When you notice someone who is masterful at their craft, you’ll see that they build in routines in various aspects of their life. These routines get them closer to their big goals.
In some cases, an existing habit can be applied for another aspect of your life, like keeping one calendar for both your personal and professional appointments. When you have one calendar, it makes tracking appointments and managing priorities more efficient.
When it comes to keeping in touch with prospects and with your referral sources, however, one size does not fit all. Your eNewsletter that keeps in touch with your prospects may be a great way to stay in touch with people who may use your services, but not appropriate to a colleague who sends you referrals but would not be a customer of your products and/or services.
In these cases, having a stakeholder-specific system for your referral sources is more effective. When creating a system to keep in touch with your referral sources, ask them how you can help them. Two ways you might add value to your referral sources include:
1. Make an introduction to someone they have been trying to connect with for some time. Your referral sources will appreciate it when you can make an introduction to someone they’ve been trying to connect with for some time. Tap into your social media connections to see if you’re already connected to the person or company they want to be introduced to and make the connection.
2. Invite your referral sources to events with you. When you invite your referral source to an event you’re attending, you can both leverage your attendance to one event by cross promoting each other. When done consistently, you’ll create great relationships with your referrals and motivate them to send referrals your way, too.
By creating stakeholder-specific systems, you also keep your messaging clear and your database current. In sending out a regular letter to my referral sources, I discovered several people changed or expanded their target market. They returned a response in the self-addressed, stamped envelope I included with my letter.
My referral sources thanked me for asking them about any updates to their contact information and their target market. Because of the stakeholder- specific system, referrals and my messaging is also spot on.
When developing your systems, make sure that it meets the needs of the recipient. When you do, watch as your systems do the heavy lifting for you and you become the master of your craft.
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