Referral marketing has become an integral part of a business’ branding plan. There’s a lot to say about interacting with your core audience, but also including them as a big piece of your brand. You want supporters not only to buy, but to promote and genuinely believe in your brand in a way that can create more organic growth. That’s why referral marketing is so important because it bridges different elements together that ultimately results in two factors: a huge traffic boost (locally and globally) and growth in sales. Here are 6 tips to make referral marketing a lot easier.
Why Do People Share?
It’s human nature to want to share since the beginning of time. It’s a good way of maximizing your resources and it builds a genuine bond between your interaction with the people. However, here are some reasons why people tend to share these days:
Creates An Impression
Whether it’s posting about a new job title, a picture of yourself dolled up for the night’s engagements, going to an expensive restaurant, or a trip out of the country – we tend to want to be recognized for things like that. It’s a way of self-flattery. Much deeper than that is the new generation of doing things. It’s a show and prove kind of time that’s very trendy. People want to see you out and about doing things. It’s a way to kind of validate yourself in the world. These create strong impressions on your peers and build your influence.
It Makes Us Feel Good
Have you ever gone on a vacation somewhere and just wanted to re-live everything? Scroll through those pictures and you’ll feel a certain way about things on a positive note. It’s the same thing with a product. If the product is really great, then someone wants to share their experience because it provided some happiness in his life. BufferApp goes into details about social behavior in the article, “The Psychology of Facebook.”
Each One, Teach One
We also share to give information to others. Sharing knowledge has been around since the days of passing stories down generation by generation. That’s why there are so many resources out there from recipes, tutorials, and vlogs to help us solve problems.
Connect With Others
This is one of the keys because a lot of people want to be connected. Sharing is a good way to interact and really build a synergy with the target audience. It’s not about just selling something but sharing an experience with someone. Hootsuite has some good advice on “6 Ways Social Media Helps People.”
Power of Persuasion
Sharing is powerful because there’s real purpose behind it. When it comes to a campaign on a social, political, or even business level, there are people against or for the cause. However, the sharing aspect is powerful because it lets people become aware so they can decide if the particular campaign is really something they actually can get behind. That’s why word of mouth is so important.
Here’s a great infographic article called “What (And Why) Do People Share on Social Networks?”
Word of Mouth is an Asset
Why did I say “word of mouth is an asset?” It’s simple, really. At the end of the day, who do we trust? Is it a business man? Is it a politician? Is it a random guy on the street corner selling a good for half price? It’s a big NO in most cases. However, we do trust our families and our closest friends. Why? We’ve known each other for a long period of time, so that builds a certain trust level that no one can match. Here are a few things to consider:
What Were Your Last Purchase Decisions?
Think of the last 10 things you bought. How many of them came from a friend’s or family member’s suggestion? Half the purchase decisions you make tend to be influenced by others because we want that reassurance that what you’re buying actually has value.
More Effective Than Advertising
While placing the right ads definitely builds visibility, it doesn’t translate into trust. When you go to a friend or a relative, you generally believe in what that person has to say. That’s what makes referrals so much powerful because a supporter is that middleman or trust link that makes the buying cycle much more accessible. Forbes makes some great points in “Why Word of Mouth Marketing is the Most Important Social Media.”
Fills in the Gap On Every Step of the Purchase Decision
Whether it’s an email, text message, social media share, or just getting a lead directly to the store, a referral from someone you know is much more valuable. Here’s a great article talking about a repeated time of “Word-of-Mouth Again Said Leading Purchase Influencer.”
Immediate Influence on Buying Action
It’s one thing to look at a bunch of advertising and recommendations. However, it’s another to get information from family and friends especially when they have your best interest at heart. I mean, who knows you better than family or friends? They want to save you from a bad experience and lead you to a good one.
Relationships Affect Decisions
Honestly, this is one of the more important things to worry about. Not all things are created equal and that’s certainly the case for decisions on important things. One thing to note is that a business wants you to buy a product to simply put money in their pocket. While someone that’s close to you will actually do it for free. They actually want you to get value from the decision and that’s it. There are some excellent points made in the Harvard Business Review article “Why Customer Referrals Can Drive Stunning Profits.”
While you may not get the global reach with word of mouth, sincerity is a strong suit. More people will support based on the opinion of someone they trust. That makes it a bit more powerful than a random advertisement or suggestion to buy.
What Stops Your Supporters From Making Referrals?
There are a few things that impede the process of actually going through a referral. This is something you should make yourself aware of because you don’t want to go through all of that trouble and get a supporter who cannot finalize the deal. Take a look at some reasons why you don’t end up making a referral.
