Dear Friends,
Thoughts are things.
How you think will affect your behavior.
All future behavior is largely dependent upon the consequences of current and past behavior.
In other words, how you think will show up in your actions and behavior.
You've heard it said ... "we move in the direction of our pre-dominant thoughts" or "we participate in creating our future" or "as a man thinks, he will be."
Thoughts are things.
I believe the most important first thought in building a effective referral business is simply to have a long term view.
A referral mind set is the attitude and desire to build relationships based on service and trust. You have accepted the notion that the best way to build your business is by referral.
Any great structure begins with a solid foundation.
This is where we begin.
What is a long term view?
Here's a little story that might help you to remember:
In retail it's called the Lifetime Spending of a Consumer.I was standing in line at a KFC. There was a Hispanic couple in front of me placing their order. They moved to the cashier and received their order. They looked in the bag and explained to the cashier it was wrong. Their English was poor and they had trouble communicating.
I understood. They ordered a number 7 and thought they got something else. The cashier said, "no, no, this IS what you ordered." They said "no it wasn't." This went back and forth.
Now the manager walks over to the scene and says, "what's the problem?"
He tried to explain what a number 7 was. They didn't want an explanation.
They got frustrated, pushed the bag across the counter and walked out.
We were all standing there for a moment, and I said to the manager and the counter clerk, "you were right, they were wrong. They ordered a number 7. They made a mistake. Let me ask you this. If that was a $5,000 order would you have acted like that over $24.95?"
The manager looked at me and said "of course not."
I said, "look at it this way. If they come here twice a month, that's $50 per month, and if they come in 10 times a year, that's $500 per year, and if they live in this area for ten years, that's $5000. That was a $5000 dollar order of chicken. It just comes in pieces."
No pun intended.
In a referral business I call it the LIFETIME ADVOCACY.
Here's today's tip.
When you communicate to your data base, which may be comprised of customers, clients, friends, family, neighbors, past co-workers, both personal and business relationships think of
them as ADVOCATES. Kind of like a part time sales force.
People refer because they know what you do and how you help others.
Think of their lifetime advocacy, not their business. This point is critical. Think about it.
If you had 300 people on your data base, maybe only 15-18 would have a need for your services in any given year. But, what if each one of them referred someone to you just once a year?
How would your business be? Think about it.
LIFETIME ADVOCACY requires a long term view.
Change your thinking.
Change your behavior.
Change your results.
If you want relatively minor change in your life, focus on your attitudes and behavior. If you want significant quantum change, focus on your paradigms.
On Your Team
Jeffrey Stanton ITI, CLC, CNE, WOW
Your Trusted Advisor For Life
Your Professional Development
347-466-3047
One of the fastest ways to build a successful business is by training. Now, with me, I like to invest significant time immersing myself in training, while some people prefer to take it in bite-size chunks. Whatever your preference is, now is the best time to contact me.
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Certified negotiation Expert (CNE) Designation Training
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