Episode 8
with Simone Douglas
In this episode of Confident Networker, Simone sits down with Perry Durdin from Electron City. Perry is a member of BNI Business Plus.
Connect with Perry here:
https://au.linkedin.com/in/perry-durdin-4253175a
If you’d like to attend a Chapter meeting and meet Perry, you can book your spot here: https://bnian.com.au/chapter/bni-business-plus/
Chris Irving 0:00
Welcome to the confident networker with your host Simone Douglas. In each insightful episode, she chats with one of the leading people from the BNI and business world.
Simone Douglas 0:11
Okay, so on this week’s episode of the confident networker, I am joined by one of the bright sparks of BNI Adelaide North Perry Durdin from electron city. Thanks for joining me today.
Perry Durdin 0:11
Thanks, Simone
Simone Douglas 0:25
So, Perry is a member of BNI business plus and they meet on a Friday morning at 7am. Parent maybe just for the listeners benefit because they don’t know you as well as I do. Tell us a little bit about your business and what it is that you do.
Perry Durdin 0:38
Oh, I’m an electrician, contractor, employ three guys and myself. We all work out on the job together. Pretty much we do about 70% domestic 80% domestic and 20 30%. Commercial. A lot of work the housing trust as well. Oh, okay. Yeah. Cool.
Simone Douglas 0:38
How long have you been in BNI?
Perry Durdin 0:38
For five years? Oh, nearly five years
I got to be taught for a team must be very close, I think. Yeah.
Simone Douglas 1:11
So five years is a decent amount of time to commit to you know, being a member of anything. But you know, particularly a networking organisation is quite structured and you know, has an expectation that you’re going to be there every week or send somebody. Why are you still in BNI?
Perry Durdin 1:28
Well, why am i still in BNI ? Very nice, so Well, I love it. I can’t imagine it.Not so much business. I don’t trade it like that. So I just enjoy it. It’s part of my life now. Yeah. Stop me having a drink on Thursday night. Yeah.Yeah, cuz I get up at five o’clock. 530. Every Friday for five years. So that’s been good structure for me. Yeah. And so I spent Fridays working on the business then. Yeah, not in the business quite often. Look at jobs or speak to clients or maybe go to dinner, we have lots of gatherings. The watermark will now go on Friday night. But people laugh at that and think it’s a bit of just always gone the puppet. It’s actually really good networking. Yeah, I get a lot of work out of those Friday others.
Greg Winston hosts for the last five years. Yeah, quite often comes to those Floriana. Yeah. An now work floor is my tails now. Fantastic. Yeah. So um, I guess that leads me to another question, which is why is networking important to your business? Well, that’s what business is for me, is networking. I’ve never advertised one dollar. Yeah, mine is money I’ve spent on advertising has been on Yeah. Okay. And then I treat BNR like part of my life. And then things follow from that. Yeah. So that’s what networking is, to me. It’s more about getting the relationship if you get the relationships, right. Everything follows. Yeah, I’m very firm believer in that. So in the course of your five years with BNI, which, again, is a long time, and your business would have changed a lot over that time, I would have thought what has been, you know, the best piece of business advice that someone in BNI has given you?
Probably small things, big things. Soif I get a small job, if I get a PowerPoint to put in for roller door, yeah, that’s $150. We don’t make any money out of that. It almost cost money. Yeah, almost. Yeah. But then once we’re there, we’ve got a new relationship with that homeowner. So it might be someone from BNI giving me $150 PowerPoint, but then we get into that person’s home for free. Yeah. So they might need a new switchboard. They might want some new lighting. Yeah, new switches or whatever it is. So that $150 job. I trade the same as a $10,000 jobs. Yeah. So that’s the small things big things, and I force myself to never ignore a small job. Yeah, because of that reason. And quite any day do small jobs that cost you money. Yeah. But I don’t sweat on that doesn’t
Simone Douglas 4:15
know it works out in the wash. And then you come across someone crazy like me, that buys a house and let’s change all of the things in it.
Perry Durdin 4:24
say, I think when I wrote up to your place that day, I was to change a few lights. Yeah.Everyone in the pool house members.
Simone Douglas 4:31
Yeah. Good job
Perry Durdin 4:32
. But that happens. Yeah. And the job we did for you is almost 70% of that work. Yeah. type of work. Old 70s built houses. Yeah, 60s and 70s. Houses are needing meaning. We basically people are going to paint we’ll just put new switches on the house turns out to be new. Yeah, not just decorated but new electric.
