How To Ask For Referrals.

Satisfied clients will let their friends and associates know about you, but you must let them know that you both want and accept referrals.

Assuming the project went well, your customer is in the best frame of mind to provide you with the names of other prospects who might be in the market for your services.

The approach is simple: a short time after the project is complete, call your customer and say, “I wanted to call and make sure you were happy with the way I handled your project.” No doubt, the customer will say, “yes.” At that time, it is appropriate for you to then say: “Mrs. Smith, I’m glad to hear that you were pleased with my services. I’m sure you’d want your business associates to be helped just as well as you were. Is there a friend that you think I could help who might need my services?”If Mrs. Smith says she doesn’t know of someone at this time, just ask her to refer you to her friends in the future.

A Thank You note to Mrs. Smith after the sale and certainly after any referrals from her  will go a long way to cementing your relationship and opening the door to more referrals in the future.

How Social Networking Can Kill a Business.

Most of us take for granted the power of social networking to expand our contacts and gently promote our businesses. We need to remember, however, that there is also a downside to this “empowerment.” The same tools that can be used in a positive way can also be used to damage our reputations and destroy our businesses.

The comment below about a restaurant was posted to a widely read forum in the community where I live. Most people are guessing that a disgruntled employee made the comment. Nevertheless, reading it certainly gives me some reservations (pun intended) about wanting to eat there.

The same types of things certainly were said by unhappy customers or employees years ago, but the number of people who heard it was very limited. Now, in almost an instant, the same comments have a worldwide audience. Because this restaurant operates in a tourist area, visitors doing informational searches about where to eat will very likely run into this “review.”

So what does this mean for consultants, small business owners, and other reputation-based enterprises like ours?

First, we need to stay alert to what is being written about us. Just as you might check your credit report on a regular basis, you need to do a “reputation report” on your name and your business. You can purchase services that will monitor your business name and alert you whenever it is mentioned on the Web. You should also do your own frequent searches using the major search engines. By “frequent,” I mean at least twice a month.

Second, be proactive. That means staying in touch with your market and providing positive and helpful information via your blogs, press releases, Web forums, trade and business Web sites, etc. Stinging negative comments are less credible when they are read in the context of a positive news environment.

Third, react. In the case of this restaurant “review,” there’s a chance that by complaining to the webmaster the comment might be removed. If that is not possible, get third party endorsements — and your own — on the site as soon as possible. Don’t let the mud hang there on the wall with no counter-response. Otherwise, readers will assume it is true.

So here’s how one person damaged the reputation of a local business –

Top Ten Reasons Not to Go to XYZ Restaurant

10. Drink are priced way to high even if they are doubles

9. Lyn and Bob no longer own the place

8. They have the same 12 specials on rotation all the time

7. That peppercorn encrusted tenderloin special they sell for $25 is select grade beef not prime or even choice meat.

6. The owners treat their long term employees as if they worthless

5. Seafood that comes in on Friday will be either frozen and used the next weekend or packed in ice in hopes that they use it, they never throw anything away!

4. I’ve seen rotting lamb chops that are green and smell like a horses a** be cooked and served to customers

3. If you send something back there and it needs to be cooked it def. gets cooked in the microwave. The owner insists on it

2. The walk-in cooler in the kitchen looks like the inside of a dumpster, its disgusting and should not be a place where food is stored

1. The new ownership is clearly out to take advantage of the consumer and its employees. The food at best is mediocre, the management is rude, and it is just not the what the XYZ was or ever will be again. Lyn made that place her baby and these people are ruining a great local tradition!

Still hungry?

Marketing Your Services to “Invisible Buyers.”

Whether we are offering coaching or consulting services, our clients and prospects are always trying to reduce the risks of using our services.

One way they try to reduce risk is to conform to the attitudes and preferences of others. Family, friends, coworkers, and other groups influence your prospects and their buying behavior. Sometimes called reference groups, I call them “invisible buyers.” Your invisible buyers are a point of comparison for your prospect’s own choices and attitudes. Sometimes the influence of others is subtle; other times it is quite apparent.

For example, if you are a coach, your invisible buyers can influence prospects by. . .

– Directly recommending a specific coach or training approach they already know about or have used themselves.

– Giving your prospect a frame of reference and an opportunity to compare your coaching service to what is acceptable to group members.

– Influencing the prospect to change his or her attitudes about using a coach so that they are consistent with those of the group.

– Providing reassurance and approval to the prospect’s decision to use your services.

Occupation, memberships, social class, and education are all good indicators of which groups are important to your prospect. The prospect may even mention having had a conversation about using your service with a friend or coworker.

By noting how others in the prospect’s reference groups have used similar services, you can reassure your prospect that working with you is a smart choice.

I would strongly suggest that in your first contact with a prospect that you ask if they or someone they know has used a service similar to yours before. Probe a little into that area if they say “yes.” What kind of service did they use? Was it a positive experience for them? Would they do it again? How much weight does your prospect give to their prior service experiences or those of friends and coworkers?

The next step is to adjust your conversation to respond to concerns or experiences that might negatively influence a sale. Similarly, you can reinforce positive experiences and subtly refer to them during your conversation to help establish the value of your service.