Nothing like Politely asking for Introductions & Referrals!
A BIG thank you for this blog post goes to the fine Robert DelVecchio from IT Support Guys! He is this fine IT support guy based in the “Hills Shire” of Sydney, Australia.
While we were working together we talked about a powerhouse topic very close to my heart, being getting referrals through business networking! Most business networking groups (e.g. 4Networking, BNI, She, Success Womens etc) are mostly dominated by small business owners. Why? They need to have their own support community and is a great opportunity to target fellow small business owners.
In my case, I have the luxury of of being “lazy” in that many of my potential clients are in the room – BUT, for quite a few they target larger businesses (say with at least 5 staff). In that case, it’s a bit harder and instead of say “selling to the room” we advise they characters to “sell through the room!”.
That is, instead of trying to do business (buying / selling) in the room, the goal is to build partners. That is, friends they trust – preferably who share the same target market.
One amazing strategy many have used to make top dollars is what we call “introduction trading”, that is:
– They make friends and trust each other.
– Educate each other as to the type of clients.
– Sit down, go through each others databases.
– Work out who to introduce each other to who.
– They then do it!
A great approach may be do 5 x each with each other. That is, give each other 5 introductions each to relevant people they can do business with! That is where the money is for many, as if you approach people from scratch it may take 3 – 6 months to get the sale (if ever!).
Through an introduction from a trusted source, it can turn into more “order taking”, that is rocking up to fulfil the order rather than sell hard!
So my advice, find a good friend and trade with them like this! Powerful!
Drop me a line for any success stories of if any questions at edward@excellenceabove.com.au – best of luck!
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