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A Marketing Article by Craig Valine: "The
[Former] Struggling Consultant"
"Don't Cheat Your Customers Out of Giving
You Referrals"
Remember a time when you shared
information with someone important to you, like a friend, family member,
or loved one…
- About a great deal you got…
- An awesome experience you had…
- A company, service, or product …
...that was above and beyond what you
ever expected.
Remember that time?
Remember how great you felt when they
called you up and told you how happy and appreciative they were that you
introduced them to that company?
Well, you owe it to your customers or
clients to give them the same opportunity with respect to YOUR products
or services.
It's important that you understand the
power of referrals. Not only with respect to how it benefits you, but
how it benefits the people giving them to you, and the people they
refer.
In essence, it does three important
things:
- It helps your customers better
appreciate the benefits and value they receive each and every time
they do business with you.
- It gives them an opportunity to
give back to you by way of appreciation they feel for the experience
they get from your product or service.
- It gives them the opportunity to
benefit other people in their lives who are important to them.
The critical component of getting
referrals from happy customers or clients is really simple: Keep them
elated about doing business with you.
I've said this before, and I'll continue
to say it again:
"Treat your customers
or clients like dear and valued friends."
This is important for many reasons. But
for this purpose it's because "friends tend to do business with
friends."
- If someone needed low cost toner
cartridges, I know who to refer them to: My friends at Cartridge
World.
- If someone needed to get a good
Realtor that would work hard for them, I'd refer them to my friend
Jodi at Dickson-Podley Realtors.
- If someone needed a nice gift to
say “thank you”, I'd refer them to my friend Joan from PartyLite.
Friends do business with friends.
The more enjoyable the experience they
have with you;
- The more they like you and trust
you;
- The more they feel like they've
received more benefit and advantage from you than they could
anywhere else;
- The more they feel like a friend to
you;
Then you've got a heck of a referral
system that just won't quit.
Now, you may be thinking,
"I'm not sure my
product or service has made my customers or clients want to tell anyone
about me."
Don't despair. Just start now and ask
yourself some simple questions to get in the mindset of creating a
valuable experience for everyone who ever inquires about or does
business with you ever again.
- Am I giving the best possible value
or benefit I humanly can to my customers or clients?
- Do I genuinely care about my
customer’s or client's best interests and needs at the best level I
should or could?
- Am I genuinely thinking about their
interests above my own?
Remember this, "It's all about them.
It's never about you."
If you haven’t been giving outstanding
service, start now.
One of the greatest forms of
confirmation you can give to a customer or client is the opportunity for
them to give the same benefit or advantage to somebody in their life who
is important to them.
Walt Disney said it best: "Do what
you do so well people can't resist talking about you."
Do yourself and your customers a favor:
- Offer them the best darn product or
service you possibly can
- Treat them with respect, like a
dear and valued friend; and
- Give them the opportunity to toot
your horn for you and generate more business for you than you can
ever imagine.
Do this, and your business will be
richer than you’ll ever know.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Craig Valine is
the Director for the Glazer-Kennedy Insider's Circle, Glendale/Pasadena
Local Chapter. He is also known as "The [Former] Struggling Consultant".
Visit his site and get your Free Audio CD, "The 5 Pitfalls Most
Independent Consultants Make...and how to solve them" at
http://FormerStrugglingConsultant.com
Articles © 2008/Craig Valine & Enhanced
Marketing Performance. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 | Ramon
Vela, Glendale/Pasadena Local Chapter | All Rights Reserved |
