Create rewards for those that refer others to you. A reward could be anything from a formal affiliate program, where you pay cash for referrals, as I do, to coupons for discounts on your services, products, or programs, or a basket of gourmet food or homemade cookies.
For some service professionals, paying affiliate fees may be unethical or illegal in some fields, like the medical or legal fields, but for many service professionals it’s perfectly acceptable, understood and appreciated. Just make sure to be very open about the fact that you give referral fees so that your clients know about it and understand why you do it. Two things to set your mind at rest about paying for referrals:
1. The people that you associate with will never send you referrals just for the 10 percent or so that you’re paying for each referral. People only refer to you when they truly believe in what you have to offer. So, paying for referrals does not trump being wonderful at what you do. You must still go above and beyond to add value to the lives of the people you serve; and
2. You will not lose money by paying for referrals. You’ll make money by paying for referrals. Let’s run the numbers. Say you charge $500 per month for your services and you currently have 10 regular clients. You’re currently earning $5,000 per month. Now, let’s say that each one of your ten clients refers one more client to you at $500 per month. That’s another 10 clients for another $5,000 per month. If you give a referral fee of only 10 percent you’ll be paying each referee $50 per referral for a total of $500 in referral fees. Would you spend $500 to make $5,000 for a profit of $4,500 and a new monthly income of $9,500, almost double what you were making? I assume you would. I would. And think about what this means if you are currently making $30,000 or $40,000 per month. You do the math.
There is a very positive energy that is created around money when you do this. Money is a currency that needs to be exchanged. When you freely pass it back and forth, I believe that you increase your resonance around it and subsequently become more comfortable talking about it and accumulating it. I offer affiliate commission on all of my products and programs to create this kind of positive, reciprocal, free-flowing electrified currency around money. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Get more clients with Michael Port, expert marketing coach for small business owners and professional service providers. Free small business resources, networking opportunities, articles, advice and coaching on professional services marketing at http://www.michaelport.com . Receive a free chapter from ‘Book Yourself Solid’ at http://www.bookyourselfsolid.com
