Good at what you do? Give your prospects a reason to believe it. Word of mouth referrals are great but you should expect you and your company will be scrutinized online for more reasons to respond.
Everyone agrees, referrals are priceless, but they can be hard to come by if you hesitate to ask for one.
At the end of every project email your client with a short request attaching a tabulated pdf form so they can quickly rate your service from 1-10 in 5-6 specific areas you define.
Examples might be; returns phone calls promptly, writing quality, value compared to other sources or perhaps keeps commitments.
Create a place for them to write a 150 word or less review and attach their email address so a prospect can contact them about their experience. Compile the reviews by project type, place on your website and include a few with your proposals for similar projects.
Send a handwritten thank you note including a 10% discount for services on their next project. I have set up several referral programs for clients to build their referral business. Referrals constitute over half of our new business.
Essential to this process is the ability of the prospect to contact the referrer directly getting unfiltered answers to specific questions.
Summary of referral process.
- Develop a performance evaluation form with space for a written review. Gain permission to include the referrers email address.
- Send it to your clients when each project has concluded. Follow up by phone, explain how important their opinion is to you.
- Compile the written reviews by project type, post to your website and include in proposals for similar projects.
- Send a personal thank you note for each referral with an incentive to refer again.
The bottom line… make sure every project ends with a satisfied client. Request a performance review and when they give you one use it as opportunity to reciprocate.
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