7 Solutions for a tough economy

At a time when many business owners and sales people are thinking hard about their marketing budgets, what skill could be more important than getting free business from word-of-mouth recommendations?

1. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

At a time when more sales people are getting increasingly needy and worried, what carries more weight: a desperate appeal in a mass mailer or email blast OR a trusted client saying to your prospect: ‘talk to this person – she’s great’?

At a time when there’s fear, please don’t be a sheep. Be more proactive whether you feel like it or not.

2. Network more not less!

 I was at a networking breakfast meeting today and almost everyone there was expressing some hurt. It was a true reality check for me. So surely now of all times this is one to meet MORE with those professionals you know, like and trust and brainstorm more ways to recommend each other to open more doors.

Yes, I know you would expect me to say this but, really, what does it cost you to ask for a referral compared to running an ad, buying internet leads, sponsoring an event, or upgrading your website?

Now is the time to be doing more networking than you were doing and setting up more meetings with centers of influence.

3. Have the right mindset to ask for referrals: “I am good at what I do, I can help people you care about and I know I need to ask you.”

I make this sound simple but I do acknowledge that getting to this point is not always easy. I’ve worked with some people where it’s taken them a year to get to the ‘right mindset’, where they finally realize that they are truly making a positive difference for their clients and not trying to sell them something.

To get more referrals, this mindset is a must.

4. Ask more!

Is there more to it? Yes, but if there is a ‘secret’, it’s first believe that you are making a difference. The second part is understanding that when WE refer others, we’re not usually doing it to make the business owner more money, we’re doing it because we like to help our friends and family – the people we care about. It’s the same when you ask. Your clients generally don’t care about your business and they certainly don’t spend any time thinking about it, but they DO like to help the people they care about. Your clients also want them to be doing the right thing.

5. Seek out a target market that is still doing pretty well.

What are some businesses that will continue to do just fine because they are necessities? Could you develop more of a reputation for specializing in meeting the needs of that profession or business? There was one business at my meeting this morning who said all was well: photocopier sales. We will all still need computer and car repairs, haircuts, dental work, groceries, insurance, and financial advice. You get the picture.

This is a time to be asking ourselves empowering questions.

6. Keep in touch more with your clients/contacts

One interesting thing that’s been confirmed for me recently (yet again), is that one of the keys to a great referral business is keeping in touch. I truly believe it’s the one area that gets the least air time.

As you already know, the real estate market has been down for a while now, yet one Realtor I know has continued to have a great business because she consistently keeps in touch with her clients. She calls them every 3 months. She meets 2-3 past clients for coffee or lunch every week. (Obviously she picks the ones who like her the most and are more inclined to refer her.) She has had a couple of client appreciation events. She sends out postcards with useful tips (rather than sales pitches). She also sends out the Loyalty Ezine – a business I created that is a monthly e-newsletter that tells about inspiring people and inspiring ideas: a non-salesy way to keep in touch with your database on a monthly basis.

This week I am putting on two seminars for different industries yet the interesting commonality of the top producers I interviewed for these events was that they ALL did a great job keeping in touch. And – duh – the one habit most of them had was sending as many personalized hand- written thank you notes as they could. We’ve heard this idea dozens of times, yet how many people do it? I am embarrassed to say I used to be quite good at it but have sent about 3 in the last 3 months.

7. During every tough time in human history, some people have found great opportunities.

And if you come across one, please shoot me an email! Ha ha.

Word of mouth recommendations have been around since Cro-Magnon times (although don’t ask me to prove this!).

If you’re not getting the referrals you want, drop me a line. Once you have the skill, it’s yours for life and it doesn’t need much upgrading! Once you have the skill, getting new business is free. It is gimmick free. Once you have the skill, you don’t need to depend on clever marketing, cool branding campaigns or leads programs. Once you have the skill, you are in control of your destiny.

Now is the time to be proactive!

Action Steps:

1. Schedule more networking events

2. Schedule more meetings with centers of influence (or potential ones)

3. Ask for more referrals

4. Keep in touch in more ways.

And if you want to develop the skills for #3, email matt@thereferralauthority.com

And if you want a hassle-free way to do #4, email Susie@thereferralauthority.com

Who else would appreciate this message? Please forward this onto others and share the wealth.