How Do I Get Referrals, I Ask For Them! Mr. ActiveRain, Bob Stewart recently put out our new marching orders for the latest ActiveRain Contest/Challenge. Being the good little soldier that I am, I decided that I would participate in Captain Stewart's challenge. The challenge is as follows:
"In a blog post, share with us one tactic you use to get referrals from past clients or your sphere. Try to share it in a fashion that someone reading could put your idea into practice. That means give an example, share some details, tell a story, possibly even walk us through the script or the steps you took to land the referral."
I am sorry to disappoint El Captain, but I do not believe in "tactics" or "scripts" when it comes to referrals. My approach is simple and to the point, I just simple ask for referrals at every possible opportunity, and expect to get them. If I truly did the bang up job that I thought I did for my Borrowers, why would they not want to refer me to their friends and family? Why would they not want to share with their friends and family the name of the Loan Originator that provided them with great service? Asking for a referral from a Borrower that was happy with what I did for them, should be as natural as breathing. But yet sales people seem to have this HUGE problem in just simply asking for what should be the most natural thing for them, and resort to gimmicks instead.
I am not ashamed of what I do, in fact I am very proud of it. I tell EVERYBODY that I come in contact with what I do within a few minutes of meeting them, and if I already know them, they will be reminded of what I do over and over again. Referrals are the life blood of a sales persons business, referrals are vital to our success.
I know that I started out this blog by poking a little fun at Bob, but I truly appreciate him making this an ActiveRain Challenge, because there are few topics that are more important than this one, and that is why I have blogged about it before. Anyone who feels uncomfortable (ashamed) asking for referrals, or thinks that it is pushy, I suggest you ask yourself these three simple questions:
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Would you hesitate to give someone a referral that did a good job for you?
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Would you not want to share that great experience with others that you know?
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So if you did a great job for a client, does it not make sense that they would want to refer you to their friends and family?
If you are honest in answering these questions, in my opinion there can only be one answer to each of them, YES, YES, YES. The only thing that is stopping our clients from giving us referrals is US, we don't ASK. If we do not ask, we most likely will not receive.
So after this very long way to get to my answer for Captain Bob's challenge, I get referrals by:
- Giving out my business card EVERY chance I get.
- I ask everyone I know to refer me to the people who they know that are purchasing a house or refinancing
- I ask my Borrowers at every step of the Loan Process for referrals:
- Pre-Approval
- Application
- Commitment
- Closing
- At every future contact
My advise to everyone who is in a sales related industry, is to ask for referrals, it is the simplest and best way to get them. Referrals are what keeps us in business, and others EXPECT us to ask for them. Anyone in a sales related field that is afraid, ashamed, or embarrassed to ask for referrals needs to do themselves a favor and find another profession to be in, because success in sales in my opinion is not in their future.
How Do I Get Referrals, I Ask For Them! If you want referrals then you need to ask for them as well.
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Info about the author:
George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com
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