As you know we’ve been talking about getting new, fresh clients to your business using referrals. Last week we talked about the psychological reasons your clients refer, and how to tap into those. To see where we’ve been, visit my blog post from last week below this post. Today, we’ll start looking at specific ways to get referrals in your business, no matter what niche you’re in!
The best way to get referrals (but by no means the easiest) is to find ways to do what you do so well and so uniquely that your customers cannot resist telling lots of people about you.
Yeah, easier said than done, but extremely possible. I’ll tell you that it’s hard to have a truly unique product or service. Be honest with yourself, there’s probably plenty of places your clients could go to get what you do. So the best way to stand out from your competition is in the service and the way you do things.
Here’s an example. One of our businesses is selling to independent and regional chain retailers. To be completely honest, you can get what we sell online for less. But the experience you get when you order with us is second to none. From the first greeting on the telephone, to timely shipping and receiving your order on time, the entire experience is one that you can’t get from our “price only” competitors.
It’s not uncommon for us to get calls saying they were referred from a friend because they just had such a great experience with us.
A second way is to simply ask for them. It may sound easy, and it is, but timing is everything. Here’s an example from a menswear store we do business with.
You need to know when it’s the right time in the buying experience to ask for them. In the menswear example, the time was right after they made the purchase at the cash register and THEY said thank you (which they almost always did). Here’s the script they used:
“As you know this is how I make my living, and I sure would appreciate your help. If you like the way you’ve been treated and you feel a friend or co-worker could use us, I would really appreciate it if you could give me the names of a couple people you feel could benefit from us.”
And more often than not, they got a referral right there.
A third way is to have an event where loyal customers are motivated to bring their friends, relatives, neighbors etc.
I have seen and heard of this working very well for all businesses including dentist, chiropractors, tax prep, financial services etc. But don’t think it can’t work for you! I have a consulting client who owns a fishing boat (among other things), and we suggested he use a client appreciation event during the non-fishing season to get his currently clients together, and encourage them to bring a guest (after all, fishermen know other fishermen!). I have no doubt this will be a huge success in filling his fishing trips well in advance of next season.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Psychology of Referrals
Last week we stated a topic on getting more referrals in your business, and who doesn’t want that!?! To see where we’ve been, visit my blog here. Now, we’ll discuss some of the psychology that of why people refer and how you can get more people to do it.
There are three main psychological reasons why people refer:
There are tons of ways to get more referrals through the personal gain of your clients. You can give them gifts, discounts, prizes, entries to drawings, recognition. The list is virtually endless on what you can do to get your clients to refer more through their own person gain.
#2, helping people they know, is something they usually need to be encouraged to do. It can be as simply as a mention when you have them on the phone, or a short blurb in your printed newsletter. Whatever you do, be sure you are constantly and consistently reminding your clients to tell their friends.
#3, to help YOU, is the best place for you to be in your client’s mind. Whenever you WOW them to a degree that they feel they need to repay you for the experience in the form of a referral, you know you have something special!
So, what are you going to do today to WOW your clients in order to get them to send unsolicited referrals?
There are three main psychological reasons why people refer:
- For personal gain
- To help people they know
- To Help YOU!
There are tons of ways to get more referrals through the personal gain of your clients. You can give them gifts, discounts, prizes, entries to drawings, recognition. The list is virtually endless on what you can do to get your clients to refer more through their own person gain.
#2, helping people they know, is something they usually need to be encouraged to do. It can be as simply as a mention when you have them on the phone, or a short blurb in your printed newsletter. Whatever you do, be sure you are constantly and consistently reminding your clients to tell their friends.
#3, to help YOU, is the best place for you to be in your client’s mind. Whenever you WOW them to a degree that they feel they need to repay you for the experience in the form of a referral, you know you have something special!
So, what are you going to do today to WOW your clients in order to get them to send unsolicited referrals?
