Referral Marketing are actions to help promote,
encourage, and create more referral business. Referral Marketing helps
businesses
change the dynamic and take advantage
of missed opportunities.
Referral Marketing consists
of different measures, such as outreach or reminders, that improves the
chance of
referrals being given.
It moves
the business person
into active state of gaining referrals, instead of a
passive state where the business person waits for chance
to arrive.
Referral Marketing tactics
Listed below are some Referral Marketing tactics
that business people should use to increase referral business.
Marketers
should experiment
with different
tactics. The best strategy may be to employ several activities
and discover the right mix for your individual practice.
Ask for them
Perhaps the simplest and most common form of referral
marketing is simply asking your clients for them. Remind
your clients
that you
grow you business
through
referrals and that you really appreciate when they refer
business to you. Some businesses go as far to tell clients
on their
business cards
and print
collateral,
proudly stating that they are “100% referral based businesses”.
This strong message accomplishes two purposes: 1) it
reminds clients to give referrals,
and 2) it boasts that their client base is made up entirely
of very satisfied clients.
Business cards
Hand out business cards. Give your clients stacks of
them in person and through the mail. Encourage them to
give
them out
to potential
customers.
Make yourself easy to find
It would be wonderful if your clients carried your business
card with them wherever they went (see above) but the
fact is that
most people
don’t make a habit
of doing so. Make sure you can be found in the directory or yellow pages, through
the phone company’s information, and have your
own website with a memorable web address. This way, clients
can refer to
you by name and
prospects
will
be able to find you.
Rewards and incentives
Giving rewards or thank you gifts for new referrals can
be a powerful way to have existing clients boost their
referral
giving.
You
offer clients a valuable
reward for taking the time to give you referrals, and
you fulfill the reward
when referrals turn into new clients. Rewards aren’t for all businesses,
though. Learn more about rewards and incentives in ReferralSoft’s
guide to rewards…
Mail campaigns and letters
Whether done bulk or one at a time, sending referral
request letters with stacks of business cards is an easy
and non-obtrusive
way
to ask for referrals. A personal
note or letter can respectfully ask for referrals while
creating a good reason to have a positive contact with
an existing
customer. You
may
pick events, such
as holidays, to send a nice card and your referral request.
The more personal you can make your letters, the less
they will seem
like
promotional direct mail.
Handwriting the envelope adds a personal touch and differentiates
your letter from junk mail.
Phone campaigns and changing your call patterns
Calling clients directly and asking for referrals has
many benefits: you have their immediate attention and
there’s a good chance
that they will not postpone giving you names (provided
they have some). It
can also
be a positive
outreach to clients to see how they are doing and potentially
create new sales.
Ideally, a referral request call would
be conducted in tandem with a general contact or update
call. For example,
you may
call an
existing client to just
say hello, see how things have been with them, and
conduct general update/fact
checking. This is good chance to see if they need any
of your services and potentially get some repeat business.When
closing the call,
you may ask for referrals.
The downside to calling is
that it is time-intensive and may bother some clients. The best strategy
here is
to begin
including
referral
requests
in your day-to-day
contacts and phone regimen.
Referral events (“bring a friend” invitations)
Referral events
are marketing events that you throw where you invite your clients and
encourage them to bring a
friend. Events
can include
seminars, dinners, cocktail
parties, picnics, sporting events, tours, and other group
activities. These events are equally well-suited for
generating repeat
business as they are for finding
referrals.
Many events, such as seminars, allow you to
have a formal ‘pitch’ during
the event. Other events focus on an enjoyable evening
out at a restaurant or an interesting locale. These events
allow you
to market yourself while
shedding
a favorable impression on your guests.
Costs and efforts:
Of all tactics, this may take the most time and resources. Events can
cost $500 – 3,000 on average, and go much higher depending on
what you do. Don’t forget about invitations, RSVP
processing, signage, AV equipment and many other factors
that will add up.
Business partner programs
Business partner programs typically involve two or three
different, non-competitive businesses cooperating to ‘cross-seed’ each
other’s
client base. They often culminate in a joint event, like
a seminar or evening
out, where each business partner invites their clients
to the event, and the other
partner
has a chance to meet or pitch to them.
An example would
be a financial consultant and a luxury car dealer holding
a joint event. The event is a 20-minute
seminar
on estate
planning. It’s
held at the auto dealer’s showroom. After the seminar,
guests are invited to peruse this year’s new car
models. Wine and cheese are served. Both businesses get
to meet new affluent
clients. Other
example partnerings
might
be a CPA and a lawyer, or a wedding planner and a caterer.
Social events
Social events, such as church, community service, children’s sporting events,
or school functions, can be a wonderful place to find referrals. They can be
very immediate – since you are there you may meet the referred clients
right then – and the introduction takes place in
a positive, communal atmosphere.
Reminders
Reminders can help overcome two major obstacles to getting
referrals: they remind clients about you, and they provide
contact information
on the spot. The common
types of reminders are logo-printed merchandise (also
known as swag or glom) that clients use in everyday life.
This
includes printed
pens, matchbooks, refrigerator
magnets, chip-clips, and other assorted mundane goods.
Reminders may also include newsletters, e-newsletters,
bulletins or
other information products that are
sent on a cyclical basis.
Reminders should match the tenor
of the business. A stress release ball printed with a chiropractor’s
business makes sense but a wealth advisor may be poorly served
with a printed Frisbee.
Online and e-mail programs
The Internet provides new opportunities to gain referrals.
Businesses should have an easy-to-find webpage that has
their contact information.
E-mail can be used to make
non-obtrusive contacts to clients and make referral requests. The benefit
of e-mail
is that
clients will
already
be at their
computers and their e-mail program – the same place
they keep their e-mail address books of everyone they
communicate
with. The client only
needs a few clicks
of the mouse to send you e-mail addresses of family and
friends.
ReferralSoft is Referral Marketing Software
for independent businesspeople looking to increase their
referral
business. ReferralSoft
enables users to create
professional e-card referral request messages and send
them to clients. The system provides a private place
for clients to enter
referrals and
a tracking
interface
that enables marketers to see new referrals and respond
to them.
Learn more...
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There are online services (like ReferralSoft – see
sidebar) that allow you to send professionally formatted
e-card referral
requests and
track referrals
online. These services advance the homespun e-mail contact
into a formal, trackable referral program.
Viral marketing and E-publications
“
Viral marketing” is electronic marketing that relies on people
passing along information to others (much like a virus is passed).
This is typically
done by creating information products, such as articles
or e-newsletters, that are available to your client base and others.
They have
a forwarding feature
that allow people who enjoyed the article to send it
to friends via e-mail. Those recipient friends can then forward the
article on to
others.
Viral marketing can be very powerful when done correctly.
Forwarding e-mail or links is very easy for clients, and referrals
will get a taste of your business
by reading the article or e-newsletter. The difficult
part is creating compelling content that is relevant to your
business
that is
differentiated
from glut of
content already available on the Internet.
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