I was shopping for a new vehicle in August, and I mentioned it to a friend of mine. He told me that I need to call his “lady” about financing. I explained that my wife and I were already members of a credit union and got the best rates possible. He then said: “It’s more than just the rates – these people make everything very simple and offer specials to their members all the time. I get a different promotion on specials to games, shows, flights, whatever.” I made the call, and I hate doing tasks like this. I made the call because my friend recommended it, and that’s the only reason. If I received a promotional email telling me exactly what he told me, I’d ignore it. However, I trusted him and I now have a new credit union.
The power of a referral! So, what do we do? Everyone knows they should ask for referrals, but how? First, let’s look at the landscape of sales performers…
- The poor performers don’t ask for referrals.
- The good ones ask for referrals.
- The great ones ask for introductions to specific people – figuratively and literally.
“Do you know Michelle Jacobs at ABC Manufacturing? Can you introduce me to her?”
“We’re trying to reach IT Directors like you in the healthcare space. Do you know of any IT people in the healthcare space that you can introduce me to?”
Ask for referrals, but don’t just ask “can you refer anyone to me?” Get specific and watch your referral numbers skyrocket.
