In today’s business world, it is necessary to weigh the costs of implementation to avoid overspending. But there are some areas that are obviously worth their cost, and one definite program to always have is a referral program.
It is a known fact that if one person recommends you to another through word of mouth then the person referred is more likely to buy. A referral program is just like this, except a little more systematic. Basically, it’s a method that allows your clients to recommend numerous people to your services. Remember the Pareto Principal – you’ll get 80% of your business from 20% of your clients. Having said that, it doesn’t tell us which ones, specifically, will be those that give the most business, so cherry picking is impossible to begin with.
If this is new to you, it’s worth running over the basics of a referral program. You must always make sure that your customers are happy – an unhappy client is not going to ever recommend you. When a client sends you a referral, make sure you thank them. That will mean everything to someone, that little bit of recognition will go a long way. Reward your clients for these – it doesn’t have to be something big, or related to your product listings, just a simple form of ‘Thank You” will always be appreciated by people.
Be straightforward when you ask for referrals. People have a tendency to not want to spend time on something outside of their own immediate needs, so making it as simple and quick as possible is always a good idea. Taking an idea as simple as this and using it properly can have a tremendous effect on a business’s life and growth.
A referral program should ensure that you get quality, actionable contacts to follow up on. This doesn’t mean that they will “buy now”, but that at some future time they might change to active customers, if followed up on consistently. With all programs, it’s necessary for you to make sure that it’s implemented correctly too. Paying for an awesome on line referral program is great if most of your sales are face to face, or in a retail outlet.
As always, looking at the simplest forms of what you want to do will usually give you the best idea on how to have them work best for your business, which may not always be the format that works best for others. Run the program, if it works, great – if not, change what needs to be changed until you reach a formula that suits you and your company best.
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