No More Whack-a-Mole

The other day, Tony Cooke, a friend of mine and a great leader, reminded me about the old game Whack-a-Mole in his newsletter. Have you ever watched someone play Whack-a-Mole? They stand  in front of the game and hold a padded hammer. The challenge is to whack the head of the moles as they pop up before they go back into the holes.

The longer you play, the faster and more erratic the moles pop up. It can get a little crazy.

Now the real question is: Have you ever felt like your business is like a Whack-a-Mole game? There you stand, just waiting for the next crisis to pop up and you only hope you're fast enough to resolve it before another "mole" sticks it's head up... and the next and the next.

Living from crisis to crisis can affect your sales and many times is the reason behind what we call, "the roller coaster sales process." It's hard to prospect for new business when you're busy finding solutions for current business. Many business people tell me that it's like a roller coaster, one minute they have more business than they know what to with and the next they are without leads or prospects.

You know what I'm saying? 

That is why the having a referral system is important. 

What is a Referral System? It's the process of predictably giving and receiving referrals based on a logical and specific set of predetermined and measurable actions.

Michael Gerber, who wrote The E-Myth, said, 

“Systems permit ordinary people to achieve extraordinary results…predictably.”

Here are three suggestions on how to get your own Referral System started:

1. Join a business networking group like Gold Star Referral Clubs, BNI or LeTips and build referral relationships with other like-minded business people in your city.
2. Communicate on a regular basis with your clients and connections, reminding them about your referral program and any incentives that you have. I suggest using ConstantContact. It's a great way to track your referral partners and to send emails.
3. Seek out businesses that are natural referral sources for your industry and form referral alliances, like a fan club that recommends you on a regular basis to their clients and customers.

Finally, subscribe to this blog and let me help you develop your referral strategy. I can't promise to stop the Whack-a-Mole crazy times, but I can help you increase your business with referrals.

 

Giving the Admin's Report

One of my favorite times during the Gold Star Referral Club meeting is when Eddie stands up and gives the Admin Report. He is always prepared, fun and everyone loves him.

The Admin is the person who makes notes on attendance and gathers the slips after the meeting in order to enter them into the back office of the Gold Star site within 24 hours. Most Admins will also schedule the 10 minute speakers. 

Watch this quick 33 second video of Eddie. 

We're here for you when you have any questions about Gold Star!

Todd and Beth  

918-933-4864 

5 Engaging Ways To Stay Connected to Past Clients

I once heard Joe Stumpf of "By Referral Only" fame say, “The system is the solution.”  

Building your business by referrals is both a philosophy and a mindset and it takes a system to make it all happen. By creating a system to keep in touch with and to stay connected to your past and current clients, your connections and your fans you can consistently reap referrals. 

Your past customers may have known, liked and trusted you at one time, but will they remember you? Will they refer you to their friends a month or year from now?

How are you staying visible? What are some engaging ways to stay in touch?. Newsletters are great, but what else can you do?

Consider all the ways you can stay connected with your contacts. Be creative. Then, create a systematic plan so you can consistently stay in front of your connections and fans. A plan might include Facebook time from 3:00 to 4:00 pm every day, blogging on Monday and Wednesday or shooting a short video every Friday morning. You might set a deadline for yourself to get a newsletter out by the 20th or to write an article for a neighborhood newspaper once a month.

If you're anything like me, if I don't plan it and put it in my smart phone to remind me, the chances of it happening are pretty slim. So, make some decisions, talk it over with your team, write your plan down, schedule it and make it a priority to get started this week.

Here are 5 engaging ways to stay connected:

Use permission-based emails that give value and education. Link to some interesting blogs and articles. Send Newsletters that contain news and humor. I like to use ConstantContact for my email campaigns. It's simple and easy to manage with an unsubscribe feature.

Blog for your audience. Entertain your connections with enticing content. Share valuable information that is closely related to what you sell. Educate people so that they continue to know, like and trust you enough to do more business with you and to refer you to their friends. I like Google's Blogger best. That's just my preference. When I finish with a blog, it seamlessly blasts it out on Google+. Then my husband, Todd, sends it out to our other social media sites. If you need help with content join Copyblogger.com. 

Video and YouTube are excellent ways to demonstrate what you do. Post your short videos on social media websites along with your blog. When I create a video, I just use my smart phone, which is set up on a stand in front of me. I make sure that the background is fairly neutral and that the light source is behind the camera and not me. It's fast and easy to upload it to YouTube. I don't personally care for videos shot from a laptop camera. It can have a fish-bowl look and nobody wants to look like a fish. 

Create a Facebook Group. Like-minded friends and customers can grow into a community with common interests. Post a weekly topic and encourage comments. Connect to your blog and company videos. Encourage discussions. This one only takes minutes to set up and you'll be amazed at how close you get to the people who join your group.

 Events can be fun and are a great way to stay connected. Invite your past clients, current connections and friends to at least one event a year. For example, you could invite them to  join you at a sporting event, charitable fundraiser or a seminar. Consider having a party to watch a great TV show or an event like the Oscars. Better yet, once a year have a family day at the Zoo, rent a bowling alley or have a business networking event.

Keep in touch and stay connected.

You are only as limited as your imagination.

