Getting Referral Business - A Proven System

Business referrals are one of the tried and true (but sometimes frustrating) ways to grow your small business. A few years ago I learned a fact about how the brain works that when I applied it, exploded my referral business. Below, I'm going to quickly outline it for you so you can start using it today.

Most experts state that the best time to get referrals is after you have proven yourself to a customer. While this sort of works, it doesn't even come close to being an effective way. If you've tried it, you know what I'm saying.

The problem with waiting until you have proven yourself with a customer lies in the human brain. Through evolution, the brain adapted to pay attention to what's immediate, and to ignore things that are finished.

Your brain is programmed to pay attention to what's immediately of consequence. What just happened is already starting to fade. When you are in the middle of doing a task you can hold all the details in mind to a very exacting degree. A couple days after you have finished, many of those details have faded, because you are on to the next important things.

The part of your brain responsible for this is the reticular activated system (RAS). Researchers call it the attention center of the brain. It has many tasks but one of them is choosing what to pay conscious awareness to.

Letting your customer's RAS work to build your business:

The RAS is a survival tool. Your ancestors had to notice the sabre tooth tigers hiding in the forest, so the RAS evolved to pay attention to the important and ignore what isn't. How do you use that to your advantage with customers?

You prime the pump by talking about referrals right away.

Here is an example of a possible discussion that you might have with a potential client / customer, on the first visit.

"Mr. Smith, if we do business, there will be a time when you will be thrilled with what we provide. We won't take on a new client unless we know we can provide what they need. A single client fee is not worth the potential loss in reputation from taking an assignment where we are not confident of success.

Our business grows by word of mouth. So, we don't stop until we achieve success together.

If I make absolutely sure that I do a great job, you will be more likely to refer your friends to my services.

I make sure, up front, that the fit is good and I can hit it out of the park.

Once that takes place, I'm betting that you will want to tell you friends and associates about my service. Which is great! I'm going to make sure that you are so excited and pleased with your results that you can't wait to tell other people about me.

Part of the value that I provide is that I offer very good pricing on my services. So I don't offer cash or prizes in return for referrals, just a firm commtment that I'll provide you with the best service at a great price.

I will commit to acting professionally and with courtesy in all dealings with you... and I will offer that same level of service to your friends.

I will ask to see how I am doing along the way, to make sure that you are more than happy. Any people you refer will also get the same level of service. OK?

When you prime the pump like this, your customer's RAS gets a chance to start looking for ideal candidates for your service, while you are important to your customer. Doing it this way, your referrals will be much more effective.

You will end up getting and keeping more customers at a profit.

Article Source: http://www.search4allinfo.com

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