Top Tips For Asking For Referrals In Sales

Author: Ryan Tuckwood

If you’re a salesperson who struggles with asking for referrals, don’t worry. Everyone goes through a stage of not knowing how to ask or not being effective enough to really convince a client to refer you.

Our goal is to help you become a better salesperson by using truthful, ethical methods, which is why we’ve put together this list of top tips when asking for referrals.

• Open the referral seed before you close a deal

It’s important to mention the idea of referrals before you close and outright ask your customer. This makes it seem like much less of an abrupt request and keeps your customer more on side. You can then continue a seamless conversation after the close when your customer is more receptive to the idea of referrals.

How should you do this? Let them know you will be asking them for 3 things in 30 days after they come on board. The thirty day period will help negate any immediate backpedalling at the idea of needing to make a decision or provide the referrals right then.

The three things you’ll ask for are:

o A testimonial video

o A review on Google (or your preferred platform)

o The names of 2-3 people they think can benefit from your services as much as they have 

These, especially the last point, shows confidence in the close that you truly believe they will be happy with your service.

• Get them to agree that this is fair if you deliver on expectations

As you will already be expecting to deliver on the customer’s expectations, this should not take any extra effort on your end. Which also means that it should be relatively easy to get your customer to agree. After all, they’re not expected to do anything right now (and if they’re the nervous sort, they might be thinking that you’ll forget by the time the deadline comes).

• Close the deal

Your close when asking for referrals should be the same as any other close you make – done with integrity. If you struggle with closing, or need some tips on the sorts of things you shouldn’t say, check out this blog.

Now, here’s where these tips for asking for referrals really kick in.

• Go above & beyond and give them more than they expect to get post-sale

This is something that seems simple, but can take a lot of time and effort. You need to do a bit of planning to make sure you’re giving each customer more than they expect to receive. Over-delivering on their expectations is a great way to become memorable and ensure customers are more likely to recommend yourself, your business or your service. 

Another way to over-deliver is personal touch points. Did your customer mention that they had to go pick up a child from school? Casually ask how the child is doing next time you talk. Your customer will be pleased that you remembered that small detail, and these interactions become more personal.

Now that you have rapport with the customer, it will be easier to engage with them and for the customer to feel comfortable and happier with the deal.

So, what’s your timeline in the 30-day window that you’ve given them?

• One week to 10 days away from the 30-day mark, remind them you will be asking for the reviews. Ask them to start to think about what they’ve enjoyed, or any areas you can improve (and now, you have 10 days to improve on the advice they give you). This can be done via email, as it’s just the initial touching base to remind them of the agreements.
• 3-5 days out, ask them how they will look to refer. Is this with an email connection or a phone number? This is best done on the phone so it feels personal and you can get a sense of their tone.
• 30 days from the sale – call your customer and ask them and ask for the above.

Once you compound this method, you will create a pipeline of referrals daily or weekly. Once you get started, you’ll easily fall into a rhythm and find yourself asking for referrals easily with every customer. 

With any luck, you’ve found the information you need in this article and can start to get those referrals rolling in. To learn more about how we can assist you with your sales techniques so that you can take your sales efforts to the next level, read about our proven sales training, sales coaching, and sales courses.  No matter if you are located in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast or anywhere in the world, we provide innovative and ethical sales training through our online courses or virtual training.

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