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The Secret Ingredients Collection
The No Fuss Recipe for
Hot Referral Leads
Hot Referral Leads
Get your revenue cooking with the ultimate B2B referral program
Table of contents
Introduction 3
Getting started 5
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients 7
Joanne Blackrsquos Secret Ingredient 9
Matt Heinzlsquos Secret Ingredient 14
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools 15
Jill Rowleyrsquos Secret Ingredient 18
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen 19
Trish Bertuzzirsquos Secret Ingredient 21
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient - your advocates 22
Jim Keenanrsquos Secret Ingredient 23
Now yoursquore cooking 24
Referrals shorten sales cycles reduce customer acquisition costs increase deal sizes and attract more loyal customers
This is why itrsquos so surprising that the vast majority of B2B companies donrsquot have a good system in place to consistently generate qualified referral leads from their customers partners investors and other fans
You can grow a business without a referral program in place but like bread without yeast your organization wonrsquot rise to same heights as companies that have made referrals a critical component of their sales marketing and customer success strategies
Not all referral programs are created equal however Without the right ingredients or if you donrsquot pay enough attention to how theyrsquore mixed together and served to your customers you may risk leaving an awful taste in their mouths -- one theyrsquore not likely to forget
This recipe book is designed to help B2B sales marketing and customer success
Introduction
What is a referralSimply put a referral is a lead passed to your company through an existing relationship Itrsquos more than contact information The signature of a solid referral is that someone is willing to put their reputation on the line for the warm introduction or hot lead theyrsquove provided Referrals come in many forms but the most valuable are those passed to you from happy customers partners and employees
3
professionals work together to whip up a referral program that results in happier more engaged customers and a surge in revenue influenced by your companyrsquos biggest fans
After all whether you call them happy customers promoters referrers or advocates like we do these people are the key ingredient in this referral recipe
2xMORE
RESPONSIVE
83percent
29percent
16HIGHER
83 of satisfied customers are willing to refer services to friends colleagues and
industry peers Yet on average only 29 do
ndash Advisor Impact
Peer-recommended leads are 25x more responsive than leads
generated by any other marketing channel
ndash American Marketing Association
A referred customer has a 16 higher customer
lifetime value
ndash Journal of Marketing
Did you know
4
You can follow this recipe book to the letter or add in a dash of your own ingredients here and there along the way to spice things up Either way your companyrsquos bottom line will benefit from these best practices as well as the secret ingredients shared by Jill Rowley Joanne Black Matt Heinz Trish Bertuzzi Jim Keenan and more
Most referral programs at B2B companies today donrsquot amount to much more than keeping your fingers crossed and wishing hoping and praying that one of your customers will recommend you out of the blue to someone in their network (In fact the term lsquobluebirdrsquo in sales refers to an opportunity or actual sale that presents itself to a salesperson without any direct sales effort)
Getting started
Influitiversquos referral program
You wouldnrsquot treat any other critical area of your business this way so why take such a passive stance on referrals
5
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Table of contents
Introduction 3
Getting started 5
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients 7
Joanne Blackrsquos Secret Ingredient 9
Matt Heinzlsquos Secret Ingredient 14
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools 15
Jill Rowleyrsquos Secret Ingredient 18
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen 19
Trish Bertuzzirsquos Secret Ingredient 21
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient - your advocates 22
Jim Keenanrsquos Secret Ingredient 23
Now yoursquore cooking 24
Referrals shorten sales cycles reduce customer acquisition costs increase deal sizes and attract more loyal customers
This is why itrsquos so surprising that the vast majority of B2B companies donrsquot have a good system in place to consistently generate qualified referral leads from their customers partners investors and other fans
You can grow a business without a referral program in place but like bread without yeast your organization wonrsquot rise to same heights as companies that have made referrals a critical component of their sales marketing and customer success strategies
Not all referral programs are created equal however Without the right ingredients or if you donrsquot pay enough attention to how theyrsquore mixed together and served to your customers you may risk leaving an awful taste in their mouths -- one theyrsquore not likely to forget
This recipe book is designed to help B2B sales marketing and customer success
