Are You Referral Ready?

Archive for the ‘Connecting with Your Business’ Category

Perhaps the greatest challenge is positioning your business to stand out among the competition in a way that attracts customers and word of mouth referrals. The core of that challenge is your ability to answer the question ‘Why should I do business with you as opposed to the other companies that say they offer the same thing?’

Now more than ever, consumers have choices. Without a compelling reason to do business with you, consumers are bombarded with reasons to consider their alternatives. Either you find a way to stand out, or you become invisible.

Write down three reasons why people should choose your product or service over the competition. If you can’t define your uniqueness in the market, you can’t talk about it and you can’t expect others to talk about it either. If necessary, ask a few past customers why they chose you over someone else. The answers might surprise you.

Referrals travel faster via word of mouth when they have what is called a stickiness’ factor. Your USP (unique selling proposition) is exactly the kind of stickiness that gets and keeps people talking about your business. Customers have a way of seeing past catchy slogans and half-baked promises. Knowing that the value you deliver is unlike any other competitor attracts customers who will surely share the experience with others.

The most common networking question is “What do      you do?” You WILL be asked that question more than once in your life. And when you are, how will you respond?

The way you answer that question can make a difference between making a good impression and making no impression at all, between being common and being uncommon, between being memorable and being forgettable.

When we answer that question with our profession (”I’m an attorney” or “I’m an accountant”), we lose an opportunity to make a connection that markets our business and creates a more lasting impression. If the goal is to stand out, answering in a way that lumps you in with every other attorney or accountant is not the way to do it.

How would you complete this phrase:

“I help people/companies ________”. Before you do, think about how a customer might fill in the blank for you. If the essence of marketing is  capturing the voice of the customer, you actually create a marketing opportunity every time you answer this question with that in mind.

Don’t be afraid to be provocative. For example, a realtor might say “I help people turn houses into homes”. A mortgage lender might say “I help people buy the American dream”. This is effective because answers like that compel other people to ask “And just how exactly do you do that?”, which means 1) they are engaged in your message, and 2) they are inviting you to continue the conversation.

Preparing and practicing your answer to the most common networking question is a fundamental Referral Ready conversational skill. In the process, you will learn to stand out and communicate value as perceived through the eyes of your customer.

You are at a networking function and someone asks you, “What kind of business are you looking for?” Referral Ready means not only having an answer, but having the best answer available at any given time. The question is a perfect opportunity to describe your ideal referral.

Not everybody is interested in helping you. People who don’t know you well enough might hesitate before referring you to someone they know. But other people can’t help you if you don’t know what you want. To the extent that you do, you never know what can happen. Rather than lose the opportunity, it is better to prepare to be successful.

Can you describe in detail an ideal referral for your business? Whether it is the name of a person (John Smith), the name of a business (XYZ Company), or a description of a specific type of customer (people who travel frequently), create a wish list of ideal referrals before attending your next networking event.

You never know who will ask or be able to serve as a resource for you. And you may never find out until you think about what you want and find a way to pass that information to your network.

Keep this question in your arsenal:  “How would I recognize a great referral opportunity for you?” Use it liberally.  Most people won’t have a great answer, some won’t engage at all, some will. But many will RECIPROCATE, which is precisely what you want…assuming you are prepared.

When you take a moment to think strategically about your business in these terms, you take responsibility for something most other forms of advertising simply can not deliver–choosing your next client.