How to Make Referrals Part of Customer Experience

Referrals are by far the highest ROI channel for B2B businesses. So why aren’t you getting more of them? I use a dead-simple, but incredibly effective method to double my inbound referrals. 1 — Be Direct. The biggest mistake people make is relying on “automated emails” and “programs”. They take the easy way out because they are afraid. They wait for a follow-up email and send vague requests like, “If you think of anyone, let me know!” The reality is people don’t have time to brainstorm referrals for you! 2 — here’s what I do: make a specific and direct ask. And when possible, do it face-to-face right on the video call. Yes, you can do this over email, but asking directly, person-to-person, makes a stronger impact. 3 — Instead of leading with an ask, start by GIVING a lead first. Before ending a call, try this: “Before we wrap up, I’d like to give you two leads I think would benefit from your service. Would you mind sharing two people on your client roster who might find us interesting? I’ll send you a tailored email for easy forwarding.” Even better, do your homework: “I noticed these logos on your website. These two companies look like they’d be a great fit for us because [reason]. Would you mind making an introduction?” Be specific. Be proactive. Be intentional. What’s your go-to approach when asking for referrals? Let me know in the comments.

I wrote a book called The Referral Engine to make the case that referrals should be your #1 lead source—but there’s a catch. Early in my career, I thought doing great work was enough to keep clients coming. And for a while, it worked. One happy client led to another, and I stayed busy. Then, one day, the referrals slowed down. And I found myself wondering: Where’s the next client coming from? That’s when I realized something many business owners eventually figure out: Referrals don’t just happen. They have to be built into your marketing system. Too many businesses think referrals are random. They do great work, cross their fingers, and hope happy clients will spread the word. Yes, that better be happening. But that’s not a strategy. I started asking myself some different questions. ~ How do I make referring me the easiest thing my clients can do? ~ How do I teach my best customers to tell the right story about me? ~ How do I bake referrals into every stage of my client experience? Just thinking this way changed everything. Instead of waiting for referrals, I created a system to generate them. Here’s what I figured out. First, people don’t refer businesses. They refer experiences. If your work is just “good,” no one is talking about it. If your process is clunky, no one is bringing their best contacts into it. The easiest way to get more referrals is to create something worth talking about. Second, most people would be happy to refer you, but they don’t know how. If you want more referrals, you have to make it easy. Give people the right language to use. Create a process that naturally encourages introductions. Make referring you feel like a win for them, not a favor to you. Finally, the best way to generate more referrals is to teach before you sell. Create content that positions you as the expert people want to send their friends to. Be the person people naturally think of when someone asks, “Who do you know that does great work in this space?” When someone tells me their lead generation is inconsistent, I don’t tell them to start cold calling. I tell them to make referrals a system, not an accident. So I’m curious—what’s one thing you do to make referrals a natural part of the customer journey?

Referrals might be the most underused growth lever in B2B! Everyone talks about them. Few actually operationalize them. At Sendspark, we’ve made referrals a core part of our GTM motion—and it’s driving real revenue. Here are 3 ways we’re turning referrals into pipeline (and closed deals): 1. Offer Free Access in Exchange for an intro We don’t have a free plan. So when an SDR signs up and drops off before payment, we don’t just lose the lead. Instead, we offer them a free Sendspark seat—if they are open to making an exec level intro. It’s a win-win: They get value. We get a high-leverage referral. This simple play helped us close two enterprise deals last quarter. 2. Operationalize Referrals with Tech Referrals don’t have to be manual, there are plenty of tools out there that can help you automate the referral process. Here’s what we use internally. FirstPromoter– An easy affiliate tool where our fans get a link to share Sendspark and earn $ when someone signs up. Product- Embedded Referral Links – We let users include referral links in the videos they send. When someone loves the video and signs up → the sender gets paid. Commsor 🦕 – Shows us overlaps between customers, investors, and influencers. Perfect for uncovering warm intro paths we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. 3. Just Ask If you’re a CSM doing a QBR... Or an AE who just closed a deal... Ask: “Is there anyone else in your network who could use something like this?” Worst case? They say no. Best case? Warm, qualified lead! Creating a scalable referral motion is something that add incredible growth to your business! If you don't currently have a referral program in place, why not? #saas #sales #growth