Thanks Millard, the undisputed secret, out in the open.
 

The SECRET, espoused by every known marketing guru ever...is REFERRALS.

J. Abe. called them hidden assets. D. Kenn. had them as secrets, etc., etc., etc., etc., and on and on and on.

Your SATISFIED customers are the absolute, no argument, hands down, undisputed BEST source of new business.

I'm glad you share that. One note, and this goes back some time when Bob Blagg was writing his JUST ONE IDEA report, I encouraged him to include the exact example, and he did. Sales letters, all the things he would send out to prospects.

We may KNOW that referrals contain a big solution for new business, THE HOW TO GET THEM, and the ways and means, including letters, emails, scripts, etc. would fetch some nice coin in the market.

HOW do I ask my customers for referrals, how to do it in such a way that makes it comfortable, easy, and non threatening?

And I believe this will be an Evergreen product for as long as ever is green.

Thanks for sharing.

Gordon



In answer to your question on having to get gigs fast....

First, I'd contact everyone I did a show for and ask for referrals, giving them a FREE show for every referral that turned into a show. This isn't a risk for me because I know that every show I perform turns into at LEAST 4 other shows throughout the year.

Second, if I have to use social media, I would use copy that sold my shows and see if I could book some shows that way.

Thirdly, still using social media, I would offer a FREE show, with directions to contact me for information. I would make sure that the school getting the FREE show would allow me to mail a snail mail letter to all their friends at other schools AFTER I gave them a great show. :)

I may have mentioned this before, I did the exact thing with a pre-school director and booked an ENTIRE summer of shows this way.

No reason that a variation of this couldn't work today.

Perhaps someone could offer to do a FREE analysis of a business and then ask for 3 referrals. I seem to remember Paddi Lund, the highly successful Australian dentist, asked for 3 referrals BEFORE he actually started work on a patient.[/quote]

Re: Secrets. Ready to spill my guts, clean up on Aisle Gordo
 

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#1 Best Selling GirlScout Gave a Speech At Million Dollar Realtor RoundTable
 

Thanks Gordon,

This Little Girl KNOWS what you are Talking about.

She Bought a Tractor Trailer load of Girl Scout Cookies to an Event where she KNEW several 100 Millionaires would gather.

Personally Put a CASE of Cookies under each affluent Realtors Chair.

Then Said, "Since each of you is a Millionaire. And You WANT to help Young People like myself succeed. I've placed a Case of Girl Scout Cookies under Your Chair. I will Now Walk thru The Audience and Collect a 100.00 bill from each of you."

AND
She
Got a Standing ovation.

Sales people APPRECIATE Guts!

Thanks,
Glenn

Jay Abraham and Referrals
 

[/quote]

Thanks Gordon for the kind words.

Most of us who've been around awhile, remember Jay Abraham offering to work for free as long as he got a tremendous referral after a job well done. (BTW, if anyone has a copy of that ad or knows where it is located, I'd sure like to look at it again.)

Jay sent out a very colorful folder out to his list (I have still got it) that proclaimed that if you took Jay's advice you could make money from virtually any business in town. This folder, along with it's contents was very pricey to make... and sold a very expensive seminar... I think this was the $15,000 seminar Jay produced.

In any case, I have always liked the idea of doing something very impactful for free or a very low cost to get people interested in my offer.

There has got to be a way that a person could do this in person. I realize that Jay created his little "Billion Dollar Man" booklet as a substitute for a business card, and Glenn Osborn had his newsletter that helped book clients from an Abraham seminar in the back of the room.

I would think the idea that I mentioned in another post about a "Hotsheet" per Gordon would be the ticket.... Now, just need to figure out what to put on it that gets potential clients excited enough to give me a call.

What might work is some great information with a link to a page that offers a free report as long as they give their email address. HOWEVER, I don't want the slop and mess....so.... offering a free analysis or consult with NO strings (I just tell them what should be done... not how to do it) is probably the right call.

Just put my number, since I will limit who gets this by the fact I am giving it away personally.