Practical referral guides
What to tell referral partners so they can introduce the right business
“Let me know if anyone needs us.” It sounds straightforward, but it leaves your referral partner to decide who might need you, how to explain your service and when to bring your name into a conversation.
A referral partner brief makes that easier. It gives someone enough context to recognise a useful connection and introduce your business in a way that helps their contact.
Describe the client in terms a partner can use
Begin with the type of business and the person you usually help. Be more specific than “small businesses” where you can: size, stage of growth, type of service or the role of the person making the decision.
You do not need a long profile. The aim is to help a partner recognise a relevant situation in the conversations they already have.
Explain the problem that starts the conversation
Clients often talk about a problem before they name the solution. Your partner may hear “We keep missing follow-ups” long before anyone asks for a CRM implementation service.
Describe the practical difficulty, its effect on the business and the kind of help you provide. Keep the language familiar to the person experiencing the problem.
Give three signals worth listening for
Choose phrases or events your partner could reasonably encounter. For an illustrative CRM implementation business, useful signals might be:
- “Our enquiries are spread across different inboxes and spreadsheets.”
- “We have grown, but nobody can see who is following up which lead.”
- “We bought a CRM, but the team is still working around it.”
Those signals give an accountant, consultant or other service provider a practical reason to think of your business. They also help the third party see why the introduction could be useful.
Make the exclusions clear
Help your partner understand the situations outside your service. That could be a different type of client, a requirement you do not cover or work better suited to another provider.
A clear exclusion can prevent an awkward introduction. It also gives your partner confidence that you have thought about the fit, rather than asking them to send every enquiry your way.
Explain what happens after an introduction
Tell your partner what a first conversation involves. Who should they introduce? What information would be useful? How do you check that the person welcomes the connection? What will you do once the introduction arrives?
Give them a short way to explain your business. For example: “They help small businesses organise how they manage sales enquiries, including setting up a CRM that fits the way the team works.”
That is a starting description for the illustrative business, not a promise about the outcome of a particular project.
A short referral partner brief to start with
We help: [type of business and relevant contact].
The problem we solve: [specific business difficulty].
Listen for: [three recognisable signals].
We are a good fit when: [useful qualifying details].
We are unlikely to be a fit when: [clear exclusions].
A first conversation involves: [what the contact can expect].
To introduce us: [the agreed introduction process].
Keep any commercial arrangement in the relevant agreement so your partner can refer to the conditions. Review the brief after real introductions: what was easy to recognise, and what was misunderstood?
Help your introducers help you and their network
A useful brief respects the relationship your partner already has with the third party. It helps them make a relevant suggestion, gives the person being introduced a reason to engage and helps your business meet someone with a recognisable need.
Referrals Made Simpler gives you a place to define and share that context and keep the resulting opportunities connected. Explore referral partner management or read our guide to building a referral strategy.
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