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There are companies that hardly use any advertisements and mainly do business on referrals. These companies have realized the value of referrals. For them referred clients are worth their weight in gold for their potential to bring in business. Sales professionals may get tired of making cold calls and trying to meet new prospects. The chance of converting cold calls in to sales are very thin in comparison to referrals getting translated in to sales.

Why Referrals Work

There are solid reasons why referrals work. A referred client trusts the sales professional and their company, because he trusts the referrer. Simply because the referred client's friend or relative has used the product or service and will vouch for its quality there is very little convincing required. It's only a matter of few additional questions and the sales person can close the sale.

Let's consider some examples here. A consumer is more likely to subscribe to a broadband connection service when a friend that is already using the same services approves of the quality. The same consumer might have turned down earlier offers from the broadband service provider's sales representative.

You are more likely to join a social networking group when your friends invite you to join in rather than by the persuasion of advertisements. Mrs. Cynthia Jones is more likely to use the lawn care services of a company if it has been referred to her by her friend Mrs. Deborah Hill. She would just call up Deborah to ascertain that the company ishe is considering does a good job in providing superior lawn care for her home. Thus the trust factor has already been established and the sale is on its way to being made.

Referrals not only work, they work faster. The referred client has hardly any doubts because he trusts his friend or relative that has already used the product or service. He wouldn't want to look like a doubting Thomas when his friends have already purchased the product or service.

Every sales person and business should therefore look for referrals.

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

Referrals are obtained by simply asking, in a proper way of course. The timing of asking for referrals is crucial. Some sales professionals commit the mistake of asking for referrals immediately after they have sold to a client. That is absolutely wrong. The client has just made the purchase and will be disinclined to refer anybody without using the product or service for a period of time. The best time to ask for a referral is to wait for a few days until the client has used the product or service and is happy with it. Also, the customer may be unfamiliar with the company and service and may need to have a certain comfort-level or "break-in period" about the outcome before they offer a referral to a new customer.

Research indicates that 30 days after the purchase, a customer is typically ready to give his opinion of the product. Her happiness peaks at this point of time. So the best way to get referrals is to call up the customer and find out whether she is happy with the product or service? Really happy customers would gladly reel off names and contact addresses of friends and associates. Sales professionals can work on these referrals to get more and quicker sales.

Doug Dvorak is the CEO of DMG Inc., a worldwide organization that assists clients with productivity training, corporate humor and workshops, as well as other aspects of sales and marketing management. Mr. Dvorak's clients are characterized as Fortune 1000 companies, small to medium businesses, civic organizations and service businesses. Mr. Dvorak has earned an international reputation for his powerful educational methods and motivational techniques, as well as his experience in all levels of business, corporate education and success training. http://www.dougdvorak.com