The Typical Customer Approach

Typically, most businesses directly pursue the "end users" of their products and services. The typical game is to: a) acquire new customers directly (through telemarketing, direct mail and advertising, usually offering some introductory program), b) maintain existing customers directly (through frequent-buyer programs, or special promotional and invitational offerings, or price discounting, etc.), and c) re-acquire any lost or discouraged customers directly (again through some promotional offering).

However, direct approaches alone may not work as well in today’s "high tech" world where there is great accessibility to many vendors, and the ability to switch vendors is usually easy. Some new approaches need to be considered that create stronger connections between your company and its customers, based on indirect relationships, like cultivating referral sources and making the most of "word of mouth" advertising. It’s not only what your company offers, but also who you know, that can lead you to business opportunities and maintain close ties to paying customers. Gaining customers indirectly, through referrals and other connections, usually works to build closer bonds between you and your end users which are harder to break than if you acquired those customers directly.

New Customer Approaches

One office supply company realized that its most successful sales people continually obtained customer leads through venture capitalists and other service professionals who referred them on to their new business start-ups and business expansion clients.

Understanding this, the company then developed an indirect lead-generating program that got all its sales force to pursue quality referral sources that could connect those sales people to start-ups and expanding companies. This company also went so far as to have a "stay in touch" program for those intermediaries.

Here are some other ways to acquire, maintain and re-acquire referral sources for your business:

1. Write and publish articles in the journals and magazines that your referral sources read. Publishing generates much credibility and attention for you and your company, especially if you actively send those articles, after publication, to your intermediaries (as well as to your prospective and existing customers).
2. Speak at relevant trade, professional or non-profit association where your referral sources participate. Speak on topics that are relevant not only to your industry but also to your referral sources. This can keep you "top of mind" as business opportunities present themselves to your intermediaries.
3. Look for strategic partnering possibilities that can generate cross-referrals (where you and another company regularly send each other referrals because your product/service offerings and work style complement each other). One financial planning firm selectively developed relationships with a couple of accounting firms so that business would flow both ways, which it did.
4. Take on a leadership position in your trade or professional association, and then contribute to its success. There is an old motto that says "givers gain." So by contributing to others in an association and gaining their trust, you can gain in the long run by other members noticing you and your good work, and then possibly referring you to their own prospects or clients.
5. Sort your referral sources and personal connections into "A-B-C" categories, just as you might with your customers. Have a regular program to stay in touch with the "A’s and B’s" and decide which few of the "C’s" would be most worthwhile to continue pursuing.
6. Perform a short survey or research project that asks your referral sources for their opinions on important questions or issues in their industry. Provide the results to all those that participated, again positioning yourself as a knowledgeable and credible expert in the industry.
7. Comb through your customer files and your personal phone books for people who have referred business to you in the past. Reconnect with them in ways that would be mutually interesting and beneficial. (You can ask them what kind of new business they are looking for, or how you can help them in their own business pursuits. More often than not, the generous ones will offer the same in return for you.)
8. Bring your expertise to colleges, universities or trade schools where there would be intermediaries who, seeing how capable and giving you are, can connect you with potential customers who could use your expertise.
9. Network, network, network with people who can lead you to other intermediaries and quality opportunities. Join useful leads groups that already have credible and capable participants attending. Also, if you enter these situations with the attitude of how you can best help them, then they will possibly do the same for you if and when asked.

If you learn to develop and maintain your referral sources and connections, in similar ways that you would your direct customers, then you will always be on the top of people’s minds when business opportunities come by. This is not a guarantee for success, yet it certainly slants the probabilities more in your favor.


Harvy Simkovits, CMC, President of Business Wisdom, works with owner managed companies to help them grow, prosper and continue on by offering innovative approaches to business development, company management, organization leadership and learning, and management education. He can be reached at 781-862-3983 or .