Are You Referral Ready?

Most companies can tell you who their top salespeople are, how much they sold, and how they ranked when compared to the others. Referrals from your customers can be harder to track, but it doesn’t take a sophisticated spreadsheet to identify and celebrate the customers that have contributed the most to your overall growth. Thanking customers is one thing; promoting them is thanks in action.

For years “customer service” has been used to describe something given TO the customer by the company. Very few describe customer service as something that gets done FOR the customer by the company. This subtle yet dynamic shift is more powerful than profit, and companies that ignore it stand to lose market share to those that embrace and apply it as policy.

Identify your top three referral-generating customers. Brainstorm ways in which you can promote or support their efforts, such as contributing to their favorite charity, featuring them in your newsletter, or hanging their picture in the “hall of fame” in the lobby. Seek out and celebrate other top producers as a regular part of your marketing strategy.

Your top-referring customers have a name, a face, and an appreciation for a long-term relationship. By honoring that relationship, you inherently strengthen their loyalty and build social capital. When you make the effort to reach out and acknowledge people, a little goodwill goes all the way to the bottom line.