LA Point of Sale

Everyone in management will tell every salesperson to “ask for referrals” or “don’t forget to ask for referrals” or “as soon as you make the sale, ask for a referral.” These strategies are not only wrong, they also jeopardize the future of the relationship. First of all, why are you “asking” (begging) for a referral? Second of all, why are you asking when you haven’t earned anything? REALITY: Asking for referrals makes EVERYONE feel awkward. And usually results in a turndown, or a delay. A delay that goes on for months. A referral is the second strongest lead in sales. The first is an unsolicited one. MAJOR CLUE: Referrals are not asked for – referrals are EARNED. SCENARIO: You get a referral from a customer without asking for it. You make a sale. Your boss asks you, “How’d you get that referral?” And you respond, “I earned it.” Your boss will NOT know what to say next. Give to get. There are all kinds of names applied to the process of “giving” a referral to a customer. Pay it forward. Netweaving. BUT the salesperson will forever live in darkness if he or she expects something in return. Which brings me to this PRIME example of what not to do. I got this email “request for an answer” today: Hey Jeff, I can’t seem to ever get any referrals! I go back to the customer after the sale, I give them an appreciation gift and ask them for some people and they say they don’t know anybody or don’t think anybody else can afford it?! What to do? The guy didn’t even sign the email …
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