Make More Money by Creating a Referral System

Every business person (or those serious about making money) should develop a system for giving referrals. 

Yes, GIVING referrals.

Brent, an insurance agent and Gold Star Referral Club member since 2007, said: 

An Insurance Agent in a business networking group can lead the way with referrals because we talk to so many people. 

Our best system is when we meet with customers for bi-annual reviews.  Financial Advisers, Realtors, Attorneys and Accountants could also develop a similar system.

When we visit with our clients, we ask the following questions:

1. Do you have a monitored alarm system?  (Alarm system referral)

2. Tell me about your Health Insurance plan?  (Health insurance referral )

3. Do you have a Will in place?    (Referral for an attorney)

4. Do you like your accountant?    (A Referral for an accountant)

5. For Business Owners, we ask:

a. How is your website traffic working out?  (Website design or SEO referral)

b. Tell me about your retirement plan?  (A referral for the Financial Adviser)

Here are some referral generating statements that just about anyone can use:

"If you need someone for plumbing, electrical or HVAC, we want you to know that we can recommend a few companies we know, like and trust."

OR 

"I don’t just let anyone touch my computer (tutor my kids, repair my car etc.), could I refer someone to you?"

OR 

"If you need someone to help you in your business, let me know, I know some great people and you don’t want to go with a stranger."

OR 

"Consider me your go-to-guy (or gal or person) when you need to find someone to help with…"

OR 

"No problem, I know a guy (or gal) who can help."

  _________________________________

When a business professional joins www.GoldStarClubs.com, we help them grow their business by demonstrating how to be a Go-Giver first, which sometimes means giving THAN receiving.

What a great way to strengthen a business relationship!

My friend, Bob Burg, author of Endless Referrals, likes to say that the GOLDEN RULE OF NETWORKING is:

"All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like and trust."

You want to make more money with a successful referral system? Start with creating a way... a systematic way, to refer to business people that you know, like and trust. 

And in return - they will refer to you. It's amazing and rewarding to see how this works out to be in the best interest of everyone involved - the giver, the receiver AND the client. Everyone wins!

Go-Giving YOU...

In Chapter 10 of the Go-Giver, written by Bob Burg and John David Mann,  "The Law of Authenticity" is highlighted. Debra Davenport shares this profound insight: 

“As long as you’re trying to be someone else, or putting on some act or behavior someone else taught you, you have no possibility of truly reaching people. The most valuable thing you have to give people is yourself. No matter what you think you’re selling, what you’re really offering is you.”

I just can't seem to get enough of this book! Just when I think I've embraced and internalized all the Stratospheric Laws of Success and have categorized them away in my head for future use - I wake up to find one of them popping up as exciting as a red dawn in the morning. 

"Well, looky that! This sure is what I need today. How inspiring!"

If you haven't already, join us in the public Go-Giver group "Go-Giver Ambassadors" on Facebook. A great community of like-minded people.

One of our Gold Star Referral Clubs in Tulsa gives The Go-Giver book to all it's new members. Go-Giving is the true heart of business networking and relationship marketing. 

It's more than a good read - it's a lifestyle. 

  

Referrals Are More Than Frosting

Now is the time to plan! 

You can have your cake and eat it too! Or should I say that referrals are more than just frosting?

When some business people get a referral, it's like frosting on the cake. But my question is - why can't referrals be the whole cake?

Most companies want referrals. However,wishes and wants will never come true if you sit on your thumbs with nothing to do. 

You need a plan. A mastermind strategy that includes your whole team, office or staff.

Clients don’t come any better than by referral. Referrals cost less to create (aside from your time) and usually bring in the most qualified and desirable clients.

Your referral strategy is important and your team can help you create it. Brainstorm with them about how to focus on referrals. 

Here are five keys to planning a good referral strategy for your business:

1. Focus on ways to maintain a "Referral Mindset" all the time.
2. Identify which industries would be good referral sources for your company.
3. Brainstorm about possible incentives and motivation.
4. Create promotional material or even an email series that embraces your strategy.
5. Plan unique ways to thank and care for your valuable referral sources. 

Whatever your strategy, begin to align your services, products and marketing more closely to serving your client and referral sources with excellence.  The best referral sources are those that are well-served and appreciated. 

Plan your mastermind brainstorming session today and make referrals a bigger slice of your business.

Beth Davis is a keynote speaker, author of 3 Ways to Referral Success and CEO of Gold Star Referral Clubs. She is a certified Go-Giver Coach and Speaker with the Bob Burg organization.

