Reframing Can Lead to Referring

Bob Burg, www.burg.com

“Referrals are the direct result of doing the correct things in the referral-gathering process,” declares Bob Burg, author of Endless Referrals and co-author of The GoGiver. “Most people ask, ‘Do you know anyone who would be a good prospect for my widgets?’ This approach usually elicits a couple of seconds of deep thought followed by, ‘Well, I can’t think of anyone right now, but when I do, I’ll call you.’ Ah, but how often do they ever actually call?” Burg explains:

The problem is you’re asking them to pick individuals out of a crowd in their mind of about 250 people. That’s the average person’s sphere of influence. It’s like being asked if you’ve heard any good jokes lately. Personally, although I’m exposed to jokes every day over the Internet, I can never think of one at the time I’m asked.

Tom Hopkins, in his book How to Master the Art of Selling, advises helping your referrer isolate specific people they can identify and remember by narrowing their frame of reference. How? Here’s a brief example:

“You: Dave, you’re an avid golfer, aren’t you?”

“Dave: Yes, I am. I play every weekend.”

“You: Hmm. Is there a specific foursome you play with?”

“Dave: Absolutely, Tom Smith, Rita Jones, and Harry Browne.”

“You: Dave, would any of them seem to be good candidates for …?”

One more example. We know Dave is a Rotarian. Instead of asking if “anyone” in Rotary would be a good prospect (that’s still too large a frame), try:

“You: Are there one or two people in your club that you tend to sit with every meeting?”

“Dave: Just one—Mike O’Brien. Been friends for years.”

“You: Do you feel Mike would be a good candidate for …?”

Have three or four specific frames of reference that you know in advance you are going to ask about. All it takes is one name to trigger off an avalanche of referrals.