If you want more clients, you’ll find that building referral partner relationships can be the key to making that happen. After all, referrals are the best prospects you could possibly get. So why not get more of them.

Here are 7 key steps that help you build referral partner relationships:

1) Know your ideal clients and customers

Before you can even begin the process, you need to know what exactly you’re looking for. In order to help them find ideal clients for you, you need to know yourself who your ideal clients are. So do some work exploring who you like to work with and why, and put it into words.

2) Develop an Audio Logo

Sometimes known as an elevator speech, an audio logo captures in a few seconds who you are, who your ideal clients are, and what you do for them. It makes you stand out and memorable, and it helps your potential clients (or those who know them) figure out instantly if you’re a good fit for them.

3) Identify potential referral partners

Identify who would be good potential referral partners for you. They need to fit certain criteria, and the most important among those is that they have to have regular access to your ideal clients.

4) Make contact

Once you have identified potential referral partners, make contact. Get to know them, find out as much about them as possible and develop a relationship with them.

5) Development and training

Once you have decided to work with someone, it’s time to get more specific. Help them help you by providing them with all the information they’ll need to refer ideal clients to you. Be sure to give them plenty of feedback, both in terms of what worked and what didn’t.

The more closely you work with them, the higher the quality of referrals. Of course, you’ll do the same for them as well as you reciprocate.

6) Rewarding your Referral Partners

In order to inspire your referral partners to continue their efforts and even increase them, you’ll need to reward them. This can be a little tricky and is best worked out with each person individually.

Some people are looking for straight commissions, while others would be positively insulted by the mere suggestion of that. So this is not a one-size-fits-all situation.

7) Tracking your results and tweaking the system

In order to get the most out of your referral partner relationships, you need to track the results. Keep tabs on how many referrals you have received and how well they worked out.

With that information in hand, you can give feedback to your referral partners and help them send even better referrals your way. This information will also help you as you seek out additional referral partners.

Ready to get more referrals and new clients… even in summer? Join Sue Clement at her FREE teleseminar on summer marketing and get ready to grow your business. To claim your access, just click here: http://www.sueclement.com/teleseminar-sms.html.

Can’t make it? Sign up anyway — Sue will be happy to send you the audio download link after the call.

Last 5 posts by Sue Clement

• Shoestring Marketing Strategies - How to Make the Most of Your Daily Interactions - August 20th, 2011
• Business Payola - Keeping Your Referral Partners Motivated - August 20th, 2011
• How to Get New Clients in 2011 - May 11th, 2011
• Smart Goal Setting - Set Goals for Marketing Your Business Effectively and Growing Your Profits - May 11th, 2011
• Business Success Strategies: How to Be Lucky in Business (And Not Just on St. Patrick's Day) - March 17th, 2011

This is a Free Reprint Article

You are welcome to publish this article on your website, blog, ezine (free of cost) as long as the author's resource information remains intact and all links remain live and clickable. This article may be published offline in print, provided the author's name and full link to the author's website are both included. Copyright is reserved by author. Read our full Terms of Service.

Tags: get more referrals, get new clients, get referral partners, Sue Clement