Start a club anywhere in the United States. Go to www.GoldStarDirector.com for more information.

WOW your audience with live action on how to accelerate sales with referrals. Go to www.MoreReferrals.com to find out more.

How Important Is The Pickle?

It's the middle of the day, I'm hard at work emptying my email box, making great progress and my son, Ben, sends me a text.

"How important is the pickle"

I text back, "lol... I give. How important is the pickle?"

In three seconds that phone rings. It's Ben - he's laughing.

He asks me, "Do you know how important the pickle is?"

He can't see that I'm shaking my head at this nonsense, "So, tell me."

Ben precedes with a story. Apparently he has a favorite deli that he's been going to for years. He always orders the same sandwich, a club sandwich with mayo. And, according to Ben, it came with a big cold crisp - tart Claussen pickle.

Then, unbeknownst to Ben, the deli sold. So, Ben goes to the deli and he orders his favorite sandwich.

"Mom," he said. "It wasn't that they put mustard on the club instead of mayo and I can even live with the reduced meat, but it was the pickle. The pickle was warm, mushy and a darker color."

Ben asked the employee what happened to the pickle? The employee said, "Yeah, I don't like it either. The new owners are cutting costs."

"Don't they know how important the pickle IS!" Ben exclaimed.

I'm laughing at Ben's story as he continues.

"Then, I went back a few weeks later, thinking I'd give them another shot and what do you know, there was my big cold crisp Claussen pickle back. Sometimes the pickle makes the difference."

I love Ben's stories, they make my day. This one, about the pickle though, it really got me thinking.

Do I have something, a feature perhaps, that to clients could signify the "pickle" of my business? How important is this pickle? Do I even know what it is?

I might not own a deli, but like most businesses, there are unique features to our services. I would think that most businesses and industries have something that they offer that might be their equivalent of "the pickle."

As business owners, I think we need to be aware that everything counts. Before we make hasty changes to our "pickle", (whatever that might be), we should make sure that our customers won't leave because of it. How do we do that? A customer survey would certainly be a good idea or a beta test group before permanent changes are made.

Which leaves me with the question... yes, you know it's coming... How important is YOUR pickle?

You Never Know Who They Know

I walked into the office and Teresa, our office manager said, "Todd has big news."

I heard Todd's big DJ voice say, "Hey Babe! Come back to my office." (Babe was my nickname growing up.)

I walked into his office. He was grinning from ear to ear.

"I just heard from Jay and he got one of the biggest referrals ever. It could mean big bucks for him and his company. And you know what? It came from Terry, who sells Mary Kay. You just never know who they know, do you?"

The reason he said that is that sometimes you will meet a business networker with,  (How do I put this?) - an elitist attitude. That is the business person who walks into a business networking event and before they are ten feet in, they've mentally separated folks into groups. One group being worthy of giving attention to and the other not. They're only interested in relationships that, on the service, look profitable.

Perhaps you know someone who does that. And I can understand their logic. It only seems to make sense that the big-wigs, the CEOs, the decision-makers and the owners are the best people to talk to.

BUT, if I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. You never know who they know.

One of the things that I love about having a Go-Giver attitude is that the reward starts with the giving. (Read The Go-Giver, co-authored by Bob Burg and John David Mann. It's a game-changer.)

Jay, who got the huge referral for more business, determined early on that his influence within the room was determined by how abundantly he placed the interests of others first. He comes across as a quiet and humble person with an easy smile. He enjoys visiting with everyone, not just the "movers and shakers."

As a result, it was very easy for Terry, the sweet homemaker, Mom and Mary Kay representative, to give him a referral... a very profitable referral. A huge one - on the scale of 1-10, for Jay, this is a 12.

Years ago, we had a business woman visit one of our networking groups and she sat next to a young woman that was new in her business, After the meeting, the business woman told me that she wouldn't be back because it was a waste of her time. She said that she really needed to get in front of the CEOs and decision-makers, not just small business owners.

I didn't say it, but I thought, "That is too funny."  You see, the young woman that she sat next to - her daddy was in the upper management of one of the largest and most influential corporations in Tulsa.

You just never know. It pays to give. In Jay's case, it paid to give equal time, attention and respect.

Referring back to my favorite book, The Go-Giver, the most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself. And then, sometimes out of left field, comes the most wonderful - and profitable - blessings.

5 Things Jealousy Won't Do

Recently my cousin, Suzie, who I haven't seen in about ten years, called to say that she and her daughters were at a Tulsa hotel due to an emergency landing. Their private plane blew out a window at 21,000 feet causing Suzie to have to dive 4,000 feet a minute in order to get down to air with oxygen so they wouldn't fall asleep, crash and burn.