Simone Douglas 4:56
And it does make such a big impact to switch those things out.So, in your time in BNI, who has, you know, helped you the most?
Perry Durdin 5:08
Overall pages, the Brome itself. So right from day one when I did the fee and I was a little bit we used to use the passport that we bring in bear. Yeah. When we started with the passport, I think Andrew Skinner did the passport in my day, and he’s one of the longest member of South stroke in Australia. Yeah. So he taught us well, that was done very well, as far as getting seen and learning been our systems and, and learning that small thing, big thing. Yeah. So that got us started. And then right through, I would say the room is just just the room. Yeah. So as we all know, we have lawyers down to electricians. So there’s not many rooms, you get that difference. So as people and and I think the interesting thing, you know, like you’re talking about lawyers down to electricians, but the thing that I love about BNI is its lawyers and electricians. Okay. Yeah, never get an opportunity to be in a room with so called lawyers. And then also salespeople. Yeah.
You know, real estate. We’ve never get that opportunity normally.
Simone Douglas 6:18
Well, and to learn about MCs, yeah. And it allowed me to learn about so many different industries. So that then when I go into another business, so say, if I went into an electrical business, and they say, oh, yeah, you know, it’s 70%. Domestic, okay. Ah, so an ideal client for you someone that wants to switch out their halogens to LEDs, and I want to do five. Yeah.
Perry Durdin 6:41
Because they get such a benefit.
Simone Douglas 6:42
Exactly.
Perry Durdin 6:43
So the nicer onto their friends easy. Yeah. It’s so easy. If we, if we come in, someone’s got it down on us. Yes. Perfect job for us. Because about four months later, they get their first bill. And they do notice. Yeah, I get oh,
yeah, I do get told. Next thing. I’m doing my sister’s place, or their mom and dad’s place. And we’ve got into salt from tears and going oh, yeah, she’s a big, big. Yeah, we’ve done one job in there. We’ve been working on a big job, or now we’ve done a second one. And she’s got about 60 down hours. And she’s talking to her she wanted 20 cards to give out. Yeah, just listen to the table. Yeah. When she gets her first bill in about three months, roughly. Yeah. We know that she’s going to be talking to everybody about it. Yeah. Jobs. Yeah. Because it’s an easy one, it’s a no brainer, that pays for it. So it’s like putting solar on itself in two years,
Simone Douglas 7:39
then why wouldn’t you do that? I think that’s the thing is like, you know, it’s the fact that I can speak the language of an electrical business or a financial planning business or, you know, so as a marketer, when I’m going into close a deal, because I know who their ideal clients are, because I’ve learned from the room.It makes me a front runner for that deal, as well. So it’s not just for me about the referrals. It’s also about being able to speak different lead to different people.
How how much of your business comes from BNI referrals?
Perry Durdin 8:12
Oh, that’s a good one. So probably about 20% Maybe? Yeah. 15% Yeah. 20% I would suggest,
Simone Douglas 8:22
do you have a load?
Perry Durdin 8:24
Yeah, I’d suggest about. Yeah, yeah. 15 20% What’s the what’s the biggest job you’ve ever got? I got a little one for we’ve got a TV guy in our place called dawn. Yeah, he’s a great guy. And he does a lot of small jobs. He helps out the elderly and stuff, he got me a job to to go and look at a switchboard as maybe a bit of rewind for one of his mates down in Porto. And we got there, this house was ready to bend down.And the client ended up paying I’m trying to think of his name now. But he’s a top bloke, no guy retired. And he still had a bit of money. And he just said I want you to rewire the house. Make it safe. And I want extra PowerPoints here and extra switches here and there. Yeah, we spent a week there. And I think that Job was about 13 grand. And the guy loved it. Yes. Given a small jobs for other paper in place. And Don didn’t when he gave me that little referral, probably thought it might have been a switchboard and bit of rewiring here. And then we ended up spending the whole week there. Four of us. Yeah, fantastic. There you go. So that was a good one. Yeah. The other way around, I’ve given lots to solar. Yeah, no, I used to do so we don’t do that anymore. So we’ve got Simon okay. Yeah. That’s a lot of solar. So he gets quite a few raises,
Simone Douglas 9:47
I suppose. Another really good point because often, you know, in BNI, for for the members that might be listening, you know, you will have people in your chapter that do bits of what you do. So they they’re not representing that they’re representing their primary purpose.But, you know, what is the value of passing work to someone or making that decision to go, you know, I’m not going to keep doing solar. I’m going to give the work there. You know, how has that helped your business in the couple?
