Relationships + Referrals = Revenuestring(35) "Relationships + Referrals = Revenue"

Successful business networking is based on developing relationships with the people in our networks. When people get to know, like and trust each other, they are willing to make introductions and referrals to contacts in their other networks. Those referrals can turn into new customers and clients, adding new sales for our business. That is how Relationships + Referrals = Revenue.

Relationships

To create success and harmony in our lives, it is important to build and maintain our  relationships – in our home, in our work, and in our community.

HOME
We get busy with day-to-day life, especially if we are working from home, and sometimes we take our family for granted. Remember to:
      – Be grateful. Tell the people in our homelife how much we appreciate them. Be specific, be sincere, and tell them often.
      – Show gratitude in a way that means something to them. We often treat others the way we like to be treated. Understanding behavior styles and recognizing the preferences of the people in our lives allows us to share our gratitude in a more meaningful way.  

WORK
Whether we are an entrepreneur or an employee, we spend a lot of time at work. We have business relationships with our team and co-workers.
Remember to:
      – Say thank you. YOU know how much you appreciate them, let them hear it.
      – Be helpful – ask, “How can I help you?” to create beneficial teamwork.
      – Avoid the “it’s not my job” attitude. Expect that everyone contributes in whatever way is needed to achieve success for all.

COMMUNITY
We are part of the community that we live in, whether it is small or large. Our community pulls together when times get tough and celebrates together when things go well.
Remember to:
      – Get involved with a service organization or a service project in your community.
      – Commit to regular attendance and participation with the groups you are part of.
      – Contribute your time, treasure, or talent to help others.

Referrals

We know that it takes time for others to have the confidence in us to get referrals from our network. When we have invested the time to establish strong relationships, and have given referrals to our networking partners, we move from visibility to credibility in the VCP Process®.  Remember to:
      – Actively listen and look for potential referrals for members of your network.
      – Follow up with networking partners to learn how the referrals you gave turned out.
      – Thank your referral partners for connecting with and taking care of the people you referred to them.

Revenue

We can only move to the “P” in the VCP Process – Profitability, after we have obtained credibility with our referral partners. This is after we have built strong and deep relationships, asked others how we can help them, and given referrals to them. That is when we begin to receive referrals for our business, and the revenue comes naturally as a result. Those referrals may come directly from people we gave referrals to, however, they often come from other indirect sources. When we give to others, in our home, our work, our community, it comes back to us in a variety of ways.

In BNI, we call this Givers Gain® and it is our principal Core Value. It is based on the age-old concept of what goes around comes around. Our relationships bring us referrals, which lead to revenue. When you help others, and they help you, everyone does better.

Organizational Culture

How Do You Create Organizational Culturestring(40) "How Do You Create Organizational Culture"

How do you create an organizational culture in a company? I’ve been asked this question a lot over the years. I’ve written about organizational culture but I’ve never written about how you “create” organizational culture. That’s what this piece is about – creating culture. In this piece, I’m going to give you my perspective based on my personal experience and observation.

Although these aren’t your experiences – I recommend you consider them and take from this perspective those things that resonate with you and will help you create your own organizational culture. If you are not the “boss,” consider how these themes may apply in your department of the company. The concepts can apply on a micro level as well as a macro level.

In all my reading about organizational culture, I’ve never seen it explained the way I experienced the process. I believe that organizational culture is created through the following three primary phases:

Organizational “traditions” lead to organizational “core values” which lead to organizational “culture.”

The traditions of a company (or department) are where things begin. Although you can have healthy traditions or unhealthy traditions, I’m going to refer to the healthy traditions of an organization. Traditions tell us who we are as a tribe. They tell us what is important to us and how we implement them within the organization. For me, in the establishment of BNI, those traditions included things like a focus on relationship building, education, accountability, recognition, and of course – Givers Gain (to name a few). Each of these items (and more) were the traditions that were inculcated throughout the program in the beginning. By making them such an important part of the company – they ended up becoming some of our organizational core values.

Core Values of an organization are the fundamental beliefs and guiding principles that dictate behavior and help people better understand expectations within the organizational context. For BNI, those core values included the five items above (education being changed to life-long learning) as well as positive attitude and traditions + innovation. Yes, I included traditions in our core values as I realized that traditions are critical to the ongoing success of an organization because they anchor us in the things that create great experiences. At the same time, I understood that innovation was key. Traditions tell you where you come from and innovation tells you where you want to go. I felt both were important for the success of the company.

Traditions lead to core values and core values lead to an organizational culture.

Consequently, the core values that are acted upon within an organization (or local unit… in BNI, a chapter), directly impact and create the culture. To me, the creation of culture is pretty straightforward. Understand the healthy traditions of an organization. Then practice and implement the organizational core values like a zealot. Be a fanatic about sharing them, discussing them, implementing them and writing about them. When you do these first two things well, you create an amazing culture.

Culture eats strategy for breakfast. If you are part of an organization with a great strategy and a marginal culture, you’ll struggle. If you are part of an organization with a marginal strategy but a great culture, you can do well. However, if you are part of an organization with a great strategy and a great culture you will be an industry leader. Culture is the secret sauce for organizational success.

If you want that kind of success for your organization pull out the material that talks about your organizational core values (if you don’t have them, think about your traditions and start to establish core values from them) and put them into practice as though your business depended on it (and by the way – it does).

Building Relationships

Build Your Business By Building Relationshipsstring(45) "Build Your Business By Building Relationships"

Building Relationships should become one of the most important components of your business. You should build your business by farming not hunting. If your network is a mile wide and an inch deep, it’s not powerful. Social capital is like financial capital. To amass financial capital, you have to invest and grow your assets. You have to have money in the bank before you can make a withdrawal. Relationships are very much the same – referral relationships in particular. You must support and help others with their business before you can ask for their help.

 

Before you ask for a referral, make sure that you can answer “YES” to most of the following points about a person and their business to verify that you have built a deep reciprocal referral relationship:

Building Relationships:

  • You have known each other for at least six months to one year. Networking takes time
  • You understand at least three major products or services within their business and feel comfortable explaining them to others. Can you explain clearly what they do and can they explain what you do?
  • You know the names of their family members and have met them personally.
  • You have been in a situation where both of you have asked each other how you can help grow your respective businesses.
  • You know some of their goals for the year, including personal and business goals.
  • You could pick up the phone and call them at 9 o’clock at night if you really needed something. If they answer during their personal time, you have a good relationship with them.
  • You would not feel awkward asking them for help with either a personal or business challenge.
  • You enjoy the time you spend together. You like taking time to meet for coffee or a glass of wine.
  • You have regular appointments scheduled, both business and personal to connect. Maybe this is at a BNI meeting or another networking event.
  • They are “top of mind” regularly.
  • You have open, honest talks about how you can help each other further. You enjoy seeing them achieve further success.

Connect with people who also believe in the philosophy of “Givers Gain”®. Therefore, before you ask for a referral, make sure to make an investment, and build a deep relationship first.