Do you know what people in business love getting?
A great referral.
Especially when the referrer takes the time to provide some feedback or insight on why the person you’re referring them to could be a great asset.
You can easily connect the dots in two ways:
- When someone you know is looking for (or you anticipate they will need) service/product XYZ and you refer them to someone in your network
- When two people you know have different types of businesses but have the same buyers or audience (e.g pool company and screen company)
It doesn’t take much effort and everybody wins.
Shooting a quick email intro or giving out a name and contact details takes two minutes.
For example, there are people you’ve known for years or decades who know the caliber of your work and have never once sent you a referral. And then there are others who are constantly referring new business leads and connections.
You should choose the be like the latter.
It makes you more valuable and helps create economies.
Disclaimer
Some people are scared to refer others because if either of the two parties has a bad experience they think that comes back on them.
If that’s a concern of yours, of course, use your discretion.
For example, I won’t send a referral that I knew would be a problem for the party receiving the referral, and I won’t refer people to people/businesses who aren’t quality and attentive.
Just make sure you trust the two parties and let it fly. You’ll likely do more help than harm. If something doesn’t feel right to them they can make their own decisions on how to move forward or not.
What to do when you get a great referral or connection?
DO:
- Speak highly of the person who referred you.
- Treat the referee like a VIP on the initial call/exchange. ‘Hey we want to make sure that anybody that gets referred by [person] gets the best treatment.’
- Afterward, pick up the phone and call the person who sent the referral or made the connection! The same day you get the referral.
- Regardless of the quality of the referral/connection thank them for thinking of you and if something comes of their connection, let them know how it went.
- Ask them what the conversation was like leading up to when they referred you to get into the mind of the prospect and the person who provided the referral. This is a great opportunity to update the person who referred you with what you’re up to which helps them improve their next pitch.
- Keep track of who sends you multiple referrals and do something nice for them and send a gift or commission if the connection leads to business.
DON’T:
- Say anything negative about the person who was referred to you to the person who referred them, it’s just not tactful.
- Slack off or treat the referral poorly. If they are not a great fit, or you’re too busy to move forward, just let them know that.
- Procrastinate about calling the person who referred you and thanking them.
The Bottom Line
Every time you meet someone in business you should be thinking ‘who do I know in my network that both parties might benefit from knowing each other’ and then take action by connecting the dots.
