Do you love it when a happy client helps you find new clients? I know I do. Well, let’s explore how you can have that happen more often…
First, let’s clarify why we love the term “introductions” and dislike the term “referrals.” It’s very simple. People don’t know what a referral is.
It’s basically a buzzword in the sales world. You going to a client and saying, “Don, would you give me a referral?” is like a computer programmer walking up to you and saying, “Would you write some HTLM for my program?”
We sales people assume that everyone else knows what a referral is, but they don’t know any more than you know what HTML code is. They might have heard of it, but they likely don’t know exactly what it is. I can’t tell you the number of times that I asked for ‘referrals’ back in the day only to get a letter of recommendation.
When you ask people for ‘referrals,’ they may think that it is a reference, they may give you the name of someone to call, they may give you someone’s name and say “use my name.” This is not what you want.
However, when you ask for an introduction, there is no question about what you want. We are in the business of getting introductions. Stop asking for anything else. If I you are my client and I do a great job helping you transform your sales from slumping to soaring and you are psyched, are you going to be willing to introduce me to anyone that you think I could help? I certainly hope so.
The same should go for you. From now on, get out of the business of asking for referrals and only accept introductions.
Please share your comments below.
Written by Marc Wayshak, Author of two books, creator of Game Plan Selling and Boston Sales Trainer.
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