Good business is all about what your interactions look like as one person to the other. Your focus needs to be on creating the types of conversations that help build relationships and build rapport.

Keep an open mind and remember that not every conversations has to lead to a sale. You might be creating opportunities to sell but also, very importantly, opportunities to partner or open another door.

You know you’re on the right track as long as the focus is on building the relationship because people buy from those they know like and trust. If have the right sorts of conversations that build trust, rapport and relationships, people will connect with you and are more likely to be able to help you.

Here are 3 quick to help you to understand the other person

1.    Do you have a similar audience? Could this be a cross promotional partner? Might this person be right for your referral team?

2.    Are there any doors you can help the person to open?

3.    Engagement and understanding. You must genuinely engage and be interested in the person, (if not, they’ll sense it). Doing so allows you to really hear them and to quickly identify if you have a solution to their challenge.

When you focus on understanding the person, hearing their needs and challenges and how you can help each other. You move away from a transactional conversation and into building a mutual relationship from which you can both grow and benefit.

Stop having the same conversation with referral partners that simply don’t work…here’s what you should be doing instead

Remember come hang out with me and grab some great referral training in our free Facebook group ‘The Referral Network’ just click here – www.michaelgriffiths.com.au/facebook

Make sure you subscribe to get great small business marketing tips, video’s and how to’s on referral marketing, using your business networks better and creating partnerships to fill your sales funnels. Great for any coach, consultant or professional service business.

Remember to jump into the ‘ Referral Network’ group on Facebook  and create new opportunities with great business owners. www.facebook.com/groups/michaelgriffiths

Remember to Subscribe to our YouTube Channel right here for more great coaching.

Remember to grab your copy of the Referral Game Plan at www.referralmarketingguru.com.au/gameplan

Who is Michael Griffiths? Michael is the founder of Referral Marketing Guru & the #1 authority on referral marketing training around the globe. He speaks some 60+ times just on referral marketing and partnerships and runs the leading referral marketing training program to help you build your own Million Dollar Referral System. He encourages active networking in BNI, Chamber Of Commerce and Referral Groups to build your own referral teams.

Our first three accelerators focus on the referral circle. Check out what they are here…

Remember come hang out with me and grab some great referral training in our free Facebook group ‘The Referral Network’ just click here – www.michaelgriffiths.com.au/facebook

Make sure you subscribe to get great small business marketing tips, video’s and how to’s on referral marketing, using your business networks better and creating partnerships to fill your sales funnels. Great for any coach, consultant or professional service business.

Remember to jump into the ‘ Referral Network’ group on Facebook  and create new opportunities with great business owners. www.facebook.com/groups/michaelgriffiths

Remember to Subscribe to our YouTube Channel right here for more great coaching.

Remember to grab your copy of the Referral Game Plan at www.referralmarketingguru.com.au/gameplan

Who is Michael Griffiths? Michael is the founder of Referral Marketing Guru & the #1 authority on referral marketing training around the globe. He speaks some 60+ times just on referral marketing and partnerships and runs the leading referral marketing training program to help you build your own Million Dollar Referral System. He encourages active networking in BNI, Chamber Of Commerce and Referral Groups to build your own referral teams.

To get more good customers, focus on your best customers

Your most valuable customers are most likely your most loyal ones and most likely to refer. Look through your CRM system for your best customers and leverage your personal relationship to ask for referrals.

Ask after the checkout process

Timing is a critical factor in referral requests. The end of the checkout process is a good place for it. At this point, it won’t distract your visitor from converting, and given the fact that they just converted, they probably have a positive attitude towards you.

Use a cheeky questionnaire

If you find a direct request for referrals doesn’t quite work for you, you can hide the request in the shape of a questionnaire as well. Start with, “How likely are you to advise [insert your product, service or business] to a friend?” Instead of asking for a favour, you start by asking for their opinion, which makes them feel valued, and boosts their self-esteem. At the same time you make them realise how much they appreciate your service/product and direct their mind towards the idea of referring.

