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How to Ask for Referrals: The Ultimate Guide for Businesses

14 minutes

Referred customers are more likely to convert than the people you attract through other marketing strategies.

In fact, referred customers are 18% more loyal than other customers. They’re also four times more likely to refer additional buyers to your business in the future.

However, figuring out how to ask for referrals can be tricky. Even if you know you’ve done a great job of delighting a customer, it can be difficult to get them to send new business your way.

Take the wrong approach and you can end up sounding pushy or overly sales-focused. And this could harm your relationships with customers. Fortunately, based on years of creating successful customer referral programs, we’ve learned a few tricks.

Here’s your guide to asking for referrals – the right way.

How to Ask for Referrals: The Step by Step Guide

The concept of asking a satisfied client for a referral shouldn’t leave you sweating. But it’s something a lot of companies struggle with. Whether you’re involved in B2C or B2B sales, asking for a referral can be nerve-wracking.

The key to success is having the right strategy. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1: Identify the Best Customers to Ask for Referrals

First, you need to figure out who you’ll ask for referrals. Choosing an existing client is a good start. It’s no good asking a new customer for a referral if they haven’t discovered the benefits of your product or service yet.

Some of your customers are better for sourcing referrals than others. The people you need to focus on are those who you already know love your brand, service, or products. You can pinpoint your ideal referral superstars with these tips.

Segment your Customers

Start by analyzing your customer base to identify those most likely to advocate for your business. Focus on customers who have provided positive feedback or shown strong engagement.

For instance, a loyal client who has already raved about your company on a review website. They may have also shared with your sales or customer support team how happy they are with your solution.

You can also pinpoint great referral program opportunities with tools like “NPS” surveys. Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys give you an insight into which customers are most likely to recommend your company to their friends and colleagues.

Take a look at purchasing behavior among customers too. Repeat customers or those with a high lifetime value often indicate strong satisfaction and trust in your brand. These are some examples:

Prioritize Customers Who Fit your Ideal Referral Profile

It’a equally important to make sure the customers you choose are positioned to make an “impactful” referral. A happy client who doesn’t fully understand how your product or service works probably won’t be a good fit.

Look for people who understand how your company works. Ideally, they’re someone who recognizes your unique selling points. It also helps if they can share genuine, authentic stories with referred customers (based on what they’ve achieved).

Bonus points if you can find people in your community with a strong network of connections. These include people with a lot of social media followers.

Be Prepared to Show Them Why Their Referrals Matter

We’ll cover some more tips on how to write the perfect “referral request” or email template in a moment. Before you start writing, remember that you need to be prepared to show your customer why their referral matters.

Give them an insight into how their referrals will benefit them and the people they refer.

Step 2: Choose the Right Time to Ask for a Referral

Timing is everything in referral marketing – but it’s notoriously difficult to get right. Reach out to a customer too quickly, and they may not have enough time to fully appreciate the benefits of your product or service. If you reach out too late, then your customer might have forgotten all about you.

Some of the ideal times to make a referral request include:

After a successful project completion: When you’ve just delivered outstanding results, your thrilled customers are more likely to want to reward you with a referral. For example, an HVAC client might rave about your prompt repair during a heatwave. Or a roofing client might be thrilled with the restoration of storm damage.

During routine follow ups: If your company offers routine follow-ups, like checking on an HVAC system, this could be a good time to ask for a referral. While you’re checking in, you’ll naturally remind your customers of the outstanding service or product you provided, and your commitment to their success.

After receiving feedback: A customer who organically takes the initiative to share positive feedback with you means they’re a good candidate to ask for a referral. They’re already raving about whatever you’ve done for them. All you need to do is nudge them to share the news with their friends, relatives, or colleagues.

Sidestepping the Risks When Asking for Referrals

There are a few risks to consider when seeking out potential referrals, particularly from a timing perspective. You’ll need to make sure you’re not requesting a client referral too early in the relationship. Don’t ask your customers whether they’d consider recommending you to a friend during an initial meeting, or when the project isn’t completed yet.

Additionally, avoid approaching customers during a period of unresolved issues or complaints.t can come across as insensitive and damage trust.

Be cautious about double-checking that your clients are actually happy before you ask. If they haven’t proven that they’re satisfied with your service by sharing feedback, follow up with a quick call, or an email.

There shouldn’t be any unaddressed issues before you ask them to become a referral partner.

Step 3: Craft a Personalized Referral Request

How you structure your referral request makes a huge difference when figuring out how to ask for referrals. If your customer is already thrilled and raving about your services, a quick question like “Would you recommend us to a friend?” – might be enough.