But as interesting as that is... that is not what this is about.

The real reason I'm writing this is because after two glasses of Chardonnay, I finally confessed to Suzie, that growing up, I was jealous of her and that it had caused me to distance myself from her and her family.

Here's the kicker, it wasn't because she married a millionaire, has three airplanes, and used to be Mayor of  El Paso. Although, some could be jealous of all her success, I thought that was pretty cool on her part. (Way to go, Suzie!)

I was jealous because I thought my Dad, (Uncle Oscar to Suzie), loved her more. He loved to brag about Suzie, tease her and she even moved in with us for awhile. You know what Suzie said?

"You have to be kidding, I was jealous of YOU! I thought my dad, (who was Uncle Johnny to me), loved you more." You could have blown me over with a feather. Who knew?

We forgave, laughed, and hugged and then reminisced about all the good times we had with our fathers. However, I realized that we both had missed a lot of good times because of our stupid jealousies.

Known as the "ugly green-eyed monster", jealousy will steal your good times and even harm your business.

5 Things Jealousy Won't Do for you:

1. It won't bring joy or value. 
2. It won't allow you to serve that person in love or kindness.
3. It won't allow you to live abundantly with that person or to place their interests first.
4. It won't allow you to be authentic because you hide yourself from them.
5. It won't allow you to stay open to graciously receiving from that person.

I look forward to getting together with Suzie again real soon and I hope that this confession will help you take a look at any area in your life where jealousy is stealing love and prosperity.

Are You Ready to Become a Referral Magnet?

Every business person's dream is to have an army of walking ambassadors eager to refer to them. We yearn for committed, reliable and consistent business partners that will recommend us to clients.

Yet, for most business people, there is no one in line - eagerly waiting to send them new leads. 

Referrals come as a free will offering; they aren't something that you can demand or manipulate from people. Although, you may be able to bribe a few clients with rewards. But for the most part, referral sources give you new business because they like you, like what you're selling and they want someone else to benefit from it.

Are you ready to become a referral magnet? Ask yourself these 6 questions: 

1. What is my level of commitment to giving every client tremendous value? 

This is extremely important, because if you aren't committed to excellence, you are defeating yourself before you even start. Discover the Go-Giver way to unleash value and profit.

2. Do you believe in your product / service?

Do you believe in what you're selling? This is one of the first steps in referral marketing. If you don't believe it, why should they? However, when you are absolutely sure that what you offer has great value than much of your hesitation about asking for and receiving referrals will disappear.

3. What is my system for giving and receiving referrals?

It's like putting out a rain barrel. How can you expect to collect referral partners and catch a downpour of referrals if you don't have anything in place? It's critical that you take some time to develop a plan. 

4. Am I willing to work at giving and getting referrals?

There is a misguided notion that referral marketing is easy. A good referral marketing system needs goals and action. You will have to apply yourself. Are you willing to do that? To go to meetings? To network? To learn the skills?

5. Am I aware of the opportunities around me?

You are always standing in the middle of a referral opportunity; either to give one or to receive one. It is necessary to become more aware of what is around you all day long. Become more aware of how you can form relationships, what events are happening this week and how to connect with your clients. 

6. Am I willing to take the initiative?

Arthur Ashe, a world renowned professional tennis player said, "Start where you are at. Use what you have. Do what you can." You can become the person who is eager to help others around you and to give referrals. When you take the initiative, others will duplicate your actions.

Most people don't realize that they have untapped potential to grow their business with referrals. 

Start today by becoming fully engaged. Lean into action, not away from it. When you embrace responsibility for your own referral system and don't avoid it, I promise that you will see amazing results.

Who Killed Lincoln's Mother?

If you live in southern Indiana, you may know the answer to that question. 

Recently a friend of mine, Tony Cooke, who is a missionary and scholar, reminded me that Abraham Lincoln lived fourteen years in Indiana (1816-1830) and that his mother is buried in Lincoln State Park. 

He mentioned that Lincoln's mother died of milk sickness. 

In pioneer days, many people died of milk sickness, but back then, they didn't know what caused it. It was later determined that when cows ate a certain plant known as snakeroot that it did not, for the most part, hurt the cow, but the poison in the plant sickened and even killed humans. The fatality rate was so high that sometimes half the people in a frontier settlement might die of milk sickness. 

As business networkers and people who influence others, we spend a lot of time building valuable relationships. However, sometimes a relationship can be damaged by what seems like a mysterious reason ... much like the invisible snakeroot.

