Building a Business on Referrals

By Chris Krimitsos

In the Information Age, where technology is quickly becoming seamlessly integrated with our environment, we are able to find and research anything we want in seconds. As consumers, we can now easily do our research on what services or products we're about to purchase before any point person in that company knows about it. Empowering for the consumer, but a total game-changer for the business! Sales techniques, like cold calling and hard sales closes, are quickly losing their effectiveness in the marketplace. We don't want to be told why we need to buy your product or service, we want to hear about it, learn about it and then come to you when we're ready to get it!

The best marketing strategy to approach this paradigm shift is simple: honoring and strengthening relationships with your customers and your strategic partners. The result? Referrals. Oodles and Oodles of referrals! Give customers more than what they expected and watch them spread the word!

Building a business based on referrals is not easy. It’s hard work and it takes time to perfect the systems needed to be referral worthy. In order for this system to work correctly, there are a few things that must be in place. The first is that you must do business with integrity and have a phenomenal product or service. You should never have to convince a customer to refer you. They should want to do it! If you don’t have these elements in place yet, then get to work!

There needs to be a WOW factor or a story to tell that can easily be relayed from one customer to another. You need to share with your clients how to best refer you by giving them vehicles in which they can refer you.

For example, you can give your special clients referral cards that provide anyone they give it to with a complimentary consultation, a free product or a 10% discount. By doing this, you empower your most loyal ambassadors to share your story (which they would do anyway) in a way that makes them look good doing it!

Recently, I read a book called "Janis" in The Bookbinder series. The book truly was a gem that I really loved and I started to tell everyone around me about it. A few days ago, I ran into one of my friends to whom I’d given a copy and she told me that she’d already ordered a few books to give to her friends. Why was this book spreading like wildfire? 1) Because it's exceptionally written and has a unique message delivered in a very engaging way (great product); 2) I thoroughly enjoyed it (exceeding customer expectations); and 3) I shared it (Referral)! Now, the process repeats exponentially. That's the power of building a business based on referrals!

One of my favorite ways to create value for The Wealth Building Annex community is by writing e-Introductions and connecting business owners with other valuable business people. I get asked all the time, “How can I add value to you?” To which I reply, "I would really appreciate it if you send some e-introductions my way!" What is an e-Introduction? It's a way that I empower other strategic partners, vendors and clients to connect me to others. I educate them on my ideal prospect or whom I’m trying to reach, and the way I'd like to be introduced, and bam! The referral system goes into autopilot.

Not only did technology change the game, but it also acts as one of our biggest allies in this new strategy. Never have there been so many outlets with which to meet and connect with others. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have put the power of connecting at your fingertips. Have clients you want to congratulate on an achievement? Tag them on Facebook and let everyone who’s watching see how much you support your clients! Want to meet the CEO of a big local company? Check your connections on LinkedIn and see who might be able to help you out! Want to show support to a strategic partner? Blast out something about them to your Twitter following! We have never had so many resources right in front of us to help us reach the people who will spread the word about our companies!

The key is to build overwhelming value between you and your die-hard customers, so much so that they feel compelled to spread the word through these multiple channels. This then triggers a stream of referrals back to you because you built a customer experience worth referring.

Feel free to send me an email if you would like to learn about my #1 greatest referral generating tool, my e-Introductions. It will help you build a pipeline of clients in less than 90 days if used correctly! Chris@twbaonline.com.

About the Author
Chris Krimitsos is the Founder and CEO of The Wealth Building Annex, a premier businessgrowthorganization focused on producing results and growth for CEOs and business owners.He speaks about Internet Marketing strategies and differentiating business relationship techniques. He was recently nominated one of the top 3 Speakers in Tampa Bay. Chris can be contacted at Chris@TWBAonline.com or www.TWBAonline.com.