DuctTapeMarketing.com
Nov 13th, 2007 

In this issue:

Resource #1 - Free Coaching Excellence Series - John Battelle
Resource #2 - Search Engine News - My small business SEO tool
Main Article - A Referral Marketing Success Story
Free Magazine - Free subscription to Chief Marketer Report
Further Reading - The Conscience of a Liberal - Paul Krugman
Featured Listening - Raising Sand - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss

Add your articles to the Duct Tape Marketing Article Directory
Participate in the Duct Tape Marketing Forum
Coming Soon - Duct Tape Marketing WorkBench
Duct Tape Marketing On the Road - see the schedule of speaking events

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Featured Resource #1 - Coaching Excellence Series with John Battelle
 

 

John Battelle
Author of The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture and founder of Federated Media - Battelle is considered one of the leading experts on new media, Web 2.0 and online advertising. - November 27th, 2007 Noon Central (GMT - 6)

Enroll here for log-in, updates and further announcements.

Future events include Michael Gerber, David Allen, Dr Ivan Misner, Tim Ferris and Seth Godin. This series is presented in part by the Duct Tape Marketing Authorized Coach Network.
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Featured Article

Referral Marketing Success Story
"I get at least a hundred times the referrals now as I did before I had a referral plan."
      ~ Scott Hensley - Affordable Concrete Cutting

Today I want to share with you, in it's entirety, a copy of a letter I received from a small business owner who implemented a number of suggestions I gave him in the Duct Tape Marketing book. I chose to share this not to point out how brilliant I am - writing this stuff is the easy part sometimes - but to showcase how acting on what you read - the really hard part - can pay huge dividends.

Scott's business cuts concrete, not exactly your Web2.0 business - yet, he has developed a simple, but systematic approach to generating referrals and shares it very specifically in this great letter - thanks Scott

Dear John,

I implemented what I call a "passive referral system" days after I read your book. I have a small business in a niche industry and have always been successful at getting the calls, business and the money.

Either way, I can always use more calls, business and money. I never realized the importance of a referral system because I always got referrals without trying, most likely because of my niche.

I am not a "come out and ask" sales pusher type so some of your suggestions don't work for my personality. I am sure they work, don't get me wrong, it is just not something you could convince me to do.

Therefore I took the main message from your program, which is to simply have a referral plan and I implemented it. I will explain to you how I do it in a minute but the reason I am writing is to tell you that I get at least a hundred times the referrals now as I did before I had a referral plan.

I get calls from new customers that mention people that I have never heard of and say "so and so referred me!" Simply having a plan is enough for me and I want you to know I would have never thought of it without your newsletters and your book.
 
I merged my referral plan into my marketing plan to some degree. I derive a lot of business from the yellow pages and unfortunately yellow page people are loyal to the yellow pages and the next time they need a concrete cutter they will return to the yellow pages and wind up being serviced by my competition or who I like to call the "uninsured toothless cave man."

As a self proclaimed marketing professional I like to vision it as similar to the old west, my competition and I are Ranchers. These yellow page customers are wild cattle and when the come up to one of my fences I open the fence quickly and drag them in. I then take my branding iron and brand them. I send them to re-education training, if you will. Everything that they see or hear in the next several days is "Affordable Concrete Cutting" and my logo, so I can gently hypnotize them into never even thinking of leaving my ranch and when they call home or call their friends they tell everyone what a fantastic experience they have had here and how it would be great for their family, friends and colleagues to join them.

On top of that I keep my fences in tip top shape by keeping in touch with my customers by using (USPS Direct Mail) mailings every month or by sending them a decent gift for no reason other than to remind them of the great experience that they have had here. Now, my competition on the other hand, has a real problem with keeping their fences up and the fact is that their customers escape most of the time.

This is when I open my fence up and persuade them into coming in. I then hold them down and "re-brand" them (most were never branded in the first place) and again gently hypnotize them into forgetting the competition and to never even thinking of leaving.  We provide better than great service, we are on time every time and the customer's satisfaction is priority. Why wouldn't they tell everyone? Well as you said it yourself because they were never asked to! So now I ask. I don't ask verbally but I make it more than known that referrals are very important to me.
 
My first contact with the customer is via a phone call inquiry. I mention my company name several times and I make the customer feel great about using us. Next my guy goes to the site and performs the cutting. This is where the marketing and branding or re-branding begins. Once the job has been completed successfully my men give the customer a paid invoice and are instructed to hand the customer ten or so business cards and to ask that they mention it to everyone. The old "your best compliment is a referral" thing.

