“Starting a referral program of some sort, create a template, create an SOP, just a little checklist so that you can consistently follow up and follow through with the business that’s always been generated.” – Meshell Baker in today’s Tip 1550
How do you make a referral?
Join the conversation below and learn more about Meshell!
1519: The ABC’s of Sales – MISTAKES
1526: The ABC’s of Sales – NURTURE
1530: The ABC’s of Sales – OPPORTUNITY
1537: The ABC’s of Sales – PREPARATION
1543: The ABC’s of Sales – QUESTIONS
Meshell Baker on LinkedIn
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Transcript
Scott Ingram: You’re listening to the Daily Sales Tips podcast and I’m your host, Scott Ingram. Today Meshell Baker, the Sales Confidence Igniter, is back with the next installment of her multi-part series. Here she is:
Meshell Baker: Hello and welcome to the ABCs of Sales. Today’s letter is R. And R is for Referrals. A referral is one of the many sources of filling a pipeline and it’s a nice, warm, and at some point hot source. There is nothing better than getting a referral from a customer that know, likes, and trusts you, that you know, like, and trust you guys, engage and enjoy doing work together and business together. And guess what? Awesome people always know more awesome people.
So I’m going to go through some steps to have you prepare to keep that pipeline of awesome referrals coming your way.
So the first thing is lay the foundation for referrals. So laying that foundation, many people believe that that happens at the end of the sales cycle. I am here to tell you, as I have learned myself, it happens at the beginning of the sales cycle. As I am finishing that proposal. It is at that point that you want to engage that prospect in the understanding that if this business exceeds your expectation, if we over-deliver as you have committed to them, that they would be willing to refer you and recommend you to other people. This way you can continue to move forward.
The other thing is provide excellent customer service. So being polite, being punctual, being consistent, being responsive, and I know sometimes this is difficult. At the end of the day, your mind pops like, oh my God, I forgot. The quickest thing to do is just to send an email and let them know I will be a little delayed. I haven’t forgotten you. Things got busy. Business is booming. Find phrases, create some templates so that you can quickly be on top of the consistency, punctual and responsiveness to those people who will be a great pipeline for referral sources.
Facilitating relationships between the customer and your brand. So you want to ensure that their experience and that what aligns with what you told them. All things that are coming to them align and that it generates that friendly experience so that they can easily be able to communicate in a recommendation or if they’re doing a testimonial. And if they’re referring you to someone, they can seamlessly actually say why it is. They believe that that next party would have a benefit of working well with you.
This one is huge. Exceed expectations. This is something that is absolutely necessary. So there’s a statement under promise over deliver. That is one way to do it. What I am saying to you is when you make this commitment on the front end, it will allow you to be more creative and innovative about how you deliver and you’re focusing on the joy. So this is why thinking about the clients that you know, like and trust and enjoy working with will make it a lot easier for you to exceed expectation because it becomes fun, it becomes a game, instead of a chore and obligation.
Know your top referrals. When you start getting these referrals, put them on some type of customer appreciation, automated sending cards on holidays, get their information, a birthday card. The littlest of things will make the biggest of difference and again it goes back to that consistency. And again, be sure to ask if they say yeah, I’ll give you referrals. Yeah, I’ll give you a recommendation, I promise you there are people I’ve had to chase down. Very few people do it on the first request. There’s generally emails and follow-up phone calls and it’s always just being a polite, gentle nudge and reminder which can actually believe it or not, having to call and ask for that recommendation could generate more business as well. It’s all in how you look at the opportunity. It’s not about the fact that they’re wrong and they didn’t do something. It’s just that I am here to support you and your commitment so that everybody can do well.
And always express gratitude. The attitude of gratitude will always change the altitude of your outcomes.
So starting a referral program of some sort, create a template, create an SOP, just a little checklist so that you can consistently follow up and follow through with the business that’s always been generated. And that is one of the quickest ways to generate more and new business. Have a great day selling.
Scott Ingram: For links to connect with Meshell so you can refer her, just click over to DailySales.Tips/1550. Once you’ve done that, be sure to come right back for another great sales tip. Thanks for listening!