What's great about referrals? When you receive a referral, many barriers to opening a sales dialogue are removed, a high percentage of referral prospects take your call, and you also know something about them before the call. Best of all, your referral source gives you credibility and helps you establish a level of trust before you ever begin your presentation.
Unfortunately, countless sales people fall victim to the number one referral obstacle: they either never ask for the referral or they wait so long to ask that the right moment never arises. Those who don't ask for referrals don't receive abundant referrals.
All referrals are an opportunity and it is essential to promptly gain credibility. Sharing a bit about how you helped the person who referred you, sharing how long you have known your referral source, explaining how you have helped others in situations similar to the person being called upon are all ways to gain credibility rapidly.
Never take your new lead for granted. Just because someone opened the door is no reason to cut corners in your presentation -- very much the opposite. Be your most polished; make your source look good and the prospect feel privileged that you are being so detailed. This is the time to give extra and that extra always pays dividends.
The relationship with your referral starts at first contact, not if or after they become a client. Your warmth and demeanor set the tone for future interactions. Your ability to focus immediately on their needs over your own, the fact that you go the extra mile in terms of preparation, and what you offer becomes a building block for both future business and future referrals.
As you continually show your professionalism and extra value offered, referrals turn into introductions. The beauty of the introduction is multi-faceted. You eliminate the need to call a stranger and get past a gatekeeper as a source calls on your behalf. Someone your prospect trusts promotes your value, this gives you greater credibility.
One of my favorite training tips is to utilize three-way/conference calling to set up your introduction. Often your referral source says, "I'll give blank a call and get back to you." As helpful as that seems, it often doesn't happen or they can't overcome an objection.
The simple solution is to just utilize conference calling. Your source makes the call, briefly shares your praises and hands the conversation off to you. Ice is broken, credibility is established, and you're in the game.
Having someone call on your behalf can prove very valuable, but it's not mandatory. For a variety of reasons, people may resist making a call on your behalf even though they may be happy to "bird-dog" opportunities for you and even though they are comfortable having you use their name.
Watch the body language of your referral source, listen to their tonality, and try to get a feel for their overall "vibe" regarding formerly making a call on your behalf. If you get the sense that there is hesitation, even if it is only due to scheduling issues, keep control of the new lead.
Don't be afraid to keep control of your sales process. An introduction is great when it happens, but endless waiting or needing to continually nudge for the introduction will have costs. If faced with these challenges, it is often better to just get the name, phone, and need of your prospect so that you can make the call yourself.
The value of being referred allows you to open the door based on your time frame. Gently pursue the lead in an effort to deliver value and satisfy their needs. Always remember that the priority is to make the person who gave you the referral look good and to develop a long-term business relationship with both the person who referred you as well as the person being referred.
Relationship-selling and referrals go hand in hand. By taking the time to know your prospect as a person and by gaining a deeper understanding of their needs, you place yourself on the fast track to a mutually beneficial business relationship. Leverage that further with clear communication showing that you are all on the same page: achieving the prospect's results. Accomplish this and everyone will look good.
RADAR reveals REFERRALS
RADAR is a simple four-part series of questions to accomplish all of the above as well as the cornerstone to building a relationship that yields abundant referrals.
The most frequent mistake sales people make is once they get in the door, they are dying to tell their prospect everything there is to know about the product. They focus on selling the attributes of their product and forget to find out which aspects of their product are relevant to the prospect's specific needs. The problem here is that you can't sell your product unless you know what your prospect wants. To discover these needs, you have to stop talking, start asking smart questions and listen carefully.
RADAR is a method for developing a sound relationship with your prospect and for finding out what he is looking for. The letters R-A-D-A-R stand for four sets of questions:
- Rapport building questions,
- Asking about
- Difficulties,
- Affirming your understanding of the difficulties,
- Results that a person is looking for.
Rapport-building questions
The purpose of rapport-building questions is to put your referral at ease, to be relatable, and to establish likeability. These questions help you get to know the person; instead of salesperson versus prospect, your relationship begins to develop into associates or friends. Remember; when all things are equal, people do business with the person they like. Example of rapport-building questions:
- What made you decide to start your own business?
- That's a lovely accent, what brought you to the United States?
- That's an interesting award, how did you qualify for it?
Whether you are asking your prospect about their family, hobbies, or how they got started in business, they will enjoy talking about themselves.
Asking about difficulty
Difficulty questions give you the ammunition necessary to build the case that your product is the ideal solution to your prospect's problems; these questions uncover the driving motivators behind their decision-making by having them define their needs and concerns. Prospects often have similar concerns, but when you take the time to have your prospect express what makes their circumstances unique, you can position yourself to fill that unique void. Examples of difficulty questions:
- Why do you feel ___________ is such a major issue?
- What is the biggest challenge you have had with a customer?
- Can you tell me about your three main competitors and how you each differ?
- What is your greatest concern when it comes to closing sales faster?
The person referred needs to know that both you and they are on the same page. They need to know that you do indeed have the ability to solve their problems. In order to successfully convince him of this, you must first affirm your understanding of those problems. This is what the second A stands for.
Affirm your grasp of the difficulty
Affirmation questions demonstrate that you are in synch with the prospect. They show that you are listening and that you understand your prospect's needs. Most importantly, affirmation questions bring the prospect to admit that there is a problem that needs solving.
Results a person is seeking
If the difficulty questions tell you what your prospect wants, then the results questions tell you why they want it. If you can get a prospect to focus on why they have a need to be fulfilled and how they will benefit by your expertise, then you are very close to a sale before even beginning the presentation of facts and features about your services.
Sometimes a referral may be impatient, and they may want you to explain why you are asking these questions. The answer is that you are doing so in order to serve him through knowledge of their needs and concerns.
Never cut corners on the consultative relationship building process. Taking your time here establishes a great deal of trust and credibility. This will position you as a problem solver and as a valuable resource that puts the needs of those referred ahead of your own. Having a reputation for being someone who puts the results of others ahead of your own is a formula that will draw an abundance of referrals while giving you the right to ask for referrals regularly.
The Triple Sale
Building your client base is not about a one-time sale. It is about creating multiple opportunities. To maximize value, each referral should be approached as three opportunities. First, the person that was referred should be turned into a client as long as you can provide the best solution to their needs. Second, the genuine interest that you have shown should result in referrals from the individual you just helped. Lastly, each of your new business relationships need to be cultivated into both an ongoing source of referrals as well as additional business (i.e. add on sales).
An ongoing flow of "Abundant Referrals" is easy to maintain if you follow a few Golden Rules.
- Show up with the mind-set to help.
- Be a problem solver first and salesperson second.
- Always be genuine.
- Ask for the referral.
- Keep asking for referrals.
- Learn and earn by following the above.