Most of the time, however, you’re going to need a more strategic approach. Focus on personalization. This involves referencing what you’ve done for your customer, and thanking them for what they’ve done for you (being a loyal customer).

Here are a few quick tips to help you connect with your current client and boost your chances of a referral:

Making the Referral Process Simple

When crafting the ideal referral request, make it easy for your customer to refer someone new to your business. The simpler it is for a customer to accommodate your request, the more likely they are to take action.

You can provide access to simple tools, like referral cards or QR codes that your customers can share with their friends and relatives. Those QR codes can take a potential client straight to your service or product page, and give them access to discount codes or rewards.

You could even set up a loyalty program, with unique referral links for each customer. This is a good way to keep track of your referral network. It also helps find out which of your customers are sending the biggest number of new customers your way.

Make sure you’re clear about how the referral program works too. Outline what’s “in it” for them and the new client they’re going to be referring.

For example, you could send a referral email explaining that if they share a link with their friend, they’ll get 25% off their next service. The referred client will also get a 10% discount.

Step 4: Offer Incentives for Referrals

Most customers will be happy to direct a friend or contact to a company that they believe delivers excellent services or products. However, sometimes they do need a little extra nudge. Adding referral rewards to your program can be an excellent way to incentivize action.

Think of it this way, you’re more likely to tell your friend to use the same plumber as you if they were going to get a great deal. In exchange, you’d also get a discount on your next service. Some of the rewards or incentives you can consider for a successful referral include:

Optimizing Your Incentives

To make the most out of your incentives and rewards, align what you offer with your services and their needs. Contractors have plenty of great ways to tie rewards to their services. A roofer could offer a free roofing inspection to a customer who sends a prospective client their way. Alternatively, a plumber could offer a free water quality evaluation service.

Appeal to all kinds of referral motivations too. Offering access to freebies and money off will appeal to your customers from a financial perspective. However, you can tug on their heartstrings by reminding them that they’re supporting a small, local business.

Another great strategy is to make sure you reward both parties. Don’t just give the referral source a bonus. Offer something to the referred customer too. This will keep your referring customers happy, and boost your chances of a good conversion.

Step 5: Follow Up and Show Gratitude

Once you’ve earned a successful referral, don’t forget all about your customer. Showing your appreciation is a great way to forge deeper relationships with clients. As a result, they’re more likely to purchase from you in the future. Plus, it can help convince customers to make additional referrals in the future. Show your gratitude with:

Remember, timing is crucial. Don’t wait weeks to speak to a customer after they send a new client your way. Follow up immediately, even if a referred client hasn’t made a purchase yet.

Building Long-Term Relationships

Beyond showing gratitude as quickly as possible, commit to actively building a relationship with the people who send new clients your way. These people could become valuable parts of your marketing strategy or sales process, so they deserve your constant attention.

Keep in touch with loyal referrers to maintain engagement. Quarterly check-ins, holiday greetings, or exclusive offers for repeat referrers can keep the relationship strong. It also encourages ongoing participation in your referral program.

Implement a system to monitor and reward repeat referrers. Use software to track who referred whom, when, and how often. Reward milestones with tiered incentives, promptly. This will keep participation in your referral programs high.

You could even celebrate your top referrers, mentioning them in your newsletter, or in social media (with their permission).

Bonus Tip: Use Multiple Channels to Ask for Referrals

Now you know how to ask for referrals, we have one final tip to share: make sure you’re asking on a range of different channels. Email might seem like the easiest way to connect with existing customers. But speaking to your clients on a range of channels makes a lot of sense.

Send follow-up emails to customers after you complete a project or service. You can use a referral email template with personalized elements and a clear call to action. But don’t forget about other methods for connecting with customers, such as:

Combining offline and online methods to reach customers and turn them into advocates will increase your chances of program participation.

Turning Referrals Into Business Gold

Referrals are important for sustainable business growth, particularly in industries that prioritize customer trust. With a referral marketing strategy, you gain an effective way to attract new clients to your business. You also strengthen relationships with your existing customers.

The key to getting the best results from your referral strategy is developing the right process. Thoughtful planning will make asking for referrals easier, and increase your chances of getting the right results. If you need extra help making your referral program a hit, turn to the experts.

At gFour Marketing, we excel at crafting dynamic referral strategies and programs for companies in a range of industries. With our expertise and technology, we can make the process of asking for referrals and turning customers into advocates simple, and effective.

Contact gFour Marketing today to learn how we can help you harness the full potential of referrals.

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