In this podcast, Brian shares three core principles for achieving business success: working by referral, cultivating the database, and prioritizing relationships. He emphasizes the importance of lead generation, building trust, and asking for referrals. The strategies discussed include categorizing the database and implementing consistent marketing efforts.
Working by referral is a key principle for generating repeat business and referrals, emphasizing consistent contact and care for individuals in your database.
Cultivating your database involves investing time, energy, and care into different categories of relationships, prioritizing the A category for best repeat customers and advocates.
Deep dives
Principles of Working by Referral
Working by referral is emphasized as a key principle to generate repeat business and referrals. It involves consistent contact and care for individuals in your database, treating your best customers exceptionally, and making lead generation a primary focus. The importance of lead generation is stressed, highlighting that more leads lead to more sales, more income, and more choice in selecting clients. The significance of quality in referrals is explored, with referred leads being more loyal and likely to refer you again, in contrast to co-leads who tend to be transactional and less loyal.
Cultivating Your Database
Cultivating your database is discussed as a crucial aspect of working by referral. The database is not just a contact list but a list of relationships. It involves investing time, energy, and care into different categories of relationships, such as A, B, C, and D. By investing more time in the A category, which includes best repeat customers and advocates, a significant return on investment can be achieved. The Pareto principle is applied, emphasizing that 20% of the database is responsible for 80% of the work. The importance of focusing on the A plus customers and having sincere conversations about referrals is highlighted.
Contact, Care, and Community
The three C's - contact, care, and community - are presented as key elements in nurturing relationships and obtaining referrals. Contact involves consistently reaching out to people through mail, e-reports, and personalized communication. Care emphasizes the personal touch in building relationships through notes, small gifts, and one-on-one interactions. Community involves enabling interactions among individuals in the database, fostering a sense of connection and building trust. These practices, when implemented consistently, build trust, deepen relationships, and contribute to a successful working by referral strategy.
Back by popular demand, It's a Good Life "Quick Cuts" are the best bits of each episode, whittled down to the core messages – for busy days and quick motivation hits!
Do you want to get your business off to a great start this year? In this episode, Brian shares the three core principles that have helped him achieve phenomenal success over many decades, no matter the market conditions.