Bni- Business Networking International- the Good, the Bad and the Ugly
BNI, Business Network International is a business networking group. I present my experience with it over the last three years. I tell you why I joined, what I liked about it, what I did not like about it, and why I left.
Let’s talk about BNI today. This is an international networking group founded by a man named Ivan Misner about 24 years ago. The organization is in many countries in the world and is littered with chapters all over the local area where I am. There are many good points to it which is why I was in a chapter for three years. However, it has flunked the cost-benefit analysis for me and therefore, I tell them as Trump tells people, “YOU’RE FIRED!” Let’s discuss.
The GOOD- I joined my local chapter of BNI in 2006 right after I opened my own “shingle.” (I am a transactional attorney, mostly real estate closings). The president of the chapter was (and is again) a real estate agent. There was a mortgage broker, a home inspector, a termite guy and an insurance person in the Chapter just to name a few business in the chapter. These made up a “power team” where we can refer business back and forth and to each other related to real estate closings. This was an excellent way to meet new business people and get the word out about my “shingle.” Just as Noah’s Ark, you could only have one type of business in each chapter which eliminated competition. The premise of BNI is simple. I scratch your back (give me business) and you will do the same for me. We had lunch at a local restaurant every Thursday. At the meeting, we would discuss each other’s businesses and pass referrals. At each meeting, we would have one minute to explain what we do, why we do it better than our competition, and what kind of business we wanted. It worked out well at first. The real estate agent and mortgage person sent me closings; BNI helped my practice take off. I sent business to them (and the others) when I could. The “entry” fee paid for itself many times over after just a few months.
There is one other good thing. I knew who to go to when I needed the services of people in the group. When my office flooded, I called the disaster guy. When my back hurt, I went to the chiropractor. When I needed health insurance, I called the insurance lady, etc. The services I got from the group are good and I knew who to go to.
The BAD- It is a big time investment and the attendance policy is too strict. The meeting is 90 minutes and it is every week. This comes to over two hours with drive time which at my hourly rate is $300. During a six month period, one is only allowed to miss three meetings. (This is stricter than a typical law school class which is 20% which would translate into five “cuts” per six months). From personal knowledge, this discouraged many “one man operations” from joining that I tried to recruit to join. Anytime I tried to have chapter leadership loosen the attendance policy, it got “shot down.” As a result, we ejected the banker and the payroll guy for “truancy”. Now, we don’t have either classification in our group now.
THE UGLY- The structure of the meeting is boring and propagandist. Now that I am not getting any referrals, there is no point to stay. The structure of the meeting is as strict as the Traditional Catholic Latin Mass. Everything has to be done just as Leader Misner says to in the marching orders, I mean the BNI manual, that the three leaders of the Chapter (President, Vice-President and Secretary) receive when they go to management training. Every week, a Propaganda Reader, I mean Education Coordinator, delivers five minutes of materials that is to be taken straight from BNI’s website. At the end of the meeting, all present (including visitors) are expected to say what they loved about the meeting; the brainwashing begins before you even join. The visitors (through the verbatim structure of the meeting) are expected to make a decision. It is like Ocean’s Eleven, “You’re in or you’re out, right now.” (Never mind that we are not going to explain the entry fee or the strict attendance policy. We need to get your application fee.)
Now that I am not getting any referrals, there is no point. There is a new mortgage person. I do not know why, but she sends me nothing. The real estate agent works with sellers now and therefore, has much less control in sending me referrals. Others who are part of the group ask me legal questions expecting free advice (or ask me about legal cases that I do not handle). I do not have the time for a meeting like this when I need to work on more profitable things. I have left the group and joined a local group that meets half as often and costs a fourth as much to be part of. It was not an easy decision, but there is no turning back now that I have made it.
I urge anyone that is going to join BNI to get full information before they pay the hard-earned application fee. (You probably will not get the information from the person that is asking you to join).
14 Comments
Jack that is a fine piece of writing. You’re writing style is def less inflammatory than mine and more balanced. But you probably don’t write fueled by tequila and anger.
I’m no fan of BNI either. I’m glad someone else views BNI in the same way I do.
I appreciate you following my blog.
Thanks for the post Grumpy Nerd. I enjoy your blog. I am going to use this as my farewell address on Monday. (I used my cuts). I have joined a new networking group that meets half as much and costs 1/4 as much. Can’t wait to see the reaction.
Hi Jack.
There is one thing anyone thinking of joining should remember, BNI is a business to it’s owners and therefore it is run like one. And once you realize that everything related to BNI becomes clear. It is a business that can not exist without it’s members hence so much emphasis is put on keeping existing members in and new ones coming.
