Mastering the Art of Referrals

Thanks to social media, referrals have almost become a negative concept. We've all received that spammy message from a network marketer asking us to help them hit their goals by sharing a super spammy post on our wall and tagging them. I get at least 5 of these a day, so I get it. Now, I'm not hating on asking people to post for you, I'm hating on the method at which it's taught. Let's dive in

From customers: 

This is the type of referral program that we all grew up with and it's grossly underutilized today. 

Customer buys product, customer uses product, customer refers someone else to use product. The missing step to this is the ask. Yes, it's awesome to get a referral without asking, but usually that doesn't happen. It's ok to ask! Below is a script I use to ask current customers for referrals. 

Hey Jen, I know you've been loving (product). Do you know anyone who also has trouble (pain point that product fixes)? I'd love to offer them (sale or discount of product) since they're a friend of yours. 

This particular referral program is not the one we're talking about today, but I figured I'd touch on it because it definitely still works. 

Social media referrals: 

This is a trend that really came on the scene heavily in the last 5-8 years. I personally learned this back in 2016 when I was heavy in my network marketing company, and it allowed me to enroll an extra 60-70 customers per month. Admittedly, it was pretty awesome. Then came in saturation and the spam tactics. 

The basis of this referral program is you offer your audience something in return for them posting about your product on their social media and tagging you. It works really well when done correctly. Here are a couple do's and don'ts. 

Don't: Cold message

Don't reach out to someone you've never talked to and ask them to post for you to help you reach your goal. It's super spammy and you come across thirsty. Remember, always lead with value, and no, telling someone they have  a 1 in 4000 chance to win a drawing isn't leading with value. 

Don't: Go in blindly

Check their page first. If someone has a large following and clearly does brand deals, don't message then asking then to post for you essentially for free. It's insulting. They get paid big bucks to post on behalf of brands and promote other people's products to their audience. It's rude to expect them to post for you for free unless you've built a relationship with them first. If the relationship is established, there's no harm in asking, but more than likely you'll still get a no, or you'll get a media kit in return asking which option you'd like to pay for because that's part of the way that they pay their bills. 

Don't: Make it all about you

For the love of God, don't message someone telling them all the reasons they should post for you because you need to make more money in your business. Here are 3 messages I received in the last 24 hours that just make me cringe. 

Message #1 Hey Tonya! Can I ask you a huge favor?! ♥️
How would you feel about me giving you a post to put up on your page and tag me in it for referrals? I’m pushing for a huge promotion this month and it would be SO appreciated!

Message #2 I hope you don’t mind me asking but I wanted to see if you would mind supporting me by throwing a post up on your wall!

As a thank you, I will be adding you into my $200 CASH draw this month!

All you have to do is copy and paste the status to your wall.

Can I send the post ?

Message #3 Hey would you like to help me with my business by just posting a status that I send you and in return I will be adding you in our giveaway

These are 3 messages I got from three different people that I have never spoken with before; I had no idea who they were. Notice a recurring theme? It's all about them. I'm pushing for a huge promotion, would you mind supporting me, would you like to help me in my business. Here's how this type of message comes across:

Hey Tonya, 

I'm really struggling in my business. I don't know how to market my products and my warm market has dried up, can you please help me? I see that you have a large following and I would like to piggy back off of your success, but I don't want to invest any money in my business, so I'm mass messaging everyone on my list asking them to post for me in hopes that I can get a couple sales. 

Not very effective is it? 

Do- Have them raise their hand

The most effective way to get referral posts is by having people come to you. Post a giveaway on your page, and let people offer to post in exchange for an entry. If they come to you, they're more likely to put a post up. The giveaway could be as simple as a free product, an amazon giftcard, or a free coaching session. If you try this without success, don't be discouraged. You'll need to have a strong brand if you want people to raise their hand. You can learn the ins and outs of branding here. Without a strong brand, you'll be spending hours sending spammy messages like the ones above. 

Do- Lead with value

The one time it's ok to ask someone if they'd like to enter your drawing or post a referral post for you is after you've added value to them. This could be by giving them a digital freebie or a free training of some sort. Giving them a value piece doesn't entitle you to them posting for you, but it does open the door for you to ask. 

Don't- be spammy

Before and after photos plastered with company names or too good to be true results, product pics (mlm products), and long ingredient lists are a no-no. 

Don't- add them all to your page. 

Make sure you have your settings on Facebook set to where tags don't show up on your profile. When I first learned the referral technique, I didn't know this, and I ended up with over 25 "ads" on my page that were all identical... it was super embarrassing, but lesson learned. You can change this on Facebook by going to settings - profile settings - profile and tagging - then make sure both questions under reviewing are turned on. 

Do- be unique

Don't post what everyone is posting. My recommendation? Have your audience post an ad for your lead magnet instead of an ad asking people to buy. I've been using this method to build my email list and then on the back end is where I do my selling. This has increased my income while decreasing the time I spend working. It's awesome! Click here to learn how to set up and nurture an email list. 

Referral posts are amazing, but they also give you, your company, and your brand a bad name when done poorly. Keep it professional, add value to your community, and have fun watching the referrals roll in! If you're not sure how to set up lead magnets, check out the BossMom Creator Course. I'd only suggest getting this if you want to grow a massive email list and make massive sales, so it may not be for everyone and that’s ok. If you're working more of a hobby right now, go ahead and skip this part. If you're looking to scale your business, I'll see you inside the club. Happy Thursday!