Get close to their friends and minimise the effort with autofill

Sorry to say it, but most customers are lazy in nature. But if you can make it easier for them, they’re more likely to refer you. You can try adding auto fill forms or integrate the referral platform to their social networks and allow them to pick the referrals they would like to make.

If you’re after reviews, make it super easy

Follow these steps to make it as easy as possible so you don’t lose them along the way.

• Add links to your website pages (in multiple places that make sense) for all the review sites on which you appear (Yelp, Angie’s List, Google, etc.).
• Put links to review sites in all your communications: In your emails, your Facebook company page, in direct mail or deliveries, really any point of contact you have.
• Make it easy for customers to find the answers to “What do I do?” and “Why me?” no matter where they go. For example, you can put them in downloadable PDFs on your website and then share that link through all your communication channels
• Help them figure out how to describe their experience. Many people are afraid of looking silly in print or while taking to peers, so make it easy to find other reviews people have done as models. Plus, this will enhance your social proof.

We think we need to deliver more stuff, more content, more things.

BUT NO we don’t, here is actually the key ingredient and why people come into Partnership Club.

Remember come hang out with my networks and get some great insider referral training

At the ‘Referral Network’ Facebook group – www.michaelgriffiths.com.au/facebook

Make sure you subscribe to get great small business marketing tips, video’s and how to’s on referral marketing, using your business networks better and creating partnerships to fill your sales funnels. Great for any coach, consultant or professional service business.

Remember to jump into the ‘ Referral Network’ group on Facebook  and create new opportunities with great business owners. www.facebook.com/groups/michaelgriffiths

Remember to Subscribe to our YouTube Channel right here for more great coaching.

Remember to grab your copy of the Referral Game Plan at www.referralmarketingguru.com.au/gameplan

Who is Michael Griffiths? Michael is the founder of Referral Marketing Guru & the #1 authority on referral marketing training around the globe. He speaks some 60+ times just on referral marketing and partnerships and runs the leading referral marketing training program to help you build your own Million Dollar Referral System. He encourages active networking in BNI, Chamber Of Commerce and Referral Groups to build your own referral teams.

Listening is one of the most important skills you can have and how well you listen has a major impact on almost every area of your life as any social interaction requires effective listening skills.

Let’s explore how this impacts your networking abilities. Have you ever been caught mid-way through a conversation at a networking event, only to lose the person’s interest along with their potential referral partnership?

Unfortunately, you’re not alone. Research suggests that we remember between 25% and 50% of what we hear. Wow! So what do you do? The way to improve your listening skills is to practice “active listening,” where you make a conscious effort to hear not only the words that another person is saying but, more importantly, try to understand the complete message being sent.

To do this, start by paying careful attention to the other person. Avoid getting distracted or bored.

To enhance your listening skills, you need to let the other person know that you’re listening to them and sometimes a simple acknowledgement is al it takes. This can be something as simple as a nod of the head or a simple “uh huh.”

Active Listening Tips: There are five key active listening techniques. They all help you ensure that you hear the other person, and that the other person knows you are hearing what they say.

1. Pay Attention: Give the speaker your undivided attention, and acknowledge the message. Recognise that non-verbal communication also “speaks” loudly. Ex: nod, avoid distractions.

2. Show That You’re Listening: Use your own body language and gestures to convey your attention. Ex: Nod occasionally, smile and use other facial expressions, make sure your posture is open and inviting, Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like “yes,” and “uh huh.”

3. Provide Feedback: Our personal filters, assumptions, judgments, and beliefs can distort what we hear. As a listener, focus on understanding what’s being said. You may need to reflect and ask questions. Ex: Reflect what has been said by paraphrasing. “What I’m hearing is,” and “Sounds like you are saying,” are great ways to reflect back. Ask questions to clarify certain points. “What do you mean when you say.” “Is this what you mean?” or Summarise the speaker’s

4. Defer Judgment: Don’t interrupt. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of the message.

5. Respond Appropriately: Active listening is a model for respect and understanding.  Ex: Be candid, open, and honest in your response, assert your opinions respectfully.