Referral Marketing How to Get a Flood of Referrals for Your Business
Dr Jürgen Strauss !nnovaBiz Pty Ltd
Conventional Marketing Restrictions & Challenges 1. Knowledge 2. Time 3. Resources 4. Money 5. Competition 6. Marketing Budget 7. Marketing costs 8. Poor results and ROI 9. Legal ‐ Privacy, SPAM 10. Credibility Referral Marketing Gets Past All These Challenges
Referral Marketing Definition Referral marketing is a structured and systematic process that encourages, informs, promotes and awards your client and contact base to talk as much as possible about you, your company, your product and your service.
Referral Marketing is also promoting to potential prospects using the power of 3rd party endorsement and referral.
Why Referral Marketing 1.
Referral prospects are more receptive
2.
Referral prospects are easier to meet
3.
Referral prospects are more open minded and half sold
4.
Price is less of an issue with referred prospects
5.
Referred prospects make quicker decisions
6.
You have greater credibility with referred prospects
7.
Referred Clients are more loyal and will refer you extensively
8.
Referred Clients will save you marketing costs and time (cost up to 5 times more to find new clients).
“Cold Contact Marketing” • So why do business always chase new clients directly? • • • •
Know no other way. Don’t build relationships with contacts and clients. No referral mindset. No referral system.
Referral Cycle Database Inner Cycle Outer Cycle
Referral Marketing Plan & Budget Referral Mindset
Awards & Incentives
Referral Systems & strategies
Referrals & New Business Client Data Management
Client care strategy
Referral Rating
Referral Sources •
Family & friends
•
Clients
•
Employees
•
Joint venture marketing partners
•
Centres of influence
•
Marketing alliances
•
Suppliers
•
Networking contacts
•
Associations, clubs etc. (clients associations)
•
Sales persons, agents & affiliates
•
AND ALL THEIR NETWORKS
Inner Referral Circle Outer Referral Circle
All are potentially Part of Your Own “Sales Force”
Referral Opportunities •
At time of sale (new and up‐sell)
•
On sales follow‐up program
•
Project evaluation
•
When invoicing
•
Satisfaction surveys
•
Hospitality events
•
On resolving complaints and issues
•
Client communication program
•
Seasonal periods
•
Charity donations
•
Etc. Etc……………..
Question • Why should you, your company, services or products qualify for referrals?
Referral Rating • Personal Qualities •
First Impression, relationship, trust, credibility, reliability, reputation, experience and background
• Business Qualities •
Quality of products, services, client service and relationship, perceived client benefits, VALUE, customer satisfaction, professional knowledge, customer appreciation, guarantee, partnership program, availability, case studies, testimonials, customer communication, accreditation, staff. The Higher Your Referral Rating The greater your referred Leads
Testimonials and Case Studies •
Use in EVERY marketing campaign (eg Direct sales, mail‐shots, newsletters, advertising, PR, website)
•
Include full name, status and company name of endorser (picture is great).
•
Keep short and relevant.
•
Best on original endorser’s letterhead.
•
Ask on the back of a client satisfaction survey or project valuation meeting.
•
Offer endorser a mention of his company on testimonial.
•
Testimonial can be directed to you, or “To whom it may concern”.
•
Ask permission to use and tell endorsers how you are going to use their testimonial or case studies.
•
Thank endorsers for testimonials.
•
Give testimonials to qualified suppliers.
Strategic Customer Care • Definition • The establishment, development, maintenance and optimisation of long‐term mutually valuable relationships between customers and suppliers. • Successful Strategic Customer Care focuses on the understanding of the need, desires and satisfaction of the customer. • Plain English: Understanding and looking after your clients as you would want to be looked after yourself.
Strategic Customer Care Elements • Official Strategic Customer Care Program
• Client Relationship Management program
• Employee skills, motivation and awards
• What “Extras” do you
• Regular Client Satisfaction Surveys
• Client Advisory Board
• Client Award Program
• Client Partnership Programs
• Official Complaints Policy
• Client communication
provide for your Clients?
• Consistency
Client Loyalty Please Write this Down!! • “Our Clients are Prospects for our Competitors.” • “How We Keep Our Clients Loyal is purely down to How We Look after Them”
Client Relationship Management (CRM) •
Description • A culture and mindset throughout your organization • A critically important strategy to learn more about customers' needs and behaviours in order to develop stronger relationships with them. • A process that will help bring together lots of pieces of information about customers, sales, marketing effectiveness, responsiveness and market trends. • It is MORE than a piece of software! • Better than CRM – CEM (Customer Experience Management).
Client Communication • Why do we need regular communication? • To maintain awareness of our business and the value and benefits we bring • To help gain respect, appreciation, credibility • To help, inform, educate, praise, award and show appreciation to clients and referral contacts • To use appropriate opportunities to gain additional business from existing client/contact base • To gain maximum referrals
Client Communication • Social as well as Professional! Newsletters, useful information Hospitality (meals, events etc.) Announcement of Customer Care Program Letters – thank you for your business (with referral request) Seasonal holidays, birthdays (incl. spouses) etc. Customer satisfaction surveys (with referral request) Testimonials and case studies. Announcement of referral policy – in all ways i.e. invoices, stationery, business cards, newsletters, thank you letters, customer satisfaction etc. • Recognition – achievements • Competitions, awards and incentives • • • • • • • •
Possible Referral Systems & Strategies •
Award program
•
Events – seminars and workshops
•
Agents & affiliates
•
Internet – email and website
•
Alliances “References”
•
Joint venture marketing
•
Asking direct
•
Networking
•
Charity marketing (sponsorship, endorsement mailing etc.)
•
Reciprocal Referral strategy
•
Referral cards
•
Client Partnership program
•
Sponsorship
•
Competitions
•
Strategic Client Care program
•
Endorsement strategies (mailings, advertising PR etc.)
•
Train your clients how to refer
Client Awards and Incentives Acknowledgement & Praise Recognition, THANK YOU Vouchers Membership or loyalty schemes • Pricing – discounts special offers etc. • Introduction cash or refund commissions • • • •
• Incentives i.e. Hospitality, holidays, gifts, • Points, loyalty etc. Your own or from other businesses. • Personal gifts • Donations to a charitable cause • Reciprocal referrals for your contacts
Referral Marketing ‐ Summary Mindset, Culture Structured and Systematic Process Your “Uniqueness” Strategic Customer Care Customer Experience Management Communication, Communication, Communication • Testimonials, Case Studies • Acknowledgement
• • • • • •
Referral Marketing How to Get a Flood of Referrals for Your Business
T H A N K Y O U ! Dr Jürgen Strauss !nnovaBiz Pty Ltd
Referral Cards
Referral Cards