Everyone knows that referral marketing is one of the most effective marketing techniques on the Internet. Better yet, this form of marketing won’t cost you a dime.
However, most business owners will wait until the end of their customer interaction to request a referral. First they make sure their customer is happy, then they meekly ask for a referral. (Also keep in mind that if you ask like this, 9 times out of 10 your customer will say ‘yes’… but will never see that reference!)
Referral marketing is priceless when it comes to getting the word out, and it truly is destination marketing at its finest. You’ll want to take advantage of these benefits to grow your business quickly. What I mean is this: Your job is to make your client so happy that they confidently introduce you to others who need your services… but you want to let them know right away.
This method is called “planting a referral seed” and it can really do wonders for your business. In this article, I’ll demonstrate how to use this technique to exponentially increase your sales and subscriptions…
Your client’s unconscious mind is a garden, so you plant reference seeds
Instead of waiting until the end of the conversation, don’t beat around the bush! Since the goal is to increase referral sales for your business, tackle the problem head-on and try to tell your customer this right away on the first or second contact:
“(Name), let me tell you what my goal is. I want to make you so happy that you will be happy to introduce my service to a friend in need.
First, my name is (Your name). How can I help you?”
That is all that is needed. Of course, you can always create your own variation, but this is a great example of a reference seed. Bring it up at the beginning and ask throughout the conversation if you are meeting that goal you mentioned.
Some other effective referral seeds are as follows:
“Tell them to ask for (your name), I’ll personally attend to them!”
“Don’t keep a secret from me!”
“Send them my way!”
“Think of me first!”
The options are limitless, but your main objective remains the same: you are directly asking your client to introduce you to their friends if they are really satisfied with the help you have given them. Your goal is to make your customer so delighted that he wants to tell everyone he knows (friends, family, his own clients and business contacts) about your fantastic service.
Water your reference seeds…
As with any plant, your reference seeds won’t grow just because you planted them; if you expect them to flower, you must water them. Once you’ve planted the seed, ask your customers if you can follow up with them at a certain date and time to make sure they’re happy with your product or service. Ask them how you would have to make them feel in order for them to introduce you to their friends: Would they just have to feel satisfied? Outrageously happy?
In fact, you can even suggest a small reward if your customer shares their good experience with your service with a friend and gets them to contact you within a certain period of time. This will motivate your customer to spread the word to anyone they know who could use your service, and get them to do so quickly!
… Now watch them grow!
If you’ve really gone out of your way for your customers, they’ll feel personally connected to you. They will always ask for you by name because they trust you. You understand them, help them, and have their best interests at heart.
Those are the perfect conditions to plant a reference seed, as good as sunlight and the best loam. Plant your referral seed early in the conversation, and during the conversation, be sure to check in with your customer to see if they’re on the right track.
If you please them, they will be just as happy to introduce you to their friends. Make their friends happy, and they’ll tell them about it, and so on… that’s how the referral plant turns into more sales and signups!
