’s clients. However they are also intended to enable the firm to promote its services and expertise to prospective clients and to influencers.
A local accountant will be considered to be an influencer as you may have clients who will one day need the host’s services. So these organisations want you to be there so that they can network with you!
How do you find out when they have events that you could attend? Easy! Go to their websites and join their mailing lists. These are most often used as the basis for invitations to their events. But you will also probably receive their email newsletters!
And, when you do attend networking groups, however they are structured, do ensure you are well prepared to give effective, memorable and distinct answers to the obvious question “What do you do?” And the inevitable follow ups. I talked about this is a recent blog post: “What do you do?” – How to avoid giving a boring reply