Perry Durdin 10:16
We do security systems as well on cameras and all that. But it’s not core business. So quite often, if we’re doing new house and they want security or cameras, we do that because we’re there. Yeah. And I like the lead on sort of bonuses, really.
But we’ve got Chris Swan in there as well doing security. So given him a couple of jobs that are too big or yeah, that I want to do, and he’ll do them much better. Yeah. And that that helps. And he used me for a few small things as well. And with the solar as well, it works as well. So it does work. So in the case of solar has given me an occasional switchboard as well. He’s got electricians that did the instals. And they might not want to do the switchboard.Yeah, so he’s given me a couple of days. So just work around once you like that competitiveness. With Christmas security systems five years ago, I did a lot. Yeah, do that many anymore.It just works. Well.
Simone Douglas 11:17
What is your favourite thing about being a BNI? Member? Well, that camaraderie that that forced me to get up Friday mornings, as hard as it is a schedule. Yeah. Actually enjoyable. Getting there and having that great meeting discussion. Public speaking, which I’ve never done in my life. Couldn’t really do when we started. It’s still not very good. Now you don’t write.
Perry Durdin 11:44
Quite often I read what I’m saying. Which is okay. Just set general camaraderie when you leave 830 on a Friday morning. 39, you still got your full day after the meeting? And you can do anything because you think you are your father. Exactly. So it’s not a it’s not a negative place to go. Yeah. Positive.
Simone Douglas 12:10
If you could give some advice to another electrician or a trainee, that’s, you know, because obviously, construction industry is booming right now. Who’s been invited to some networking event? You know, somebody? And I think because that’s usually how they’d explain it. If they’ve never seen one. I know, my mates asked me something. And I,what advice would you give to them?
Well, I’d say it’s a no brainer. If they want to grow their business.
Perry Durdin 12:35
It’s a it’s a straight up no brainer. It’s no other way. Because you will grow. Yeah, if you do not want to grow if you want to stay as a one man band, for example. And you’ve got enough work. You wouldn’t join BNI he couldn’t cope with the way yeah, you’re going to get work. Yeah, absolutely. If you come to being on you don’t get work, then yeah. Your inward looking, you know, if you’re gonna if you if you’re ready to accept advice, which I think 90% More than that, mostly, you’re ready to go, you’re just gonna walk in, if you’re gonna just listen for the first couple of months, and your business is going to grow no matter what it is.
Simone Douglas 13:16
Yeah, absolutely.
People want paperwork, one, when you give them a job, they want you want, they want to make you look good. Yeah, vice versa. So now it works. works very well. So I think it’s a no brainer. Well, to wrap it up, if I needed to find I’m sorry, if I could introduce you to one person to have coffee with that would help you achieve your next business goal. Who would it be? I’d probably just
Perry Durdin 13:45
Another builder. Okay. Welcome. Said boutique saying.We’re doing spec homes. So yeah, I’d like a builder that does say no more than 10 Maybe five times a year. Yeah. Okay. So not the real big massive ones are builders that do say two, three, builder the testimony of someone that does around that sort of between six and 12. So that building slightly bigger homes with automation. We do do a lot of automation. Yeah. Awesome. And it’s good fun. We enjoy it. It’s a challenge. Yeah. It’s not just your basic electrical. Yeah.
Simone Douglas 14:20
And it’s nice to have some.
Perry Durdin 14:21
Good for meto the young boys at work for me or that late 20s. Yeah, young, but I love that sort of stuff. It’s a challenge. It’s not just put lights in. It’s making them work with Google, which is always fun. So, Perry, thanks very much for joining me, for the listeners out there. If you do happen to know one of those small and medium run builders that does that six to 12 times a year, maybe take them along to be in our business plus for a visit. I’m sure we’d be happy to host them. And thanks again for joining me.
Chris Irving 14:54
Thank you for listening to the confident networker. You can find more episodes and information andbn ia bnian.com.au/podcast
Transcribed by https://otter.ai