Introduction
What is a referralSimply put a referral is a lead passed to your company through an existing relationship Itrsquos more than contact information The signature of a solid referral is that someone is willing to put their reputation on the line for the warm introduction or hot lead theyrsquove provided Referrals come in many forms but the most valuable are those passed to you from happy customers partners and employees
3
professionals work together to whip up a referral program that results in happier more engaged customers and a surge in revenue influenced by your companyrsquos biggest fans
After all whether you call them happy customers promoters referrers or advocates like we do these people are the key ingredient in this referral recipe
2xMORE
RESPONSIVE
83percent
29percent
16HIGHER
83 of satisfied customers are willing to refer services to friends colleagues and
industry peers Yet on average only 29 do
ndash Advisor Impact
Peer-recommended leads are 25x more responsive than leads
generated by any other marketing channel
ndash American Marketing Association
A referred customer has a 16 higher customer
lifetime value
ndash Journal of Marketing
Did you know
4
You can follow this recipe book to the letter or add in a dash of your own ingredients here and there along the way to spice things up Either way your companyrsquos bottom line will benefit from these best practices as well as the secret ingredients shared by Jill Rowley Joanne Black Matt Heinz Trish Bertuzzi Jim Keenan and more
Most referral programs at B2B companies today donrsquot amount to much more than keeping your fingers crossed and wishing hoping and praying that one of your customers will recommend you out of the blue to someone in their network (In fact the term lsquobluebirdrsquo in sales refers to an opportunity or actual sale that presents itself to a salesperson without any direct sales effort)
Getting started
Influitiversquos referral program
You wouldnrsquot treat any other critical area of your business this way so why take such a passive stance on referrals
5
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Referrals shorten sales cycles reduce customer acquisition costs increase deal sizes and attract more loyal customers
This is why itrsquos so surprising that the vast majority of B2B companies donrsquot have a good system in place to consistently generate qualified referral leads from their customers partners investors and other fans
You can grow a business without a referral program in place but like bread without yeast your organization wonrsquot rise to same heights as companies that have made referrals a critical component of their sales marketing and customer success strategies
Not all referral programs are created equal however Without the right ingredients or if you donrsquot pay enough attention to how theyrsquore mixed together and served to your customers you may risk leaving an awful taste in their mouths -- one theyrsquore not likely to forget
This recipe book is designed to help B2B sales marketing and customer success
Introduction
What is a referralSimply put a referral is a lead passed to your company through an existing relationship Itrsquos more than contact information The signature of a solid referral is that someone is willing to put their reputation on the line for the warm introduction or hot lead theyrsquove provided Referrals come in many forms but the most valuable are those passed to you from happy customers partners and employees
3
professionals work together to whip up a referral program that results in happier more engaged customers and a surge in revenue influenced by your companyrsquos biggest fans
After all whether you call them happy customers promoters referrers or advocates like we do these people are the key ingredient in this referral recipe
2xMORE
RESPONSIVE
83percent
29percent
16HIGHER
83 of satisfied customers are willing to refer services to friends colleagues and
industry peers Yet on average only 29 do
ndash Advisor Impact
Peer-recommended leads are 25x more responsive than leads
generated by any other marketing channel
ndash American Marketing Association
A referred customer has a 16 higher customer
lifetime value
ndash Journal of Marketing
Did you know
4
You can follow this recipe book to the letter or add in a dash of your own ingredients here and there along the way to spice things up Either way your companyrsquos bottom line will benefit from these best practices as well as the secret ingredients shared by Jill Rowley Joanne Black Matt Heinz Trish Bertuzzi Jim Keenan and more
Most referral programs at B2B companies today donrsquot amount to much more than keeping your fingers crossed and wishing hoping and praying that one of your customers will recommend you out of the blue to someone in their network (In fact the term lsquobluebirdrsquo in sales refers to an opportunity or actual sale that presents itself to a salesperson without any direct sales effort)
Getting started
Influitiversquos referral program
You wouldnrsquot treat any other critical area of your business this way so why take such a passive stance on referrals
5
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
professionals work together to whip up a referral program that results in happier more engaged customers and a surge in revenue influenced by your companyrsquos biggest fans
