Get Customer Referrals

Many people have difficulty asking existing customers for referrals. And yet, as no one knows our value better than those that have already bought from us, there isn’t a better source of leads! Learning to ask for referrals effectively and consistently is an essential part of building a business.

When customers refer others to your business, your business benefits from an instant credibility boost. Like a newspaper editorial about your business, this is far more valuable than any advertising you could do for yourself.

To get referral business, start with providing excellent service. The first step is to make sure that the person you are going to ask for a referral truly believes in what you have to offer.

Once you’ve got an advocate, the next step is to “ground them” on the specific value you provide. Ask two questions. First, “How did everything go with the work I did for you?” Follow this with, “What were the best parts?” Suppose that the referrer says that what they really liked are A, B, and C. At this point, you’ve created a common basis of positive experience. Now simply ask, “Would you give me the names of three people who might also benefit from A, B, and C?” It couldn’t be easier than that.

If you still can’t make the ask, there are a few impersonal ways to generate customer referrals. They can range from simple “Tell-A-Friend” appeals to more sophisticated programs that track customer referrals and reward those that consistently introduce new customers to the business.

On the Internet, organized customer referral programs are also known as “viral” marketing. Like the organisms that inspired them, these campaigns proliferate very quickly, and can easily reach many times more people than might be reached with a company-directed campaign.