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by Leigh Ashton
Referrals: Are you asking?
Of your most satisfied customers of 2014, how many of those customers have you asked for a referral?
Most sales and business people never ask for referrals. Those that do often ask when it’s too late — and make a fatal mistake when asking for them (more on that later). Yet referrals are just about the easiest, quickest and least expensive way of increasing sales and building your business.
But you must ask! Most businesses never ask for referrals — ever. Maybe this is because they think asking for a referral is too close to ‘selling’. If you’re nervous about asking for a referral, remember that people usually like to tell others about good things that have happened to them, so why wouldn’t they want to share how great you are with their friends or colleagues?
Secondly, if you’re good at what you do, how sad would it be if you weren’t able to help more people and businesses simply because you were shy about asking for referrals?
Ask early Don’t wait until after you’ve finished what you were hired for. On no account should you ask a few weeks later either. In both situations ‘the moment’ has already passed. You may indeed have done a brilliant job, but memories fade fast and it’s likely you won’t be as well thought of after a lapse of time.
The time to ask is as soon as the customer is starting to get results. They will often be at their happiest fairly early into your work with them. That’s the prime time to ask for a referral. So pick a time when they are massively enthusiastic — and dive in!
Asking for referrals (the fatal error)
“Do you know anyone who would be interested in having similar work done?”
What’s wrong with this question? Well if you have been on any of my training courses you will already be shouting out “It’s a closed question”!!!. Correct. You can only have two answers to that question — yes, or no. And it’s more likely to be a no because that’s the easier answer to give — you’ll have directed their brain into shutdown mode.
So the question to ask (ensuring you have excellent levels of rapport beforehand) is …“Who else do you know that would be interested in achieving the sort of results you’re getting”. Although I changed the end of the question a little, the main difference is the “who else” bit at the start. This takes the customer’s brain down a whole different pathway. Instead of encouraging their brain to shut up shop, you’ve opened up the ‘search’ facility in their mind and they will therefore unconsciously search much more intently for a worthwhile answer. A subtle but crucial change.
Get them to introduce you So it’s all gone swimmingly so far. You’re doing a great job. You’ve asked the perfectly worded question — and your customer has thought of someone who you could help. In a perfect world they will contact your next potential customer initially. Ask them to do that for you. It’s so much better if, when you contact the new customer, they’re already expecting your call.
Offer a reward If you can, why not thank your customer with flowers, or maybe a bottle of bubbly, even just a thank you card? That shows how much you appreciate their help — and might just nudge them into introducing you to someone else!
So who can you ask in the next few days?
Until next time.
Leigh
PS; Click here if you have a fear of selling.
For previous ‘Tricks of the Trade’ go here
About the author
Hi I’m Leigh Ashton of The Sales Consultancy
Whether you’re a small business or a leading brand, an area manager or a Chief Executive, whether you’re new to sales or an experienced sales professional. Even if you’re not in sales at all but want to understand it, you’ve come to the right place.
The World of Sales is changing.
Today’s conventional sales training doesn’t address the psychological barriers that get in their way.
My approach takes your sales team through a process that:
* Helps them identify their psychological barriers and gives them the tools to overcome them * Teaches them how the mind works so they can keep motivated and stay focused * Gives them the ability to identify the psychological patterns of their clients and prospects so they connect with them at a deeper level and close more sales
And at a higher level…
* It creates more success in other areas of their lives so they are happier generally…and happier sales people generate more sales
Wherever you are on your personal sales journey what’s the best course of action for YOU.
– Sales Training – that actually gets results – Leadership and Management – Personal Coaching and Mentoring – Sales Mentoring Programme – NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) and how it can help you accelerate your success – Keynote Speaking