Small Business Marketing Strategies: Triple Your Referrals

One of the most important small business marketing strategies for improving your practice is to consistently get recommendations from other individuals. At the start of my career, I found it annoying when I’d refer clients to other advisors and never obtain referrals in return. I understood there had to be something I could do to routinely receive qualified referrals from other referral sources. So, I designed a small business marketing procedure which enabled me to develop effective referral sources and improve relationships based on the benefits of reciprocal marketing. Here’s the way to achieve it:

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #1: Identify potential referral partner industries.

The majority of us think of common experts in a similar business as an excellent referral source. Although these are definitely obvious choices, you'll find there are so many other options you can take advantage of and the good news is that nobody else is. For example, business clients often consider CPAs and attorneys, but why not consider psychiatrists and trainers. The referrals we've obtained in our business via psychologists and coaches have been nothing shy of incredible. No matter the goods and services your small business markets or offers, think outside of the box and detect other referral sources you can add to your small business marketing strategies.

Now let your mind wander and make a note of a number of professions your ideal prospect may have an association with. The key is to think outside the box - and don’t discount any industry. If you get blocked or maybe can’t find a way to get the creativity flowing, find a location to sit down comfortably in which you won’t be interrupted. With your dominant hand, write down the question: "Who are the best referral sources that will help me to improve my business?" Then, with your non-dominant hand, write a list of all the occupations you can imagine. You’ll be blown away at what you come up with. Once you’ve listed fifty professions, place a star beside those which have been referral sources in the past.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #2: Select referral partner professions.

Go through the list you created and choose at least five professions you believe will be the most successful and enjoyable to work with. Start out with 10 occupations in your small business marketing strategy, then reduce it to the top five.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #3: Obtain 100 "pros" within your determined professions.

Research the contact material for twenty experts in each of the five professions you selected as part of your small business marketing strategy. Start out with people you know; ask friends for names or search online. You can even buy names from a list broker. Remember to create a spreadsheet to track your progress as you reach out to each qualified professional.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #4: Send out a "Let’s share referrals" mailer.

Every small business marketing strategy must have an automatic referral and relationship marketing campaign. This strategy may be a letter or even a postcard that describes who you are, what you do and why sharing referrals can benefit them and their clients. Send out your messages on a monthly basis until eventually three productive referral associates, in each of your five professions, agree to share referrals with you.

If your practice is thriving, end each small business marketing mailer with a message asking your prospective referral partners to contact you. But if your referral goals are more pressing, follow up your mailings with a phone call.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #5: Establish a reciprocal referral mastermind group.

After finding your 15 referral partners, bring them together via phone once a month and in person every three months. Including a referral mastermind group in your small business marketing strategy and plan allows you to produce serious, highly effective relationships.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #6: Take care of every referral.

When you deliver referrals to your small business referral partners and receive referrals from them, it’s important to have a very good process that recognizes the significance of those referrals. When I deliver someone a referral, I contact my referral partner and supply them with the client’s name as well as a breakdown of their situation. I then send out a "This referral is for you" card. I accompany this with a three-way introductory meeting with the client being referred as well as the referral partner.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #7: Produce a follow-up method.

One of the most critical components of your small business marketing strategy is follow-up! And quite a few small businesses, consultants and advisors fail miserably when it comes to follow-up. Every quarter, get in touch with your referral partners separately to examine referrals provided and received, as well as to talk about the way to better serve one another.

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Step #8: Speed up the process.

One of the least difficult steps in your small business marketing strategy is to speed up your approach, both offline and online. The good news is the fact that with today’s technology, it’s cheap!

For more than ten years, our office delivered my "Let’s share referrals" mailers, "This referral is made for you" cards, thank-you notes along with written communications manually. It's expensive and even time-consuming—costing me an average of $50,000-$70,000 per year for employees plus the cost of the mailers - but now I utilize an automated system that takes most of the time, effort and expense away from the equation. Automating your process opens you up to complete the HVFDAs, high-value fixed daily activities, that are critical to the continued success.

Follow these steps and then don’t be surprised if your referrals triple because of your new referral partners.

To attend a call and learn how to create a small business marketing strategy so that you can obtain more referrals, sign-up at http://milliondollarfollowupsystem.com.

To attend a free marketing webinar go to MillionDollarMarketingSystem

Small business owners and consultants go to, Million Dollar Marketing Strategies.

Annette Bau, CFP(r), is the founder of Advisor Marketing Practices and the author of numerous books and products.

She can be reached at Questions@MillionaireSeries.com.