After all whether you call them happy customers promoters referrers or advocates like we do these people are the key ingredient in this referral recipe
2xMORE
RESPONSIVE
83percent
29percent
16HIGHER
83 of satisfied customers are willing to refer services to friends colleagues and
industry peers Yet on average only 29 do
ndash Advisor Impact
Peer-recommended leads are 25x more responsive than leads
generated by any other marketing channel
ndash American Marketing Association
A referred customer has a 16 higher customer
lifetime value
ndash Journal of Marketing
Did you know
4
You can follow this recipe book to the letter or add in a dash of your own ingredients here and there along the way to spice things up Either way your companyrsquos bottom line will benefit from these best practices as well as the secret ingredients shared by Jill Rowley Joanne Black Matt Heinz Trish Bertuzzi Jim Keenan and more
Most referral programs at B2B companies today donrsquot amount to much more than keeping your fingers crossed and wishing hoping and praying that one of your customers will recommend you out of the blue to someone in their network (In fact the term lsquobluebirdrsquo in sales refers to an opportunity or actual sale that presents itself to a salesperson without any direct sales effort)
Getting started
Influitiversquos referral program
You wouldnrsquot treat any other critical area of your business this way so why take such a passive stance on referrals
5
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Most referral programs at B2B companies today donrsquot amount to much more than keeping your fingers crossed and wishing hoping and praying that one of your customers will recommend you out of the blue to someone in their network (In fact the term lsquobluebirdrsquo in sales refers to an opportunity or actual sale that presents itself to a salesperson without any direct sales effort)
Getting started
Influitiversquos referral program
You wouldnrsquot treat any other critical area of your business this way so why take such a passive stance on referrals
5
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
If you have the sudden urge to email every last one of your customers to ask them to refer you to everyone in their contact list just take a few deep breaths and hold on Thatrsquos not the way to go about it
Your customers are used to asking you for favors not the other way around and requesting a referral is a big one
Yoursquoll have to do a bit of preparation to build toward an ask like this
6
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
As with any recipe if you donrsquot have the the right ingredients from the outset your referrals program will come out all wrong Some are more important than others (yoursquoll notice that strong relationships are 1 on the list and raving fans are a ldquokey ingredientrdquo) but when you have all five you know yoursquore cooking
Step 1 Take stock of your ingredients
Ingredients
- Strong relationships
- Simple easy and fun advocate experience
- Clear communication that sets expectations
- Recognition and rewards
KEY INGREDIENT- Raving fans evangelists and advocates
7
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Strong relationshipsReferrals are all about relationships People give us referrals because they like and trust us According to referral sales expert Joanne Black the most successful referral programs are based on strong relationships particularly with our current and former clients who know first-hand the value we can provide
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo she says ldquoStart by reaching out to current clients especially if you havenrsquot talked to them in a while Itrsquos amazing what happens when you start to have those conversationsrdquo
ldquoSome companies donrsquot even touch their clients except through technologyrdquo ndash Joanne Black Founder of No More Cold Calling
When that relationship is established your customer can be confident that everything is up-to-date and yoursquore providing value to them Then all you have to do is ask Simple as pie
ldquoAll we had to do to get customer referrals was (1) ask customers and (2) make it easy for themrdquo says Bo Bandy Marketing Communications Manager at ReadyTalk ldquoThey want to share the awesome experience that theyrsquove had with ReadyTalkrdquo
In the first 10 weeks of ReadyTalkrsquos advocate marketing program Bo was able to generate 183 referrals from the companyrsquos advocates Five of those become sales-qualified opportunities and two actually closed ndash in record time compared to most of ReadyTalkrsquos sales opportunities
INGREDIENT
8
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
TWEET THIS We need to tweet less and talk more to the customers and contacts who really matter
Joanne BlackFounder of No More Cold Calling
Author of Pick Up the Damn Phone How People Not Technology Seal the Deal
SECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the dealSECRET INGREDIENT Relationships seal the deal
