by Steven Zyskowski
Great referral teams focus on developing their ability to produce referrals for each other. They’re “Opportunity Hunters”. Members should be encouraged and rewarded based on how well they leverage their abilities.
Most of the referral teams I belonged to, even the great ones, had a certain percentage of what I call “junk referrals” getting passed at the weekly meetings.
What’s a junk referral?
A junk referral is what someone who belongs to the team passes during the weekly meeting in an effort to “save face” and make the other team members think they actually brought a referral to pass at the meeting.
It’s one of the worst things a person can do because it undermines the entire effort of creating trust within the team. “Let’s do lunch!” or “I want to talk with you”, or, “I know someone” doesn’t count as a legitimate referral in my book.
Great referral teams pass mostly quality referrals where there is a legitimate opportunity to help a fellow teammate land a sale.
They’re warmed up by your team mate and the client is expecting your call. The prospective client is even excited to speak to you, because the referring team member did such a great job educating them about why you’re the expert deserving of their business.
Referrals are not an entitlement; they’re a gift and the result of trust building efforts between people.
Great opportunities are abundant … especially on teams who have great people.