Monday, October 19, 2009
Get More Referrals
If there’s one thing every business could use, it’s a fresh batch of new, ready-to-buy referral clients lining up each day. However, like most things, it’s easier said than done. For the next couple tips we’ll cover how you can actively promote and generate new referral clients in your business.
Referrals are your second easiest client/patient to sell to (#1 being your own, current and active clients) so it makes sense to nurture referrals and have marketing campaigns and systems in place in your business to first and foremost get your current happy clients to give them, and second, to be sure you get them as clients once they are referred to you.
Here are a couple of stats that may jump out at you. First, the average person has an immediate circle of influence or around 50 people. However, the average satisfied customer will only tell 3 other people about a satisfied experience. 3 out of 50!
So the important thing to understand is satisfaction is not sufficient. The secret to referral stimulus is the different between satisfaction and enthusiasm produced by either merely meeting expectation or exceeding expectations.
Think of it this way, none of your clients leave your store, practice, office, or website thinking to themselves,”how can I tell as many people as possible about this experience?” You’ve got to give them the reason to do it, and the tools and the way to do it.
So starting next Tuesday we’ll talk about six specific ways you can use to get referrals in your business.
Referrals are your second easiest client/patient to sell to (#1 being your own, current and active clients) so it makes sense to nurture referrals and have marketing campaigns and systems in place in your business to first and foremost get your current happy clients to give them, and second, to be sure you get them as clients once they are referred to you.
Here are a couple of stats that may jump out at you. First, the average person has an immediate circle of influence or around 50 people. However, the average satisfied customer will only tell 3 other people about a satisfied experience. 3 out of 50!
So the important thing to understand is satisfaction is not sufficient. The secret to referral stimulus is the different between satisfaction and enthusiasm produced by either merely meeting expectation or exceeding expectations.
Think of it this way, none of your clients leave your store, practice, office, or website thinking to themselves,”how can I tell as many people as possible about this experience?” You’ve got to give them the reason to do it, and the tools and the way to do it.
So starting next Tuesday we’ll talk about six specific ways you can use to get referrals in your business.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
What to do with the envelope
When I’m speaking with 3D Mail clients on implementing 3D Mail, almost always the envelope question comes up (assuming we’re using an envelope and not something like the bank bag or trash). What should I put on the outside, should it be mailed ‘blind,’ live stamp or not?? There are lot of questions. Here’s a quick read on my thoughts on your envelope when using direct mail,either 3D or ‘flat.’
There are two school’s of thought with envelopes, the ’teaser’ and the ‘blind.’ We’ll talk about the teaser first.
The teaser envelope means that there is “teaser copy” on the outside of the envelope. This could be a message about what’s inside, testimonials, a quote, etc. You’re essentially revealing that the contents are an advertisement.
As a general rule of thumb, you’ll want to use the ‘teaser’ with a group of people who already know you and are interested in what you offer. Your in-house list of buyers or prospects would be great for this.
Also, you want to be sure that if you use teaser copy, you really use it. There’s no sense in putting just one thing on there, you’ve already revealed it’s an ad, so go all out, and use every inch of that envelope. Remember, it’s another sales opportunity
The second way is the ‘blind’ approach. This is best when for a list of people who don’t already know you. There are no labels, and is typically address by hand or a very good handwritten font.
However, this isn’t always the case. Here’s a true story. For many years we used the Million Dollar Bill with great success in our business, and we always addressed the envelopes by hand. However, we finally tested a regular courier (type-writer) font, and guess what?? While our response dropped a tiny bit, our return on investment actually we UP since we were no longer paying for the extra time to handwrite every envelope. So, while the general rule is to use a handwritten font, be sure you test!
However, we always followed these rules to a ‘T.’ We never used any labels for the prospects address or our address, there was no company name in the return address, just our address, there was no teaser copy, and we always used a live, 1st class stamp, and usually a commemorative stamp.
