What Are Your Trigger Phrases? An Exercise In Gaining Referrals

TweetDo you know them when you hear them?  Of course you do.

They make your ears perk up like my 4 year old’s ears when I say the word “PANCAKES.”

They are the phrases you hear that make you say —– “That person should hire me.”

Mine are:

“I have a great idea here but I don’t know how to market it.”

“I just need someone to teach me how to use the InterTubes to market my business.”

“I need a new website, mine is really outdated.”

Who Else Is Listening For Your Trigger Phrases?

We all know that referrals are gold.

We know that you should be cultivating referrals —- but how do you do it?

Sometimes it seems easier to cultivate cherry tomatoes in the Saudi Arabian desert than to cultivate referrals.

Here is an excellent exercise in gaining referrals for your business — grab a pen and paper (or open your favorite word processor software) and write down as many of trigger phrases as possible.

Now, open up your email software and write an email that goes something like this:

Dear Mr/Mrs Referral Source,
I love you and you love me — we are a happy family.  With a nick knack paddy…. wait … AHEM!

I realize that you and I have been friends for many years and have sent each other many referrals but I wanted to give you some formal information about the products and services I offer and the “trigger phrases” that you might hear that would make you realize that someone could benefit from my services.

I have included in this email a full list of my products and services along with a list of trigger phrases that I often hear when someone needs my products and services.

I am hoping that you will reciprocate by sending me a list of your “trigger phrases” and directing me to more information about your products and services.

Or something like that.  Buy, you may want to omit the nick knack paddy whack stuff — unless you really know the person.

Educating Your Referral Sources

The real tragedy in tiny business is that while people may very well want to refer you, they are not able to because they don’t know exactly what you do.

What exactly do you offer?

Using content, like this blog post, an email, a video, etc to educate your referral sources about exactly WHEN and HOW to refer you can be a powerful exercise in gaining referrals.

What are your trigger phrases?  How can we educate each other about when and where to refer each other?  What is your favorite nursery rhyme?