That is extremely helpful. I am in London and went to my second visit at a chapter today. I was undecided as they really do make you feel like there’s £1000s to be earnt (I have just started up my own interior design practice) if you just show some willing (i.e. you don’t care about your business if you don’t get up at the crack of dawn and repeat yourself endlessly for weeks to the same people). Your account is as clear and fair as I can get with pros I expect and cons I feared and I have decided to keep my £600. I might get some business but the commitment is extreme plus today someone got boo-ed for not bringing a referal! Not after £600 thanks!
Interesting posting Emma. You are not in a field where people have to have your service, e.g. auto-home insurance. So BNI is going to be iffy for you at best. Youre going to have to come every week at an early hour. Yea, the person who did not bring a referal gets booed, Not surprised. He did not make one up like most people in our chpater do. At least he is honest. 600 pounds, wow? It is only $375 a year here. I am glad that I helped you save 600 pounds and 2 hours of sleep one morning a week.
Pawel, thanks for your post. Of course, a chapter is usually better with more members. But BNI is a business for Misner and he has been great at it. People are working for BNI. YOu work for Misner to get him more money with new members. You work for him to make sure the minutes are correct. You work for him in giving him money. it is great for him, less so for most of the members.
Jack that’s exactly what I meant.
BNI is a business to it’s owners, Meisner and owners of franchises in other countries hence all the brainwashing you go through during each meeting.
That was one of the things that put me off from BNI. I, just like you, left the chapter as it was simply not working for me.
Emma, it does work for some businesses though. It still might be worth giving a go. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from trying BNI but certainly it is good if you know all pros and cons of it before you join.
I guess a trial period, or a shorter membership period (and smaller fee going with that) could actually work quite well for BNI.
Five days ago I was laid off. The first thing I started doing was emailing contacts stating my current position and that I was looking for freelance work. One reply told me I should come to a BNI meeting and prepare to be “surprised”. Surprised by a networking meeting? Unless there are bikinis and beer at 7:30 AM, I’m not sure I’d be surprised.
Anyway, this little one word sparked my curiosity and skepticism. I visited the BNI website, read some snippets and started Googling. After reading a few blog posts, I’m trusting my gut on this one and passing on the opportunity.
Hi Stuart. You made the right call. You would have been surprised by the hard sell. They are sure to tell people little about the financial commitment and the time commitment. Here, make a decision right now. I confronted the mortgage person in my group. She says she is sending closings to another lawyer? wtf? I told her there is no point to me staying in BNI if you are sending the closings to me. She says she would “throw me a bone” I think I will send my recpetionist to go there. I am tired of it.
Pawel, I agree. Why not a 6 month commitment instead of ayear? The year long membership probably is a hardship for people like Stuart. Put it on a card they will say.
I agree with you. BNI is nothing but propaganda and brainwashing. I have had several members of my chapter make appointments with me only to cancel the day of their appointment. WTF? I am in the medical profession and being away from my office is very, very costly.
I agree wholeheartedly with the above and much much.I joined a BNI chapter as a lawyer beguiled by all the empty promises of referrals. After four months I then realised that the chapter I was in never lived up to the motto of ‘givers gain’. I decided to transfer to another chapter only to find only a small percentage of the members receiving referrals.Gradually members left and we are now down to seven members from 25. I have three months left on my membership I have yet to receive a positive referral and definitely will not be rejoining. There is nothing to stop a few people meeting regularly who have a strong committment to each other together with strong ethics to do this without BNI as at best it just lines the directors pockets.
Thanks for the comments everyone. I have written another article which will be published soon about this. Basically, I decided to give the thing a second chance and I feel Charlie Brown now.
New article is published
http://bizcovering.com/opportunities/bni-good-bad-and-ugly-part-2/
My Good bad and Ugly experience with BNI is that I actually started up a network group and allowed BNI to become a part of it in Florida.
The group was called BNI British Connections and based in Orlando. Over a short period of time we enrolled 45 members each paying $430 x 45 =$19,350 for BNI.
The BNI is a franchised organization and makes its money from the turn over of members. The Director of the Florida franchise did not like the way that we were making it so simple by not following them and decided to terminate my role as president. The whole group of 33 members resigned in protest and we formed back up again as an independent group. In my opinion BNI stole the money from these members by brainwashing them into thinking their organization was working for them when it fact it had them working for it recruiting more members all the time into a system designed to just collect your money.
Further more BNI retains your credit card information by scanning the complete application form. An incident by BNI Florida is due for investigation where the regional director was caught sending out members credit card information to other members of the BNI and intercepted by others. If you have given BNI your credit card information you are also at risk. If you are thinking about joining BNI and especially in Florida think again.