You are left wondering "What happened?"

Here are some "not-so-obvious" things that can negatively impact a business relationship. 

• gossip
• feeling under-valued
• lack of attention
• being left out of a conversation or invitation
• teasing
• poor communication
• inconsistency
• lack of trust
• clashing belief systems or traditions
• an air of superiority 

My friend, Tony, who has traveled all over the world training leaders and pastors, pointed out that people come from different backgrounds, different perspectives and different levels of maturity.  We need to be aware of invisible toxins that may impact, damage or even destroy relationships. 

By it's very nature, an invisible toxin is difficult to spot. However, by being aware of some of the not-so-obvious things that can damage a valuable relationship, you can be better prepared as a caring professional business person.

6 Different Types of Business Networking

Six different types of business networking that may work for you:

1. Service Organizations
2. Open Business Networking
3. Exclusive Business Networking
4. Online Networking
5. COI Networking
6. Shot-gunning


Service Organizations: This type of networking is when you join an organization that has a mission of service. Business networking is a by-product.  The primary focus may be educational or to raise funds for worthy causes.  Examples would include: Rotary, Optimists Club, National Association of Woman’s Business Owners, Kiwanis and the Chamber of Commerce (However Chambers do have open and closed business networking events also.)


Open Business Networking: This type of networking is when business people get together to meet each other in order to be visible, connect and form relationships. Leads or referrals can be given and received.  Several attendees may be in the same profession. There is no exclusivity. They may not meet on a regular basis. Usually membership is not required and there are no attendance rules. Examples would include: Chamber networking events, Young Professional groups, Better Business Bureau networking events and local networking groups open to all businesses.


Exclusive Business Networking: This type of networking is when business people meet on a regular basis in order to form reciprocal business relationships and to develop referral alliances.  A person will usually have to join after a few visits.  There are usually attendance rules. There is exclusivity which means that there is only one person representing each business category.  The meetings usually have a purposeful agenda that is geared toward giving and receiving referrals. Examples would include: Gold Star Referral Clubs, BNI, and LeTips.


Online Networking: Online networking is a growing industry. Some of the sites used to connect businesses are Facebook, LinkedIn and Google Plus. These sites are dedicated to connecting people. Online networking can be successful if manage well, but overwhelming if not. It is recommended that you limit yourself to doing a few groups very well. Don't mistake a connection for a relationship.


COI Networking:  That is when you develop a plan to network with your personal Circle Of Influence. This works best when you have a well-thought out plan to continually make yourself visible to past clients and the people you know. Some ways to develop these relationships include: breakfast or lunch meetings, email campaigns, sending cards, promotional gift giving, attending events together and office visits.


Shot-gunning: Shot-gunning is when you do a little bit of everything, without a plan. Although connections and sales can be made, it is difficult to form lasting relationships without consistency.


There are many ways to business network. I suggest that you form a plan using two or three methods that work for you. Remember your purpose for business networking, which is to form long-lasting reciprocal relationships that increase your business.

Use a Simple "who is" Phrase to add value

How do you introduce someone at a networking event in such a way as to add instant value and credibility?

I use what I call, "who is" phrases. For example, last month, while I was at a local chamber business luncheon, I saw both a photographer and a web designer, that I knew very well, milling around the room looking a little lost. I realized that they might benefit from meeting each other.

When I introduced them, instead of just saying, "Doug, I'd like you to meet my friend Mary. I said, Mary, I would like to introduce you to Doug, who is a genius with a camera and my photographer for all my website photos. Doug, this is Mary, who is currently working on my new website and doing a marvelous job."

See how easy and natural that is to do? You can instantly add third-party credibility and value to the mix when using a "who is" phrase right after you say their name. And, like so many times when we give to others in a positive way, this type of introduction reflects back on you in a positive way. I have found that when I start to connect people to each other, they in return, like to introduce me to their friends also. It's a domino effect.

 So, think about how you can add value to the relationships in your life by adding simple "who is" phrases. Just start your sentence and as soon as you say their name, add a "who is" statement.

Here are some examples: 

• Brent, who is the best insurance agent I've ever met, will be on the call also.
• My office manager, who is a genius with numbers, will be able to get that to you faster than I can.
• My colleagues, who are hilariously fun to be with, would like to meet you.
• I found that Corey, who is a talented key note speaker, likes to use Facebook on a daily basis.
• I would like to welcome Mary, who is an outstanding leader in our California organization, to the call.

With a little practice, you can absolutely become a "who is" master and you can easily add value to your relationships with a few simple words. Try it!