Two Easy Keys

To Getting More Referrals

 

 

 MYM Tip #67

 

Nearly all the contractors we talk to feel the same way about referrals—they love to get them, but can’t figure out how to get their customers to consistently cough them up. Giving money for referrals doesn’t seem to help that much—and complicated “rewards programs” only seem to create paperwork headaches. So how’s a contractor, or any other business for that matter, supposed to get more referrals?

Two suggestions—and they’re both super simple.

First, enhance the customer’s experience.                                                                                        Sounds simple, I know. But audit your processes and you’ll probably find a lot of room for improvement. If you use a pre-positioning package to let the customer know you’re a reputable company before you ever meet them or show up for the appointment, they’ll trust you more. Once you ink the deal, have your customer service or production manager make a personal phone call thanking them for their business. Let them know what to expect next. Follow that call with a letter that covers the same information—of course YOU know what to expect next, you sell, deliver,  install and service this stuff all the time. But, how many times has your new customer ever bought, your product or service before? Maybe NEVER! Your quick call to tell them what to expect next (and to re-affirm that you didn’t just run off with their money!) will be very much appreciated. Overkill? Not if you want more referrals it’s not.

 

One of our clients in Chicago implemented these simple steps and saw a four-fold increase in referral business. FOUR FOLD! Just because they were nicer to their customers and communicated effectively with them.

 

The second way to get more referrals is to give your customers a gift. Not if and when they give you referrals—that’s too late. Give them a gift when you ASK them for the referrals. In fact, to put an “exclamation point” on the terrific job you just did for them, why not send them a gift that says THANK YOU, and simultaneously ask for referrals. This allows you to invoke the law of reciprocity, which states that if you give something to somebody, they will feel obligated to give you something back. How about some referrals!

 

For our clients, we send a box with customized M&Ms with the company logo on them, along with a beautiful presentation folder that says “Thank You For Your Business” on the front. Inside, the customer finds a letter of thanks, along with a gift card to a popular restaurant and (guess what!?!) a form that can be used to submit referrals! This is all sent in a standard size USPS priority mail box so it has some “WOW” value when it hits the mailbox. This creates more immediate referrals through the form (there’s also an online form) and over the long term—because of the favorable impression you’ve made with the gift.

 

Yes, this takes some time and effort and (gasp!) money… but why continue to shell out $200 to $300 for leads when you could be thanking your clients, building good will with them, and getting lots of referrals? Put this type of reciprocity-based program together today and watch your referrals explode! To see some samples, please check our website.