Steps to Obtaining Referrals

The Facts behind Referrals

While your clients can be a good source of referrals, a more strategic approach to referral marketing involves building up a network of referral partners who are in a position to send you business regularly. A good place to start is with the people who have already sent you referrals, but you will also need a strategy for reaching other businesses and proposing to exchange referrals.

Step 1 - Who Can Refer You Business?
Identify who you know that can provide you with leads. Who is currently referring business to you? Who also serves your target audience but isn't a direct competitor? Answer the following questions:

 Who were the last five people that referred business to me?

 Who are five people who are in a position to refer business to me but haven't yet?

 How can I motivate each of these people to provide me with referrals?


Step 2 - Propose a Partnership
Once you know who you are trying to partner with, you need a strategy for how you will propose a partnership to them. This will vary based on your personal style but it may involve typical networking events like lunches, sporting events, or other meetings. It may involve finding the right people to introduce you to potential referral sources. If you know of someone who would potentially make a good partner but haven't yet met them, who do you know who is a mutual acquaintance? Your marketing strategy involves both reaching the right people and using the right message. Once you are in front of the right people, what do you say to them? Why is it in their best interest to refer business your way? What's in it for them? Having a compelling offer is crucial and what works for one person might not work for another. It's your job to figure out what they might want from you in exchange for the referrals. It has to be a two-way partnership or there's a good chance your referral stream won't be reliable. Don't assume people will altruistically throw their best clients' business your way because you've had a friendly lunch.

Step 3 - Create a Compelling Reason Why They Should Refer Business
What motivates people to refer business? Think about what you can do for them and build a strategy to "give to get." Some examples:

 Send referrals - If you don't already know someone, you can arrange to meet with them. Then, tell them you admire their work and may have people you can refer. Ask them to explain who their ideal clients are and how you can refer business to them.

 Promote them - If you publish a blog or newsletter, ask them for an interview. This gives you new, exclusive content for your publication and allows them to promote their services to a larger client base.

 Start a referral mastermind group - Pick at least 5 industries your ideal clients have relationships with that don't directly compete with you and with each other. Then, start contacting 20 professionals in each industry with the idea of starting a mastermind group to share referrals. Try to meet them personally, interact with them on blogs or social media, or send them mail until at least three respond within each industry. If you aren't well known in your industry, this can take some time and persistence to get enough people interested, so keep trying! Then, agree to meet by phone once a month.


When approaching referral partners, take the mindset of "what can you do for them?" rather than "what can they do for me?" This is one of the quickest way to build trust.

Article sent to us from Mortgage World Bankers.  Source unknown