Itrsquos easy to get enamored with and distracted by technology But the personal touch is the best deal maker that exists The digital world as great as it is threatens personal connections Email texting social networking ndash these certainly have a place in business today but none of them replaces the power of a personal connection Itrsquos not technology but rather the person using the technology that sets you apart from your competitors Your customers want to do business with you not with your keyboard
When you see TWEET THIS click the Twitter icon to share the quote with your followers
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Simple easy and fun advocate experienceGetting your advocates to refer new business to you should not be an arduous process for you or your customers Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle says the first step she recommends for building a great referral program is to make it easy fun and collaborative to participate
ldquoLook at where you may have other potential customers in the groups and associations that your current customers belong to and then make it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo she says
ldquoMake it easy for customers to invite people in their network to learn about your solutionrdquo ndash Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist at Oracle
ldquoWhen you do that you make it easy fun and collaborative - meaning that you do it together rather than sending them off to do it on their own without any input or help from yourdquo
A positive advocate experience means that your customers will actually be happy to refer you because theyrsquore not only helping you but also someone they know with a challenge they have in their business
INGREDIENT
10
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Clear communication that sets expectationsDonrsquot scare off your advocates before they refer a single lead to you by leaving too much to their imagination At the outset make it clear to your customers and other potential referrers
- Who they should refer
- How your referral process works
- The status of their previous referrals and next steps
- What they can expect in terms of recognition or rewards
When you do this they will be confident that they are sending you the right people Yoursquoll help them look smart while ensuring only high-quality leads are referred to you
INGREDIENT
Tell your advocates who your ideal customer isInvest some time in educating your advocates about what an ideal customer looks like and why ldquoThe best thing you can do is share with people what yoursquore looking forrdquo says Jim Keenan President and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc ldquoLet them know the type of person or company you want them to refer you to ndash you have to do the work for themrdquo
11
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Recognition and rewardsShould you or shouldnrsquot you reward customers partners and other fans for referrals Itrsquos a hotly debated issue On the one hand why would anyone refer a customer to you if therersquos nothing in it for them
At the same time however you donrsquot want people dumping a bunch of bad leads into your funnel just to cash in on the rewards
ldquoThere are certain people who will start referring their aunts cousins uncles and the guy next door to you if they want something badly enough and itrsquos easy enough to attainrdquo says Liz Richardson Social Media Marketing Manager at Bomgar who manages the companyrsquos advocate marketing program ldquoWe want to reward long-term interaction with us much more than a three-day sprintrdquo
Therersquos no such thing as a one-size-fits-all rewards model for B2B referral programs ndash your best bet is to provide rewards that resonate with the customer or other advocate who provided the referral This means yoursquoll have to be flexible in terms of the rewards perks or prizes that you offer
INGREDIENT
12
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Raving fans evangelists and advocatesAsk anyone including the sales and marketing experts featured in this recipe book why their customers refer new business to them and chances are theyrsquoll tell you itrsquos because they provide exceptional products services and customer support
These are the three primary ways B2B companies typically create promoters evangelists and advocates who are willing to contribute to content present at an event speak to analysts or media provide customer references and of course give referrals
In fact Jill Rowley says she treats everyone that she works with as a potential future advocate ldquoI have eliminated the word lsquoprospectrsquo from my vocabularyrdquo she says ldquoIrsquom always thinking about how I can make them so successful that they become an advocate of my product of my company and of me Jill Rowleyrdquo
Donrsquot overlook non-customer referralsReferrals from delighted customers are often the highest-
converting leads (at Influitive they convert at a rate 854 higher
than all other leads) but solid referrals can come from many
other sources as well Employees partners and investors are also
passionate and knowledgeable about your company and have a
strong interest in helping your company succeed
KEY INGREDIENT
13
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
TWEET THIS Make your customers look good by providing immediate value to the person they referred you to
