A strong Leverage Marketing approach requires you to get
everything you can out of all that you've got. One way
to do this is with referrals.
Here's an article to get you thinking about ways to get more
from the hard work you already do. There are many incredibly
easy ways to improve your marketing and increase your
profits. That's what Leverage Marketing is all about...
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REFERRALS AND SMALL BUSINESSES: YOUR BEST SALESPEOPLE ARE NOT
ON YOUR PAYROLL, BUT THEY SHOULD BE
No matter how well you perform as the main salesperson for
your business, there will always be certain key salespeople
available who can communicate the benefits of your products
or services better than anyone.
Are you recognizing and rewarding these important people?
Are you encouraging them to reach out to as many prospects
as possible?
Are these key salespeople loyal to you and your business?
Do you even know who these critical salespeople are?
You should. They are your customers.
Customers are the most overlooked and underappreciated
marketing assets a business has. And just like regular sales
employees, your customers need to be motivated to sell on
your behalf.
Aside from answering a specific question from a friend or
family member, people rarely start up a conversation about
a positive experience they had with a business. It just
doesn't often happen. Customers will tell an average of nine
people about a bad experience with a business and no one
about a good experience.
If you sit for an hour in the waiting room at the doctor's
office you will tell people about it. If the waitress brings
you a roast beef sandwich and you're a vegetarian you will
be sure to mention it when you go home. But when the doctor
sees you right away and the waitress brings you your salad
it doesn't cross your mind to say a word about the experiences
to anyone.
So if good service and reliable products don't motivate
your customers to spread the good word about your business,
what does? Have you tried asking your customers to sell on
your behalf?
It's like asking someone to dance. Take a deep breath, work
up the nerve and just ask your customers to mention your
business to their friends and family. Ask your customers
to share with you their friends and family members who could
benefit from your services. If your customers are pleased with
their experience then they may be willing to share some names
and numbers with you.
There are more organized ways to request the assistance of
your customers as well. Implement a formal referral program.
Every time someone comes in and mentions that a current
customer referred them, reward that current customer. Keep
track of referrals in your customer database and enable
customers to accumulate significant discounts. Provide the
business-generating customers with free services as a sincere
thank you. Recognize them with a hand written thank you note.
Heck, reward them with cash.
Present each customer with an offer to meet with, give
guidance to, or advise anyone important to them who might
have a need for your services or products. Mention that
there is no expectation of purchase, but a desire to offer
the value that your customer appreciates to his or her
friends, family, and coworkers.
A loyal customer who brings in new customers is incredibly
valuable to your business. You are spending a specific amount
of marketing money to bring in one customer, except now with
referrals you are acquiring more than one customer. With a
successful referral program you are slashing your marketing
costs per customer.
Implementing a successful referral program is the highest
leverage marketing tactic that you can carry out.
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If you'd like to send me you marketing success story,
question, or comment I'd love to read it. Send it to me at:
Include your first name and tell me where you're from.
I often include success stories, questions, and comments
in the newsletter.
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Ready to kick-start your profits? I recommend the Leverage
Marketing Unique Selling Proposition Development Kit.
Learn more here:
http://www.shawnmcgeemarketing.com/leverageusp2.html
Best wishes!
Shawn McGee
Leverage Marketing:
Rethink Every Marketing Dollar Your Spend
http://www.ShawnMcGeeMarketing.com
3553 West Chester Pike, #422
Newtown Square, PA 19008, USA
(c) 2007 Shawn McGee
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