Since yesterday’s post was about referrals, I thought I would continue that theme through the week.
Few small business owners take the time to fully (and narrowly) describe their target market. Fewer still have defined their target referral sources. Before we can start looking for great referral sources, we have to know what they look like, what makes them tick. Referral sources have different needs and motivations than our regular customers. Just as we develop a profile for ideal customer, we want to have a profile of who makes an ideal referral source.
You can start looking for referral sources in two main groups. The first group is your existing customer base. Identify those customers that already provide you with referrals and then try to find other customers with similar characteristics.
The second group of potential referral sources are strategic partners. A strategic partner is any business that serves the same target market as you or provides a product or service that compliments your offering. You can work with strategic partners to share marketing materials or conduct joint marketing campaigns.
When building your referral network, it is important to remember to employ basic marketing principles. In tomorrow’s post I will discuss the importance of educating your referral sources.
