Coaching Tip No. 18 - Referrals, an easy way to win business or promote yourself
17/08/09 12:52 Filed in: Coaching
Tips
"You
create your opportunities by asking for them."
Patty Hansen, Author
In Coaching Tip No. 15 we looked at asking for help and that very often, people unconsciously feel the need to ‘be strong’ and don’t ask for help when it would be both easy and fruitful to do so.
This tip builds on the same principle - that if you stop and ask yourself "What resources do I have available to me that I’m are not currently using?" there is more than likely something there that can help you.
The tip is mostly for salespeople or sales managers but the same principle can be used by anybody running their own business, and also in the area of career development.
Patty Hansen, Author
In Coaching Tip No. 15 we looked at asking for help and that very often, people unconsciously feel the need to ‘be strong’ and don’t ask for help when it would be both easy and fruitful to do so.
This tip builds on the same principle - that if you stop and ask yourself "What resources do I have available to me that I’m are not currently using?" there is more than likely something there that can help you.
The tip is mostly for salespeople or sales managers but the same principle can be used by anybody running their own business, and also in the area of career development.
If you’ve
been doing any work on networking, you’ll already
know that it is not the person you are going to get
business from, but someone from their
network...
When salespeople think of customers they tend to think of them mostly as just that.... customers! However, what happens when you consider them as a networking opportunity, using their network? In particular, utilising their network to generate more business opportunities?
I am of course talking of getting referrals. We all know that the chance of winning a sale from a referral is far, far higher than cold calling. The main reason for this is that with a referral, there is a transferral of trust (of you) from your customer to this new contact.
Here’s the thing, it’s really easy. We just have to remember (or plan) to do it!
If you haven’t done it before, here is a simple structure to follow. This structure will work better if you are using your own language that suits the market you operate in.
Sample Process:
If they can’t think of someone then at least you can ask for a testimonial from them in the meantime. This doesn’t stop you asking them for a referral again at a later date when the opportunity comes up.
If it is important to get testimonials, e.g. for a marketing campaign, you can replace question 3 with a request for a testimonial. You can of course do both - “Would you be willing to give us a testimonial to that effect, or even better a referral to someone else?”
Also, if you want to focus on a particular area, there is the opportunity to highlight this to your customer as you ask for the testimonial.
In a career development scenario you could follow the same structure along these lines:
If you’ve not been getting referrals to date, you’re probably sitting on a few golden opportunities, just a few questions away....
Take care and as always, please forward to anyone you think would find this tip useful - Gregor
When salespeople think of customers they tend to think of them mostly as just that.... customers! However, what happens when you consider them as a networking opportunity, using their network? In particular, utilising their network to generate more business opportunities?
I am of course talking of getting referrals. We all know that the chance of winning a sale from a referral is far, far higher than cold calling. The main reason for this is that with a referral, there is a transferral of trust (of you) from your customer to this new contact.
Here’s the thing, it’s really easy. We just have to remember (or plan) to do it!
If you haven’t done it before, here is a simple structure to follow. This structure will work better if you are using your own language that suits the market you operate in.
Sample Process:
- Have you got a moment to speak?
- Are you pleased with what we’ve done for you?
-
- (optional) What’s the value that you got out of it?
- Would you be willing to recommend us to someone else?
- Can you think of someone you could recommend us to right now?
- Do you have their number?
If they can’t think of someone then at least you can ask for a testimonial from them in the meantime. This doesn’t stop you asking them for a referral again at a later date when the opportunity comes up.
If it is important to get testimonials, e.g. for a marketing campaign, you can replace question 3 with a request for a testimonial. You can of course do both - “Would you be willing to give us a testimonial to that effect, or even better a referral to someone else?”
Also, if you want to focus on a particular area, there is the opportunity to highlight this to your customer as you ask for the testimonial.
In a career development scenario you could follow the same structure along these lines:
- Have you got a moment to speak?
- Have you been satisfied/pleased with the way I’ve been performing?
- I want to be (more) proactive about my career development. Would you be willing to write me a letter of recommendation I can keep for future use?
- ... and finish the conversation as you think appropriate for your relationship
If you’ve not been getting referrals to date, you’re probably sitting on a few golden opportunities, just a few questions away....
Take care and as always, please forward to anyone you think would find this tip useful - Gregor