Tweet

7 Secrets to Creating Client Referrals

Written by: Kylie Hammond

Article Overview: Ask the proprietor of a professional service firm where they get their business from and most will tell you that over 80% of their business comes from word-of-mouth referrals. What is astounding is that most professional firms do not have active referral strategies. Now while devoting 80% of your marketing budget to referrals is a bit far fetched there are seven killer strategies that don't cost the earth to boost your business.

7 Secrets to Creating Client Referrals

Maintain Visibility

Invest time in attending events such as Chamber of Commerce meetings, networking breakfasts, small business forums, wealth creation seminars anywhere your potential clients go. You have got to be seen to be heard.

"People like doing business with people they like and trust."

Go easy on the sales pitch, just be there offering friendly advice, brokering connections with people you know and letting them know you are still the area specialist or whatever is your unique angle.

Keep in Touch

Once you have sold to your client the relationship is just beginning. It is essential that you track customer records/transactions in a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database. Ask for their permission if you seek to distribute marketing information.

Electronic newsletters or e-zines are an inexpensive and easy way to keep in touch with your prospective and past customers. Invest the time and energy in compiling newsworthy articles and visually appealing graphics. People love people stories and photos.

Ask for Referrals

The easiest way to get referrals is to ask for them. You may want to pre-position your client by asking upfront," When I deliver the outcomes we have agreed upon I would very much like for you to refer me to your friends and associates, how does that sound?"

Or even just ask, "Who else do you know that might be interested selling their home quickly and for the top dollar?"

Describe your ideal client to them; for example, "The kinds of people I am looking to help are young families looking to move closer to private schools in this area."
Make sure they know to how to refer clients to you. Say, "If you know someone that might be
interested, call me first to discuss and then I'll call them."
A Simple "Thank you"

An easy and inexpensive way to leave an indelible mark on your referrer is to simply and sincerely thank them. No song, no dance just a sincere and heartfelt "Thank you."

The most powerful word in the English language is a person's name. Do use it when conversing with your clients.

People love to help. Clue them in as to how they can help you, make it easy for them and sincerely thank them. Miracles will occur.

Deliver on your Promises

There is no substitute for delivering the goods. Without it you are pushing uphill. Make sure you set clear performance expectations, maintain open communications and listen attentively. If you hit a hurdle be open and upfront - you will gain respect in the long term.

Form Partnerships

Think from the customer's perspective. If you are in real estate moving house is one of the more traumatic events one can encounter. Make the passage as easy as possible. Form partnerships with lenders, removalists, boarding kennels, cleaners. Be respectful of security and privacy concerns.
Provide Incentives

It is perfectly acceptable to offer rewards to regular referrers. Make it worth their while especially where they go out of their way to help. It is the sentiment of the thing rather than the face value of the reward. Find out what they indulge in, for example, chocolate, weekends away, dinner, theatre or sporting tickets.

These strategies are neither expensive nor time consuming. They are simple in design but powerful in effect. Give them a try. Your clients will love you for them.

Related Articles
  “Six Strategic Things To Remember When Requesting Referrals, According To Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach”
  Why Referral Business Is So Valuable
  The 4 Simple Secrets For Creating True Wealth
  The 4 Simple Secrets to Creating True Wealth
  Getting Referrals

Article Tags: area specialist, business forums, chamber of commerce, commerce meetings, creation seminars, customer records, customer relationship management, customer relationship management crm, doing business, e zines, electronic newsletters, friendly advice, indelible mark, marketing information, newsworthy articles, private schools, top dollar, upfront, wealth creation, young families



Related Forum Posts
Re: Can you outsource your product launch? - Yes that what I am talking about. Creating a buzz for your online product launch basically. Is this part of what you do?
Re: How do you get your clients? - I think staying away from gathering clients strictly online when first starting out is probably a good idea. Your first few clients could maybe be people you know, or know through somebody that may require some of your services. Another good way of gaining new clientel is offering your first few clients completely free service in exchange for placing your business card or promotional material in their business if you're doing b2b sales. Referrals are the lifeblood of many small businesses.
Re: Social Media & Digg, Google, MySpace, and YouTube - Hi Kathy, What I meant about it being worth it was in the sense that I described. Creating multiple accounts for various sites and posting and ranking your own stuff. It's very time consuming to say the least. I'm just wondering if there's anyone out there that has done this and thinks it's beneficial.
Re: How Do You Fight Spam? - There are several ways in which you can stop spam: Client side: you can configure your email client to move spam to the junk mail, and you can do this by blocking their domain, some clients will even allow you to block ip blocks. Server side: you can set your server to have a white list, that can control spam before it gets to your inbox.
Re Thinking Smarter - Hi Beat, Thanks for sharing this win. It's inspiring to hear about. Can you imagine what our life (and our businesses) could look like if we continued to open up to our creativity? Every day becomes an exciting journey for us and even those around us. Happy "Creating"... Tami


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Gas bills go up by 18% can we take any more

Smart & Simple Internet Techniques

Starting A Set of Books

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.