This post is for Caerusnet Members. Not for all of them, but for some of them. It’s for the Members who haven’t yet been able to regularly work referrals into their routine. Remember, people have choices for who they can make referrals to. The Members who get referrals are the ones who typically are great a creating referrals, too. People will mostly only give referrals to those they know, like and trust. There’s no greater reason to get others to like you than by providing true, meaningful referrals. So if you’re not getting … it’s likely because you haven’t yet made yourself referral worthy to the team. What’s the last great warm referral you created that resulted in a sale? Coming up blank? Hopefully reading this article will help you create new opportunities for growth and profit!
1. Make Trust Builder Meetings (TBM’s) a regular part of your Caerusnet experience. It’s amazing to me that people expect referrals, but aren’t regularly scheduling Trust Builder meetings with the other Members of their team. How else will the other Members get truly comfortable with you otherwise? It is very important to leave your TBM’s with “To-Do’s”! When you follow up to your TBM’s with actions (referral To-Do’s) you are showing other Members you are a great networker with follow through and they will likely want to do the same for you.
2. Make it a point to consistently start making easy business card introductions. While it might feel awkward at first, it works! These randomly selected soft card passing introductions work great when meeting with other professionals, prospects, clients and family. It will show others you like to promote and talk about positive business experiences and like to promote others (not just yourself). Example: “Before we start our meeting today, I wanted to give you the business card of a friend of mine who works at the Ford dealership, helping people buy cars. I don’t know if you might have recently considered a new car in your future or not, but Tad does such a great job, I feel compelled to tell all of my favorite clients about him!” (Be genuine!)
3. Joint calls. Schedule a few hours for these personable and fun “customer service stops” with another Caerusnet Member. They introduce you to a few of their good clients one day and you return the favor the following day or week and introduce them to a few of your best clients. A good pairing might be a payroll provider along with the document imaging specialist on the team. Think of Members with whom you can naturally pair up with and go out there and create new opportunities!
4. Use referral language BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER every client interaction. Always remind your customers that referrals are the greatest compliment they can pay. Remind them how important your work is and that you are eager to help anyone they would refer. Remind clients to use you as a resource … someone who also loves to make good referrals to other area professionals.
5. Utilize your Facilitator. Everyone wins when a team is growing and/or is full. Facilitators are motivated to grow the group and help the group learn how to become referable to each other. Enlist your Facilitator to help get in touch with those other professionals you’ve targeted to visit. Some Facilitators will even cold call on business cards you give them (cards you found on display at local businesses). Do you have someone in mind who’s promised to visit your team once or twice, but has never shown up to the meeting? Sometimes a friendly phone introduction from your Facilitator is all it takes to help motivate this person to finally make it to a future meeting. Remember, public speaking is a common fear many professionals have, so just getting them to calm down to the idea of talking in front of a group can help. Share your prospective visitor contact information with the Facilitator and form a strategy for how they’ll be contacted.
Remember, the partnership between Members and Facilitators should be strong. Need additional referral generating ideas? Just ask your facilitator! They’re there to help and be leveraged. Together, we can Master The Art of Referring!
