Don’t Be This Guy
A BNI Director once told me about a member who called him and said he was quitting his group because he wasn’t getting enough business. That very same day, the Director received a call from the Membership Committee of that same chapter. He asked if they could remove that member. He wasn’t following up on the referrals he was being given by other members. Don’t be this guy!
When I hear stories like this I just shake my head in disbelief. Referrals don’t equal more business. Following up on referrals leads to more business. And yes, doing a good job and providing good customer service are important in order to keep getting referrals.
If you get referrals and don’t follow up on them – you’re not going to get more business.
When you give a referral, you give a little bit of your reputation away. If you give a referral with a strong recommendation and then the service provider doesn’t actually follow up with the contact – the service provider not only looks bad – you look bad for giving the referral!
By the way, the group removed the member who wasn’t following up. I heard he now has a job at the Department of Motor Vehicles. Repeat after me, “If you don’t follow up on referrals, you’re not going to get more business.” And then, you might have to take a job at the Department of Motor Vehicles.
Following up on the referrals you get – – – is it me, or does that seem incredibly obvious? Please tell me – that’s incredibly obvious right?
Could you just tell us if it was happening in some US or South America chapter ? I suppose this might happen in some country where cultural manners differs from western ones.
Based on my experience in 70+ countries on every populated continent in the world – following up on referrals is part of an entrepreneurial cultural. I don’t see it as a part of an American culture.
Thank you for Ivan sharing the article. I have two viewpoints about referrals that one is from taker if he treated the referral well and fast who will get more trust and more referrals in future. The reputation is always built by small trust.
From the giver’s viewpoint that he can observe the taker who treat the situation about referral. Based on that the giver will give him more referrals, or judge to be cooperate with him further, or not.
The attitude of treating referral is the present of quality.