All You Have To Do is Ask - Referrals

Business owners, managers and marketers spend countless hours in developing complex marketing strategy models with lengthy roll out times. One of the most overlooked and quickest ways of getting new business is that of referrals. There are two main ways of getting referrals. 1. Wait for them When someone contacts you from having been referred from a colleague, the business is often 80% completed. These are fantastic and ideal but can be a slow wait. 2. Ask for them This is one of the most disregarded marketing methods used in today’s business world. Some are excellent at this, most dismal. Here are some ideas for getting new referrals today.

• Contact your best clients, alliance partners etc and say something similar to the following. (This is what I find works for me but adapt to your own style)

“As the majority of my business comes from word of mouth and referrals from colleagues, I was wondering if you know of 2 or 3 people that could do with assistance similar to what you’ve experienced in my working with you?” Or… “As the majority of my business comes from word of mouth and referrals from colleagues, I was wondering if you know of 2 or 3 people that are needing help with ????? (be specific here to help your contact identify people that you particularly want to be referred to)

• Once they have agreed to give you some names, ask them if they would mind contacting them to let them know you will be in touch or, if they would prefer not to do this, ask them permission to use their name when calling

• When calling the referral, try this to start with and adapt to your style and the situation as you go…

“Hi <NAME>. My name is NAME> from <Company Name>. John Smith passed your contact details on as someone who might be interested in the type of work I do. I have worked with John for 2 years and he only gives high quality people for me to connect with. I’d like to just drop in for 10 minutes on either Tuesday afternoon or Thursday morning just to introduce myself for a start. Which one of those would work best for you?" Everyone can afford ten minutes of their time and the rate of which you will get in front of people will escalate dramatically. And remember…all you have to do is ask.