I regularly meet with prospects and help them understand how much business they are getting from their network.  It is very enlightening and they are always surprised by their results.  Do you know your referral percentage?  No?  Don’t worry, most people don’t know, but it is very enlightening.  So, grab a pencil and a calculator and I will help you find your “Referral Percentage” here we go,

1. List 4 people in your network (not customers) who have passed you the most business by referral this year.  For instance Tom, Sue, Bill, Kim.

2. Now, for each person write the number of referrals they have passed you in the last 12 months.  Tom=4, Sue=12, Bill=5 and Kim=8

3. Think about each of those people, how many people do you believe each of them know?  On average, we each know about 250 people. So, Tom=300, Sue=500, Bill=800 and Kim=200

4. Next step, add all of the referrals you have received together, in our example it would be 29, and then add all of the network members together.  In our example, it would be 1800.

5. Last step, you will need your calculator to complete the process,  29 divided by 1800 equals .016%

What is your percentage?  Are you surprised?  Did you have 4 referral sources?  Many of my clients are shocked and frustrated when they do this exercise.  It is possible to increase this number.  The very first time I did this it was .010 and I was shocked.

Here is the real question, what are you going to do to change this percentage?  What steps can you take to develop a higher referral percentage?   Hint:  Stop adding people to your network, instead start digging deeper into your network and develop stronger strategic relationship!  Start with the 4 people you listed here and if you did not have four then work on the ones you have.  When you are sure that you have increased that relationship, then move on to create a new one, until your have your “Four”.

Hazel M Walker, owns three award winning franchise’s. She is a 10 year owner of two BNI Franchises where she teaches members how to leverage their time and network to build each others businesses. She is also a Referral Institute franchise owner and teaches Business Owners how to harness the Science of Referrals to develop Referrals for Life. Hazel is a published author in New York Times best sellers Masters of Networking and Masters of Sales. As a member of the National Speakers Association she travels the world speaking to businesses and women’s organizations on the topics of networking to create a life you love.

My son is very interested in playing golf.  He plays regularly, even in the winter when others are setting at home in the warmth.  He has a great game, plays daily, and spends time practicing.  He loves the game and has a keen interest in becoming better.

On the other hand, there is Tiger Woods.  Tiger is committed to playing golf.  He spends money and time to improve his game every single day.  He strives to learn something new to improve his game.  He knows that he is one of the best in the world and he knows that he can always learn more.  He has coaches that hold him accountable while he spends time and money improving his game.  That is commitment.

So are you interested in growing your business by referral, or are you committed?  

Common traits of those committed to a business by referral:

• They regularly take the time to learn more about referrals
• They practice what they learn
• They have accountability coaches or partners
• They implement systems in their business
• They never make the assumption that they already know
• They seek others who are working to do the same

Experts are committed to what they are doing, while amateurs are merely interested. Which are you? 

Hazel M Walker, owns three award winning franchise’s. She is a 10 year owner of two BNI Franchises where she teaches members how to leverage their time and network to build each others businesses. She is also a Referral Institute franchise owner and teaches Business Owners how to harness the Science of Referrals to develop Referrals for Life. Hazel is a published author in New York Times best sellers Masters of Networking and Masters of Sales. As a member of the National Speakers Association she travels the world speaking to businesses and women’s organizations on the topics of networking to create a life you love.

I think that one of the best tips that I can pass along to all of you, are the books I have read and how they have impacted my business. This week I would like to tell you about a book that I believe is very pertinent to the referral process. The Speed of Trust, written by Stephen M.R. Covey.

Trust or Credibility is the most important aspect of building your business by referral. If a person does not trust you, they are never ever going to refer business to you. Equally, if they do not trust your team or business they will be reluctant to refer to you. In the past I believed that there was little that you could do to speed up trust or manage trust. That changed recently when I picked up a copy of “The Speed of Trust”. Speed and trust do not really seem to go hand in hand, after all you can’t rush trust or can you?

Stephen explains the high cost to organizations and individuals to have no trust or low trust. He also bust the myths that we have about trust and address the reality of trust, for instance it is a common belief that “You can’t teach trust.” Reality is “trust can be effectively taught and learned, and it can become a leverageable, strategic advantage.” Read the book to get the other 7 Myths.

The foundation of the book is the discussion of the 5 waves of trust, self trust, relationship trust, organizational trust, market trust, and societal trust with the steps and tips for building each of these levels.

BONUS:   Take a look at his website, The Speed of Trust there are variety of resources for you to take advantage of, get a Complimentary analysis of your personal credibility or an Online survey to assess the level of trust colleagues, friends, and others have in you. I was surprised by my results!

Get the book today, you will be glad you did!   TRUST ME!

Hazel M Walker, owns three award winning franchise’s. She is a 10 year owner of two BNI Franchises where she teaches members how to leverage their time and network to build each others businesses. She is also a Referral Institute franchise owner and teaches Business Owners how to harness the Science of Referrals to develop Referrals for Life. Hazel is a published author in New York Times best sellers Masters of Networking and Masters of Sales. As a member of the National Speakers Association she travels the world speaking to businesses and women’s organizations on the topics of networking to create a life you love.

My son is very interested in playing golf.  He plays regularly, even in the winter when others are setting at home in the warmth.  He has a great game, plays daily, and spends time practicing.  He loves the game and has a keen interest in becoming better.

On the other hand, there is Tiger Woods.  Tiger is committed to playing golf.  He spends money and time to improve his game every single day.  He strives to learn something new to improve his game.  He knows that he is one of the best in the world and he knows that he can always learn more.  He has coaches that hold him accountable while he spends time and money improving his game.  That is commitment.

So are you interested in growing your business by referral, or are you committed?  

Common traits of those committed to a business by referral:

• They regularly take the time to learn more about referrals

• They practice what they learn

• They have accountability coaches or partners

• They implement systems in their business

• They never make the assumption that they already know

• They seek others who are working to do the same

Experts are committed to what they are doing, while amateurs are merely interested. Which are you? 

Hazel  owns and operates a franchisee of Referral Institute, a worldwide referral marketing training organization. As a Master Trainer, Hazel provides business-expansion expertise to entrepreneurs and corporations by teaching business professionals comprehensive referral marketing stratagem. In 2006, her franchise earned both the Top-Grossing Franchise award and the honor of hosting the Referral Institute International Conference.