When I ask audiences how many people have ever had a long distance relationship, about half the room put their hands up. When I ask them how many were successful relationships, the number drops to about 5 per cent – and the reason is simple.
You cannot have a relationship without visibility.
It’s the same for business. Unless you are part and parcel of somebody’s life, you do not have a relationship with them. It’s like the old saying, ‘out of sight, out of mind’.
If you are not regularly present in the lives of your customers, you will not retain a relationship with them and you will eventually lose their business.
You may have heard of Mark Gerard, listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the greatest salesman in the world. One of the reported reasons for his success was that he sent a monthly greeting postcard – Halloween, Easter, Christmas; any event would do – to his database of more than 14,000.
He maintained visibility, so that when it came to making decision about cars, they chose Mr Gerard.
Visibility as a primary component of a successful business relationship is the fundamental reason why BNI insists on mandatory attendance week in and week out.
There are of course other reasons to attend:
* If our fellow members can make the effort to get there, so can we. It demonstrates respect.
* They have paid money in the expectation that you and your fellow members will be there. Attendance is consistent with good customer service.
In the current environment, relationships are what will get us through – so will visibility.
1 comment
And of course we all think in “pictures” so without a presence there is no picture for the visibility to be real. They say a picture is worth a thousand words so how wonderful when you get on your feet at a BNI meeting to do you 60 seconds!
Nice one Colin.
Paul
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