Not Recalling Their Full Experience
This is one of the main reasons why a referral doesn’t happen. People can’t fully recall the experience. Let’s say you’ve recently made a purchase and you had a great experience. Maybe someone has an inquiry about where to get product X and you’ve bought the same item they want. You’ve made an agreement with the person you’ve done business with saying that you’ll refer others. However, in the process you forgot the person’s name. You’ve forgotten why that person is a great asset as far as getting the right product. This makes it hard to refer others because you can’t get them the value they need to move on with the purchase.
It’s Your Job to Remind Them
You need to constantly remind your supporters to get those referrals out. Don’t be spammy because that defeats the purpose. What’s needed is a healthy balance between good emails or messages that include your product and giving them value. It’s only in this balance that you can get your point across in a less intrusive manner. Keep yourself in their sights so they have it on top of their mind instead of in the back.
Timing is Key
It’s all about knowing the opportunity when it presents itself. When a person alludes to a particular need, that’s when you keep your eyes and ears open. The best thing is knowing how to break down a good sale time for your supporter. Let them know a particular strategy for promoting your product through word of mouth in a way that will help spark a sale.
Knowing the Value of Your Product
If you don’t know the value of your product, no one else can really take you from point A to point B. It’s important early on to establish this with your supporters. If they don’t know what you’re all about it, it’s hard to convince others to want to buy into your brand. Make sure they know the specifics so it makes things easier for them to promote your product to get people to sign up for your product or service. The right communication is very important because you need them to understand how to push your product in a way that gives others value.
Get the Word Out
Referral marketing is not a creepy guy behind the corner looking to make a sale. You need to push the word out by any means necessary. Here are a few tips to help you get some attention to your brand.
Powerful Call to Action
One of the best ways to get referrals is by having a good call to action on your page. Everything from a quality sign up on your landing page, popups on the purchase pages, widgets on your blog posts, and anything creative will really help you spread the word better. Also, it’s not a bad idea to have a small referral on your packaging as well. Maybe even a coupon to go with the purchase to entice people to not only buy your products but help you promote as well. Take a look at SlideShare’s “4 of the Best Customer Referral Program Examples.”
Custom Referrals for Specific Audiences
There’s nothing like knowing your audience and making specialized referrals just for them. It’s important because each person alive is different, so you have to treat your followers the same way. Some will respond to subtly while others go for a more in your face method. Don’t be afraid to retarget your audience to see if they bite back. You never know how a new campaign affects your long-term growth.
Find Out a Rhythm Between Referrals and Sales
Typically, Mondays and Thursdays are the best days of the week. Why? Well, think about it. Ever heard the term “Money Making Mondays?” Well, that actually applies to sales as well. Monday is one of the best days of the week to actually make conversions. Think about it. People are just getting back to work and trying to make the week go fast. In their idle time, what are they doing? Shopping. Thursday is powerful because it’s the day before Friday. People will end up referring others to different things and typically Friday is payday. So, it won’t be just an impulse buy but something to think about overtime. This is a great lead into the long-term supporter.
Use Social Media to Your Advantage
Social sharing is a great way to spread the message quickly. Using popular memes, powerful images, and good messages between like-minded people will enhance your reach. Also, referrals tend to work better in this space because a number of people can see it and you can get straight to the point. Encourage your supporters to promote via their own social networks as well. You can set up custom images and banners for better conversion rates.
Check out this video from Brian Tracy on building your brand along with referrals:
Give Your Supporters Great Incentives
From Visually.
Rewards make the world go round. There’s nothing like getting something special for doing great work. Sure, your typical referral will get a nice commission after selling products. That’s fine and dandy. However, what will make them go the extra mile to bring you the conversion you need? Is it a special prize, discounts on products for a long period of time, or a trip out of the country?
Appeal to Your Different Supporters
Everyone is unique and what’s great about that is it really diversifies the way your company moves. Apply that same mentally to the incentives. People like exclusive things because it’s something generally unattainable to the masses. It also shows that you pay attention to the things they want and need.
Reward Your Supporters Quickly
This is another valuable tactic because we live in an age of trends. Attention deficit is the name of the game because people are so caught up in what’s happening right now. When someone makes a referral, have an automated message and a gift whether it’s a small gift card for 10% off on their next product or just a freebie for referring a few people. It all really depends on the amount of work done. Need some ideas for rewards? Check out the Small Business Sense article, “10 Rewards and Incentives That You Can Offer Your Clients in Exchange for Referrals.”
Show Them Love
If you have a few standout referrals, just send a genuine congratulations on one of your pages. It could be in announcements. Getting recognition not only puts a smile on someone’s face but it can excite and motivate others to do better. Referral marketing is becoming one of the top notch ways to really take your product reach and sales to another level. Getting into the mindset early will help you go through any small issues you could run into without any preparations. What are some methods you use to help you create a more effective referral marketing strategy? Send us your thoughts below.
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