Keeping Your Friends, Customers and Members

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management.  It is a strategy used to develop stronger relationships with customers in order to generate loyalty and sales. Today, we not only want to keep customers, but our friends, online and offline, and our members in our business networking groups.

Unfortunately, the most common CRM method that we see in small businesses is hit or miss, like throwing darts at a board with a blind fold on.

Guessing at what your customer’s wants and needs are will rarely produce results.

Keeping your customer relationships alive and thriving is the key to their loyalty.

Basic Tips for keeping your customers:

The customer is a priority.  Customers are smart enough today to know when your focus is more on sales then on them and their needs. When you lose focus on the customer, you lose loyalty and sales.

 

Understand your customer.  Gather information about who your customer is, where they go and what their needs are.  Do surveys, get point-of-sale feedback, run contests or set up a social media group. Just listen.

Find a system that fits your company.  Experts will agree that over 70% of CRM systems fail. Why? Lack of commitment to the customer and lack of understanding about what methods best supports their business. What works for you? Infusionsoft, Salesforce, SendOutCards, Constant Contact or a combination?

Start small and manageable.  Develop a plan.  You might begin with an email campaign, social media or a newsletter first. Then when those first steps demonstrate results, your company can look at the next element of your strategy.

Get everyone on board.  From salesman to manager, get everyone connected to your CRM strategy. Don’t let disregard for the company’s vision fracture your strategy.  Empower your staff and sales team with knowledge, inspiration and tools.

Now you see me, now you don't...

Lack of visibility will cost you business.   

We often speak about the importance of the Know, Like and Trust factors in referral marketing. But the formula is not complete without Visibility.

"Where did he go?"

There is a common misconception that just by belonging to a business networking group you should get referrals.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way.

The members of your networking group still need to get to know you, like you and trust you. They can’t do that if you don’t show up on a regular basis.

One doesn't generate trust without consistency. In fact, your referrals will begin to decline the minute you start missing meetings, even if you have a substitute fill in for you.

There will be times of sickness and other emergencies that cause you to miss a meeting. That’s understandable.

However, when attendance is poor, the trust factor begins to deteriorate. The missing member will seem unreliable and will lose credibility. Fellow members may wonder...

· “Where is she?”

· “Is this how he runs his business?” 

· “Will she show up for my client or send someone else?”

· “I manage to get to the meetings on time, why can’t he?”

· “We must not be very important to her.”

· “Is there something wrong? What’s going on?”

As for profitability, empty chairs can’t give or receive referrals and there is always one of your competitors in the wings ready to take your business.

3 Steps to Giving More Referrals

Giving and receiving are just two sides of the same coin. 

You can’t have one without the other.  

- Bob Burg, author of Endless Referrals

You may have joined a business networking group to get referrals, but in order to garner the respect of the members in your group, you will need to also give referrals.  It’s a hard truth, but without giving, your relationships within your group will eventually deteriorate and your well of referral sources will dry up.

When one understands that GIVING referrals is just as important as GETTING referrals, the next question is, “How do I give more referrals?” 

3 Basic Principles to Giving More Referrals:

1. Have a Referral Mindset.

Ask, “Who can I help or refer through-out the week?”  Think about it. Have your club members business cards close-by. Listen for opportunities to refer someone. Think about what needs you might have at home or in your business. Do you use pest control, need an attorney or want a new fence? Give your referral group member an opportunity to help you before you call someone else.

2. Know what to say.  Good phrases are:

"I know someone who can get that done.”

“Would you like me to recommend someone?”

“I have guy who does that.”

“Would it be okay if they called you?”

“I can get you in touch with the company I use, they do a good job for me.”

3. Understand that most people WANT a referral.

Research has proven that people would rather use someone referred to them than use a complete stranger or a company that they don’t know.

They will not only welcome the referral but oftentimes, they will come back to you again when they need another one.

Visit: www.GoldStarDirectors.com to find out how to start your own business networking referral group. 

Great Questions to Ask While Networking

Have you ever noticed that no one ever hangs up the phone when they are doing the talking? Think about it.

When getting to know someone new, the worst thing you can do is most of the talking.

But what do you say after you exchange names and shake hands? How do you get them talking? If you’re at a networking event, after you shake hands, the first question may be, “What do you do?” 

And then after that, how do you keep the conversation going? Here are some great questions to ask a business person that you've just met or to ask new acquaintances at a networking event. These questions will help you keep a conversation going and perhaps, even open up the possibility of a future referral relationship.

GREAT QUESTIONS TO ASK:

1. “What kind of trends are you seeing in your industry this year?
2.  “May I ask, how did you get into the _______ business?”
3. “Are you doing much on Facebook? What do you find is working?”
4. “Are you networking for a specific reason today?”
5. “What’s your favorite client to work with?”
6. “Have you seen a lot of changes take place in your industry over the past couple of years?”
7. “So, tell me some stories. What’s been happening in your business lately?”
8. “What do you like best about being a ___________.?”
9. “If I were to look for someone in your business, what are the key things I should look for?”
10. “How are you different from your competition?”

AND FINALLY,

The most important questions to ask are:

 “How can I know if someone is a good prospect for you?”

“And what would you like me to say to them when I find them?”