You're good. You have a well-thought-out referral marketing plan and you regularly get referrals from a range of special referral partners, right?

WRONG. Or at the least, unlikely.

Why? Because very few people have any kind of strategy for generating referrals beyond 'we deliver a great service and we ask for them occasionally.' Is it any wonder most people claim to grow their business by referral but struggle to get as many of the right kinds of referrals?

I'd like to give you some food for thought on an area of weakness for many referral marketing disciples - the follow up. In strong contact networking groups like BNI, you have one of the most powerful referral generating mechanisms in the world. But you still have to do the follow up and make the sale.

Depending on the complexity of what you're selling, the sales cycle and the ticket price, it may pay to go into some detail with your fact-finding on this new prospect. Here are 12 of the best questions I've used in the past to help me make the right kind of approach in the right kind of way to make the right kind of sale!

1. Who do they follow, admire or like?
2. How do you know each other?
3. Why is this a good referral for me?
4. How do you think they will respond to my approach?
5. What's the best way to get their attention/onside?
6. What drives them?
7. Will your referral partner/introducer be contacting the prospect?
8. How will contact be made?
9. How might they react when I approach them?
10. What are they likely to say?
11. What's the best place and time to contact the prospect?
12. What possible objections might I have to overcome?

Answers to just a few of these will put you in a better position to make the sale. And the more you can educate your referral partners, the more these questions are answered for you.

To learn more about how to craft a referral marketing plan that will double your business by referral in 12 months, guaranteed, here are two ways forward:

1. If you live in the East Midlands, and can get to Nottingham, Derby or Leicester in the next few weeks, come to one of our Referral Institute Success Masterclasses. Simply click a date to the right here - we run them once a month in each town.
2. If you live anywhere else, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it about you joining my intense six week Networking and Referrals Mentoring Program. It's incredible!
   

Here's to more referrals for all of us - there are plenty to go around if you know what you're doing. Get some education!

If you want more referrals to grow your business, then your objective from your networking and your business relationships should be:

To generate referrals and positive word of mouth from other people you know.

However, this doesn't always work. You want people to say great things about you and recommend you to others. You want people to introduce you to great prospects. But does it happen like you want it to happen? NO.

Put yourself in their shoes. Imagine you have somebody in your network who wants you to refer them. They tell you about their business. They tell you what to say and ask. So why don't you refer them? Here are ten reasons why not:

1. You haven't got the same soul or passion they have for their business.
2. They don't give you a clear target market or articulate exactly what they're looking for.
3. You don't deal with their kind of clients.
4. You don't know any of the kind of prospects they're looking for.
5. You don't understand what they do well enough.
6. You don't like them.
7. They sound like lots of other people, so you don't know how to set them apart.
8. You're scared of making a mistake.
9. You already have someone to give those kind of referrals to.
10. You don't have the time.

So the good news is that you can identify what the problem is. The bad news is that all of these are your fault! In my next blog I'll tell you why it's all your fault and what you can do about it.

In the meantime, read this fantastic article from Mike Macedonio, who is President of the Referral Institute. The foremost authority on referrals I've ever met and an incredible individual. You'll learn when it's inappropriate to ask people for referrals and introductions. Gold dust!

After delivering three seminars this week on Referral Marketing to some terrific people in the East Midlands, one thing is clear:

Even great networkers don't have a networking strategy!

Let me give you some context. People network for a number of reasons. Here's a few that great door-opener Simon Bozeat, founder of the Midlands-based Bozeat Business Clubs, gives for networking:

"New sales opportunities, make money, save money, source local suppliers, build a stronger local presence, PR, personal development and just to hang around some great people!"

Whatever your motivation, you've got to have a plan to wrap your good intentions around. For pretty much everyone, there's an element of business development in mind. Indeed, my definition of networking is attending business-related events to fulfil your commercial objectives.

Yet it's unlikely you'll find your next best client or customer directly through networking. It's more likely you'll be referred to them through somebody you met networking. Craig Bunday, who runs the brilliant Leicester Business Club, offers an induction to his members to help them identify what they would like to achieve from membership and how they can get the most out of The Club. Now that's the beginnings of a strategy!

Charles Walker is founder of the 500 Clubs, based in Derby and Leicester. Charles is most prolific referral giver I know, and has passed over £200,000 of referral business to his contacts personally in the last month! He runs focus groups within his clubs to develop referral partnerships. His aim is to generate £1m of business for his members in the next year. Knowing Charles, he'll have that done by Christmas!

Over the next few weeks I'll be talking more about your networking strategy in a series of referral marketing seminars I'm running for the Referral Institute East Midlands. If you really want to know how to double your business by referral and generate a load more referrals from your networking, reserve your place here>>

There are many different audiences you'll come across when you're networking. Many different people will ask you 'What do you do?'

Unless you know something about who has asked you the question, you're in a 'blind situation.' You're at a distinct disadvantage. So here are ten of the most useful questions about your audience to help you craft a more bespoke Elevator Speech (ES):

1. Who are they?
2. What is their role in the company/organisation?
3. What does their company do or make?
4. Who are their customers/clients?
5. What makes them good or unique?
6. What are their needs and issues?
7. Where are they hurting?
8. Are they failing in any areas?
9. What are their plans and goals?
10. Where might there be opportunities?

It pays when you're networking to ask more questions than you answer, and get your questions in first. Then by the time they ask you, you can craft your ES accordingly. And that makes it impactful, memorable and 'pass on-able'.

As a result, you'll soon find your referral income going through the roof. And all because you've started to craft your message!