I was talking to a small business owner today about referral marketing when I commented that he had gotten good at asking for referrals often, but he didn’t ask for them early enough. To have a successful referral marketing system, you need to expect referrals. One way to do this is to let your new customers know that you expect referrals at the very beginning of the relationship. Here are a few of my favorite ways to communicate my expectations for referrals:
- Have 2 price lists – your regular price list and your referral price list
- State upfront that you will do such a good job for your customer that you expect to receive 3 referrals within the first 3 months of working with them. Put this in your engagement letter, memo of understanding, etc.
- Include your one-page referral system description in your new customer kit. Better yet, use this tool to educate prospects about what you do and how they can refer you to others.
- Give to get. Actively look for ways to refer your customers and prospects to other people in your network.
Set the expectation early and constantly keep your eyes and ears open for opportunities to ask for referrals.