There are two school’s of thought with envelopes, the ’teaser’ and the ‘blind.’ We’ll talk about the teaser first.
The teaser envelope means that there is “teaser copy” on the outside of the envelope. This could be a message about what’s inside, testimonials, a quote, etc. You’re essentially revealing that the contents are an advertisement.
As a general rule of thumb, you’ll want to use the ‘teaser’ with a group of people who already know you and are interested in what you offer. Your in-house list of buyers or prospects would be great for this.
Also, you want to be sure that if you use teaser copy, you really use it. There’s no sense in putting just one thing on there, you’ve already revealed it’s an ad, so go all out, and use every inch of that envelope. Remember, it’s another sales opportunity
The second way is the ‘blind’ approach. This is best when for a list of people who don’t already know you. There are no labels, and is typically address by hand or a very good handwritten font.
However, this isn’t always the case. Here’s a true story. For many years we used the Million Dollar Bill with great success in our business, and we always addressed the envelopes by hand. However, we finally tested a regular courier (type-writer) font, and guess what?? While our response dropped a tiny bit, our return on investment actually we UP since we were no longer paying for the extra time to handwrite every envelope. So, while the general rule is to use a handwritten font, be sure you test!
However, we always followed these rules to a ‘T.’ We never used any labels for the prospects address or our address, there was no company name in the return address, just our address, there was no teaser copy, and we always used a live, 1st class stamp, and usually a commemorative stamp.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Find the hidden money with a newsletter, Part III
Earlier in the week we talked about all the great reason you should be doing a newsletter. To see where we’ve been, check out the blog below. Today, we’ll cover the $10 Million question that I know is on your mind, and that’s content!
There are essentially two different kinds of content you can use. Content that is relevant to your business, niche or clients. And content that is non-relevant.
You’ll want to strike a good balance between the two. It needs to have enough “on topic” material that your clients will enjoy reading it, and so that you can position yourself as the expert in your area of expertise. If you’ve been in your industry for more than two weeks, you probably know it very well, and in most cases better than your competitors,so the relevant content should be fairly easy. Pick a topic in your business and niche and start writing. You’ll be shocked at how much flow out on the page when you start.
But as I said, you need to strike a good balance between relevant and non-relevant content. So
what do you write about there?
Here’s just a shortly list I’ve put together of topics I’ve discussed in my newsletter, and a couple that I haven’t used yet, but will!
The best one I’ve seen (and used myself in the past) is Jim Palmer. Jim is known internationally as The Newsletter Guru and is the president of No Hassle Newsletters.
For information on his Done-4-you newsletter system, (key word: System) in which he writes, produces and mails your monthly newsletter FOR YOU, just click on this link.
There are essentially two different kinds of content you can use. Content that is relevant to your business, niche or clients. And content that is non-relevant.
You’ll want to strike a good balance between the two. It needs to have enough “on topic” material that your clients will enjoy reading it, and so that you can position yourself as the expert in your area of expertise. If you’ve been in your industry for more than two weeks, you probably know it very well, and in most cases better than your competitors,so the relevant content should be fairly easy. Pick a topic in your business and niche and start writing. You’ll be shocked at how much flow out on the page when you start.
But as I said, you need to strike a good balance between relevant and non-relevant content. So
what do you write about there?
Here’s just a shortly list I’ve put together of topics I’ve discussed in my newsletter, and a couple that I haven’t used yet, but will!
- Family
- Customers
- Celebrity (there’s a reason National Enquirer has the largest circulation in the world!)
- Pets
- Human Interest Stories
- Your staff
- Travel
- Humor/Entertainment
- Recent developments/current event
The best one I’ve seen (and used myself in the past) is Jim Palmer. Jim is known internationally as The Newsletter Guru and is the president of No Hassle Newsletters.
For information on his Done-4-you newsletter system, (key word: System) in which he writes, produces and mails your monthly newsletter FOR YOU, just click on this link.
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