Mastering the World of Selling: The Ultimate Training Resource from the Biggest Names in Sales

Chapter 11. Cultivating Endless Referrals: An Introduction

Bob Burg

Burg Communications

How do we make the prospecting process both fun and profitable? By developing what I call "Personal Walking Ambassadors." These are typically "Centers of Influence" (those people who already have large, prestigious personal spheres of influence and have lots of credibility within those spheres) who will enthusiastically connect us with those people who are ready, willing, and able to buy what we sell. In other words, these referred prospects cross the "Marketing Bridge" of "need it, want it, and can afford it."

Picture a rainbow. At the end of that rainbow is the proverbial pot of gold. In a sense, we could say that the pot of gold is "where the money is" . . . where those who can and will buy are located. Much more importantly, these are the people we have the best opportunity to serve, and the lives to which we can add the most value.

Too many salespeople spend the majority of their time at the beginning of the rainbow, doing work that is hard, unsatisfying, and often not particularly profitable. They cold call, send out literature to the percentage-wise few who are interested (or "say" they are), and follow up, follow up, follow up.

While this, of course, is certainly a legitimate part of selling, it's also the most difficult, the most time consuming, and the least profitable.

The answer is to cultivate a network of endless referral business. The two key words are "Network" and "Referrals."

Networking ...