THINKing

Referrals Can Be Good Business

I’ve been thinking about referrals recently. Most marketers want go after new business the wrong way. They want to “take down” the new piece of business using all the expensive tools of the trade from advertising and direct mail to cold calling and event marketing. This is an expensive way to drum up business when your existing clients are just waiting to refer people to you.

Why do people refer? Duct Tape Marketing has a good piece on referral marketing. Once you know the why, you can consider the when:

- After your customer has purchased something from you is a great time to ask. The new customer is pumped up about your offering and you can harness that energy by asking for names of others who could benefit from doing business with you.

- Upon delivery of your product or service is the next time to ask. The benefits of your offering should be readily apparent now, so you can remind the customer of the importance of their referrals.

- Anytime you have personal contact with your customer is a good time to ask. You are continuing to build a relationship with them and can use the opportunity to ask for referrals. Don’t ask more than three times per year, however.

Got any referral pointers? Let me know.

This just in…more thoughts on referrals and word-of-mouth.