Matt HeinzPresident of Heinz Marketing
SECRET INGREDIENT Adding value
When I get a referral my job is to establish rapport provide value and build business with the person whorsquos been referred by sharing as much insight as I can right away People should know that if they bring their referrals to us theyrsquore going to get value no matter what
Mattrsquos referrals rockstar Oracle EloquaPeople like Jill Rowley and others in the Oracle sales organization do a nice job of building value Before they ask for introductions they tell me how to make a referral what theyrsquore looking for and what problems we can solve Once I make the referral I know therersquos value there
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
While strong one-on-one relationships with customers are undoubtedly a key ingredient to a successful referrals program they donrsquot scale very well ndash and thatrsquos often where B2B companies struggle to take their referral programs from a trickle to a landslide
The following tools provide a better more productive experience for both you and your customers which will encourage them to refer you business more than once
Step 2 Equip yourself with the right tools
Tools
- Email nurturing
- Referral page
- Social media integration
- CRM integration (eg Salesforce)
15
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Referral pageThe easier you make it for your customers to provide referrals the better They shouldnrsquot have to wonder who to send their referrals to what yoursquoll do with their contactrsquos information and what happens next after theyrsquove submitted a referral
Create a simple but informative referrals page that describes the process step by step and answers any frequently asked questions your customers may have about submitting referrals Some advocate marketing or referral management platforms already have this so all you have to do is customize the text
Social integrationYour next customer is likely hiding in the professional network of a current customer so therersquos no better place to look than LinkedIn
Allowing people to connect to their LinkedIn accounts on your referrals page can remind them who in their network might be a good fit to work with you increase the likelihood that theyrsquoll submit a referral and also boost the volume of referrals they submit overall
16
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
CRM integrationUse your customer relationship management software such as Salesforce or Sugar CRM to track the progress of your referrals through your sales pipeline and eventually attribute revenue to each referral (or even each advocate)
Ideally your CRM should integrate with your referral or advocate marketing platform so your advocates can
- Send referrals directly to you and into the CRM at the same time
- Get recognized or rewarded for their referrals
- See the progress of their referrals on the referrals page
Email nurturingKeeping your advocates continually engaged with easily digestible bits and bites of information ndash industry resources and best practices success stories the status of the referrals theyrsquove sent you company news or other ways they can help you achieve your goals for example ndash will keep you top of mind (even when you and your customers are too busy to meet for lunch)
17
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
TWEET THIS My secret ingredient to referral success is to always be providing my customers with useful quality content
Jill RowleySocial Selling Evangelist at Oracle
SECRET INGREDIENT Content
I share content that helps my customers get smarter improve their teams or understand how other customers have tackled certain issues Not only do I use content as my currency before during and after a customer signs but I use my network extensively to connect my customers to other customers and partners who could add value
Jillrsquos referrals rockstar DocuSignDocuSign does a great job encouraging their customers and employees to submit referral business The whole company works together to focus on their customers and make them successful resulting in more referrals
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Too often at B2B companies everybody ldquoownsrdquo referrals In reality that means nobody owns them and no one is motivated to set goals work to meet them and develop cross-functional strategies and processes to generate more referral leads
To make your referral program work yoursquoll need three types of cooks in the kitchen an executive chef a sous-chef and a handful of line cooks
Step 3 Get some cooks into the kitchen
Cooks
- Executive chef (CMO)
- Sous-chef (program manager)
- Line cooks (departmental allies)
19
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Executive chef (CMO)In an age of social connectivity when so much of the B2B buying process is conducted as recommendations reviews and references between trusted peers ndash well before buyers engage with sales ndash itrsquos more critical than ever that CMOs and other marketing leaders develop scalable advocacy programs including referral programs Thatrsquos why the directive for your referral program has to come directly from the C-suite (usually the CMO) and trickle across down and throughout the organization to be successful
