In this presentation, you'll learn about 25 ways to generate powerful, high-quality referrals for your business. Want to learn more? Visit us at: http://www.raintoday.com/

1. 25 Ways to Get
Referrals
Sales & Marketing Resources
To Help Grow Your Professional Services Business

2. Create a referral program with
complimentary service providers
to exchange referrals.
Be sure you only include providers in
this network that you’d be
comfortable recommending to your
best client or friend.
©RainToday.com

3. Recognize and thank your
referral sources.
This could be with a simple phone call, email, or
even better – a handwritten note. The important
thing is to express your appreciation. You’ll also
encourage additional referrals this way.
© RainToday.com

4. If you have clients who don’t
or can’t refer,
Create another way for them to
recommend your services
(e.g., case study, testimonial).
© RainToday.com

5. In practice:
I once worked for a large organization
that prohibited written testimonials and
discouraged referrals; however, I was
able to provide recommendations by
phone for vendors with which I worked.
Two vendors I worked with took
advantage of this opportunity and
closed several deals by having select
high-value prospects speak with me.
-Mary Flaherty, RAIN Group
RainToday.com

6. Include a “Referrals
Appreciated” blurb in your
print or email newsletter.
Be sure to describe what an
ideal referral looks like for you.
© RainToday.com

7. Also in your email newsletter,
include a request:
“If you got value from this article, please share
it with your network (e.g., Facebook, Twitter,
LinkedIn).”
Add icons and links that make it easy to share
content.
© RainToday.com

8. Add to your email signature:
Referrals Appreciated.
Add a “Referrals Appreciated” or
“By Referral Only” tagline to your
business card.
© RainToday.com

9. Make sure your current
clients know about the
services you offer so they
can either refer within
their company or to others
they know.
© RainToday.com

10. In practice:
Too often providers assume their clients
know more about them than they do.
If you’re a market research firm and a client
uses only your online survey research
services, for example, make sure they know
about your intercept interview service or
focus group capabilities.
© RainToday.com

11. Add a link to a form on your
website for referral submissions.
Proactively refer people to other
businesses that have a clientele
similar to yours.
Let those businesses know you’ve done so
and that you’d appreciate the same.
© RainToday.com

12. 11 Be remarkable; remind clients
why your service is special.
Give them something (good) to talk about.
© RainToday.com

13. 12 Inspire confidence.
It’s risky referring someone – what if it’s not
successful? You can inspire confidence in your referral
sources by letting them know that 80% (or whatever)
of your business comes from repeat customers.
13 Offer an affiliate program.
© RainToday.com

14. 14 Offer a guarantee.
This is another way to inspire confidence (see #12).
Provide valuable content your
15 referral sources can share with
their network
An invitation to an event on an industry topic, research
briefs, an article about a regulatory change or industry
trend, etc. Make it something special for them to share.
© RainToday.com

15. Treat the vendors and suppliers with
which you do business as partners.
Make sure they’re aware of
who you help and the services you provide.
© RainToday.com

16. 17 Update your LinkedIn profile.
Include the link to your profile in your email newsletter
or website to make it easy for referral sources to share.
Include it in your email signature with the note, “Please
feel free to forward my profile to others you feel would
benefit from my services.”
18 Create a list of prospects you want to
work with.
Check out their LinkedIn profiles to see whether
you’re connected in any way. If so, reach out to them
via your network – whether it’s an individual, a
company, or a group.
© RainToday.com

17. Create a referral program for
current clients where they
receive some type of reward or
recognition for the new
business they refer.
© RainToday.com

18. In practice:
John Jantsch gives an example of an accounting firm that
created a “100% Refund” offer where its tax preparation
clients received four coded business cards.
Clients who referred new clients could receive a refund of
up to 100% of their tax preparing fee – 25% for each card
that was turned in to the firm by a new client.
© RainToday.com

19. If you generate traffic from
Twitter, Facebook, and
other social networks,
reach out to your online
networks and request
referrals.
Don’t forget: On Twitter, you can ask
your followers to retweet to their
networks.
© RainToday.com

20. 21 Be helpful in forums.
There are many stories of helpful people getting
business just from the goodwill they create from
helping on Twitter, LinkedIn, and provide in
online communities.
22 Treat your customers as
partners, too.
Let them know you view them as a strategic
partner, and tell them you hope they’ll do the
same with you. Create formal channels to share
referrals.
© RainToday.com

21. Educate referral sources so
they know what an ideal
referral looks like.
IDEAL
REFERRAL:
© RainToday.com

22. In practice:
Sarah Arrow of Same Day Courier
Services lets people know their ideal
referrals are blue chip companies
looking to deliver airfreight and time-
sensitive components.
They don’t deliver small packages like
nuts and bolts unless they are worth
more than $5,000.
© RainToday.com

23. Give your raving fans the
tools they need to refer you.
© RainToday.com

24. In practice:
Johan Taft had people tell him they
wanted to refer him, but they didn’t
know how to explain what he does.
So, he created a website for referrals
and testimonials. He has a link to it
in his email signature, and he gives
copies of the PDF document posted
there to people who are interested
in referring him.
© RainToday.com

25. GIVE a referral. It’s one
of the best ways to get
one in return.
© RainToday.com

26. This is just a start.
Let these suggestions jump-start your own
idea generation. Create a referral process that
works for your ideal clients and your networks.
Be referable. Focus on your ideal clients. Tap
into your networks in a proactive way. By
putting a referral system into place now, you
are more likely to receive quality referrals
throughout the year.
© RainToday.com

27. Find This Info Helpful?
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