Before we discuss how to find strong referral partners, it’s important to know what a referral partner really is anyways.
A true referral partner is someone who:
- you’ve communicated what referral partnership you’re both wanting.
- you’re on the same page with.
- you’ve trained using your training manuals and they’ve trained you on theirs.
- you’re calling for around 10 minutes each week to strategize how to get in each other’s networks.
Anything else is not a true referral relationship. When people don’t understand this, they get frustrated and complain about what their referral partners are or are not doing. They’ll say things like ‘I’m doing more than what my partners are doing.’ Or ‘They’re not following up or doing what I ask them to do.’ This is common with referral partnerships when both parties aren’t clear on what a true referral partner really is.
There are also cross-promotional partners and we find confusion around this as well sometimes.
A true cross promotional partner is someone who:
You’ve talked to about how to strategize on how to promote each other to each other’s networks. This can occur on an ongoing basis or it can be a 1 off situation. Either way, you still need clear communication and an action plan. Any cross promotional partnership will fall down without an action plan.
Finally, this is simple to set up, once you’ve identified a potentially strong partner. Simply start by asking – do you want to be a referral or cross promotional partner? And once they say yes, make sure you follow through with each of the points above to make sure you set the partnership up right and it’s a win-win for both parties involved.