Unfortunately, sometimes this part gets left out. I counter this by sending each customer a computer generated paid invoice with an insurance certificate request form and a W-9. On the invoice I hand write a thank you and I enclose several business cards and a Rolodex card.

Now, as part of your referral suggestion I put a big sticker on the envelope that reads "Thank You! We appreciate your referrals." Then I prepare a Thank You card that basically says if you were happy with our service then please tell everyone ( the key is to make sure they are happy in the first place.) I don't mail this until a day after I mail the invoice. Then I prepare a "gift pack" which is a bubble mailer (lumpy mail) that contains a gift, a pocket knife with my logo on it, a mouse pad, some pens or a couple of pads of paper. Inside the mailing is a bunch of business cards and I don't mail this until the end of the week because I have to go to the Post Office and by the end of the week there are about 20 - 30.

Every new customer is placed on my mailing list and they are mailed a gift, a letter or a post card every month, come Hell or high water! Since I started using the stickers and the Thank You cards my business has exploded and is increasing exponentially.

 Just a small suggestion for referrals works incredibly. Now I know you would probably say that verbally coming out and asking works better and I am sure it does but that's not my style. The point is that thanks to you I have a referral system that is active and in place and it is working.
 
Thanks
 
Sincerely,
Scott Hensley
www.business.com

Related article - How to motivate referral sources
. ~ ~ ~

John Jantsch is a veteran marketing coach, award winning blogger and author of Duct Tape Marketing: The World's Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide published by Thomas Nelson.

He is the creator of the Duct Tape Marketing small business marketing system. You can find more information by visiting http://www.ducttapemarketing.com

You may reprint this article in its entirety if you attribute the article to John Jantsch and include the information about the author above.

Featured Reading
The Conscience of a Liberal - Paul Krugman

Economist and New York Time columnist Paul Krugman paints a pretty convincing historical portrayal of the links between politics and the economy.

Business owners are often held hostage by the political flavor of the day. Regardless of your politics, this is an informative, often eye-opening read.

This is as a much a business book as political book.

Featured Listening

Raising Sand - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss


I'm not sure who dreamed up the pairing of the former Led Zeppelin frontman and the sweetest voice to ever grace a bluegrass song, but it just works. This is two very experienced performers who know how to handle a song.

Now, this is not the Robert Plant that howled Whole Lotta Love, but the depth compliments Krauss' sensual whisper.

Albums like this can sink or swim depending upon the producer so the choice of T Bone Burnett (Tony Bennett and k.d. lang - A Wonderful World album and The Wallflowers - Bringing Down the Horse. Burnett won a Grammy award for the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.) was a great one.

The Duct Tape Marketing podcast is brought to you by att.com/onwardsmallbiz. Resources for the small business owner.

Harness the Internet - Market Your Small Business More Effectively - program includes 3 - 1 hour audio sessions with John Jantsch, workbook, and transcripts from each session.

 Visit the Catalog to select the version you would like to receive.

The Lead Generation Machine

Could Your Business Stand a Consistent, Predictable, and Growing Flow of Highly Qualified Leads?

Create a Non-Stop Flow of Highly Qualified Leads for Any Business - The Duct Tape Marketing Small Business Marketing Lead Generation Course

The Duct Tape Marketing Small Business Marketing System

This complete small business marketing program contains 15 workbooks, 12 audios CDs - packaged in a Duct Tape Marketing 3 ring binder. This is the same tool I use to coach my clients. Find out more.

Featured Resource - The Duct Tape Marketing Workshops - Does Your Group Need a Practical Small Business Marketing Speaker?

I am available to present small business marketing workshops, seminars and keynotes to groups and associations.

Find out more here

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Referral Flood - How to generate a flood of new business without spending one dime on advertising

The complete referral marketing system with over 50 real world referral tactics, examples and forms. Find out more!

Resource - Get Local Search Engine Traffic

Don�t Let Your Small Business Get Left Behind in the Local Search Engine Game

Get your local business found online automatically by local prospects with a Duct Tape Marketing Local Search Engine profile. One of the best ways to get your business found in your town by local prospects. More

Blog Lightning - How To Create and Promote Your Blog In A Flash

Drawing from my experience creating blogs, including my award winning Duct Tape Marketing Blog, I have launched a complete step-by-step guide that takes you by the hand and shows you exactly what to do to instantly create and promote a successful blog for your business.

You also get 14 video screencast tutorials that allow you to watch over my shoulder as I actually do the steps I outline in the system - It does not get any easier than this! - Order Blog Lightning



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