How well do you fish for referrals?

 1. Stop being so vague.

One of the things that amazes me when I work with people on getting more referrals is how often I find people telling me that they don’t know who they want that specific client to introduce them to. This is step 3 in my 6 step process. It’s the most important step. I tend to hear vague responses like ‘oh, other business owners they know’ or ‘some of their friends or neighbors – maybe some family members’. (This is, by the way, one more reason to have a target market)

The reason I’m so surprised is that we’re talking about their next possible piece of business.  It doesn’t work to say ‘if you can think of someone else I should talk to, please have them give me a call’. It doesn’t work to say ‘who else do you know that I should be talking to?’ You’ve got to be more specific.

Your job is to narrow down your referral request to 2-3 people. Your clients are crazy busy just like everyone else. They also think about themselves 95% of the time. The odds of them spending time figuring out who among the 200 plus people they know that they should introduce you to are very slim.

It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to identify specific people you’d like to be referred to. Only a few raving fans will do it for you.

2. There are two types of people when it comes to hearing referral opportunities:

One group will have one ear listening out in case other business opportunities are mentioned.
The other group is 100% focused on the task at hand and any such opportunities go in one ear and out the other.

This is not a criticism but if you fall into the second group of people who do not know other people they know, it’s time to get more curious! You are missing out on the chance to help more people and do more business.

3. Your job is to FISH using FORD and to make this a HABIT.

You’ve got to take a few minutes here and there to inquire about other people in their lives:

F: Family and friends: Who do they spend free time with? Who are they close to?

O: Occupation: Who do they work closely with at their company? Who are their best clients? What synergistic professionals do they work closely with? Who are the primary suppliers to their industry? Where do they get their new business?

R: Recreation and hobbies: What activities and organizations are they involved in?

D: Dreams and goals: What do they hope to accomplish in the next 12 months? What plans are in the making for the future?

If your memory is like most people, write this information down. It will always be helpful for conversation in the future and tells your client that you cared enough to remember.

4. Leverage the LIKING and COMFORT factors.

LIKING: listen for how much your client likes a certain person when they talk about him or her. If you can hear in their voice that they’re not too fond of their boss, how easy do you think it’s going to be for your client to want to refer you to that person?

If your client tells you that you should talk to someone in their HR department, you might want to find out who they like the most in HR even if it that’s not the decision maker. Your advocate will get you a warmer referral because you’re leveraging relationships.

It is common sense: if someone likes you, they’re more likely to help you out. They’ll go out to bat for you much harder.

COMFORT: it’s critical to ask yourself not only who do I want them to introduce me to but also:

Who would this client be more comfortable referring me to?

We have to think about the types of conversations real people actually have and how we can incorporate what we do into that. It’s our responsibility. If our referral source doesn’t know what to say to introduce us, he or she is not going to say anything!

If you are a financial advisor, would your client be more comfortable bringing up ways you can help to co-workers in a professional business setting or to their family? Some families don’t talk about money or insurance with each other. Others know it is a vital topic to discuss. Your job is deciding which direction to take that referral conversation.

These two factors matter so much because the more they work in your favor; the easier it is for your referral source to recommend you.

If you want more referrals, you must be fishing as often as humanly possible. It’s your next piece of business and, if you’re doing a good job and your client likes you, you’ve got someone right there who can help you!