Sous-chef (program manager)Taking direction from the executive chef the program manager handles the day-to-day strategy and execution of the program and acts as a central point of contact for departmental allies The referral program manager will most often be a customer marketer community manager or advocate marketer but they can also come from outside the marketing department working in sales or customer success for example
Line cooks (departmental allies)A referral program is more like a seven-course meal than a batch of cookies which means it needs more than one cook in the kitchen to be successful Departmental allies from sales customer success and product management are key to connecting your referral program manager to customers and other advocates as they come into contact and have relationships with your company
Ideally one member from each relevant department will act as a referral program liaison collaborating with the program manager on a regular basis to generate referrals and track them as they move through the sales funnel
20
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
TWEET THIS If you want more referrals the remedy is simple step up and ask
Trish BertuzziPresident and Chief Strategist of The Bridge Group
SECRET INGREDIENT The ask
Most businesses donrsquot have referral programs because everyonersquos uncomfortable asking for referrals That makes the remedy simplehellipif you donrsquot ask you donrsquot get so step up and ask
Trishrsquos advice for sales leaders Reward for referralsIt would be interesting if a sales leader said to his or her team lsquoWersquore going to have a six-month contest and the person who brings in the most qualified leads from referrals winsrsquo
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
For most recipes the order in which you prepare mix and then cook the ingredients can affect both the taste and texture of the food When you choose the highest quality ingredients prepare them carefully and in the right order your dish should be delicious
The same goes for referral programs and in particular the customers partners and other fans that you choose to ask for referrals You canrsquot just throw your most important ingredients in some flames and hope theyrsquoll cook to perfection It doesnrsquot work that way
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo says Matt Heinz President of Heinz Marketing ldquoLook for indicators suggesting that someone is having a positive experience with your product or companyrdquo
ldquoTiming is important if you want to get a positive responserdquo ndash Matt Heinz President of Heinz
Marketing
From there yoursquoll want to start with smaller ldquoasksrdquo such as sharing content on social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn reading and commenting on a recent blog post or providing feedback on your product
These relatively easy activities effectively tenderize your fans developing advocacy behavior and habits along the way and warming them up for larger favors such as product reviews reference calls and of course referrals
Step 4 Prep your most important ingredient ndash your advocates
22
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
TWEET THIS Giving referrals is a very personal thing thatrsquos steeped in emotion
Jim KeenanPresident and CEO of A Sales Guy Inc
SECRET INGREDIENT Emotions
Therersquos a psychological underpinning to the whole idea of referrals The one company that Irsquove ever seen be successful at generating referrals also did everything they could to delight their customers not only on projects but also on a personal level When you delight your customers yoursquore creating an attachment that increases the possibility theyrsquoll want to give you a referral
Keenanrsquos recommended reading on referralsGive and Take A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam M Grant
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Like any other critical business process building a world-class customer referral program requires careful thought planning and organization ndash the right mix of ingredients so to speak But that doesnrsquot mean itrsquos hard to do or that it should take very long to implement
Take this recipe book and the ideas presented here to get started today Make it a priority to generate more high-quality leads from your existing customers ndash they convert faster cost less and have a much higher customer lifetime value than any other type of lead
As a result your sales team will never go hungry again and your business will be nourished with the most delicious dish of all revenue
Now yoursquore cooking
24
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
Your customers love youHelp them share it with the world
Influitiversquos AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts
With AdvocateHub B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers fans and evangelists can complete ldquochallengesrdquo like referrals reference calls or product reviews
Visit influitivecom to learn more
Influitive Referrals
See Demo
SHARE THIS
Copyright copy 2014 Influitive Corporation
![0920 Fuss-Symposium Kopie.ppt [Kompatibilitätsmodus]](https://img.pdfslide.net/doc/110x75/6254e99a12c04a1d10515b28/0920-fuss-symposium-kopieppt-kompatibilittsmodus.jpg)
