What really makes you referable?

I spotted a good article by sales expert Jeffrey Gitomer in a recent issue of the Portland Business Journal in which he lays out the five and a half elements (if you read Gitomer at more length, you'll discover he's a big fan of fractions) that he believes breed referrals :

1. Be likeable. Goes without saying.

2. Be reliable. By this, he means that you and everything you represent (your firm, your products, your services) must be the best, and that your clients must feel completely secure that you are there for them.

3. Be considered an expert in your field. "To be referable," Gitomer writes, "you must have an expertise that breeds confidence."

4. Inspire trust. Before they'll refer you, people must feel secure that you will do everything in the referred party's best interests.

5. Have a track record. You must have already done the same thing for the client, Gitomer explains, who is comfortable you can repeat the performance.

5.5  Be a valuable resource.  Go beyond doing only what you say you're going to do. Help others gain some additional form of value that may or may not be attached to your product or service.

These are excellent guidelines that you can use to evaluate your practice and your client relationships. #3 is an item where advisors often fall down, typically because they have not identified, even for themselves, a specific target market and the unique expertise and value they bring to that market. To project expertise, you need to know whom you help and how, and be able to articulate that to your clients and to other professionals who might send referrals your way. 

For more on this issue, check out these Horsesmouth articles (free registration required):

The 'Everyday Advisor' vs. the 'Branded Advisor'
When you follow the three key elements of a disciplined branding system, you'll absolutely clobber the competition. The reason: A focused, concentrated effort shows people who you are, what you stand for, and why it matters. Compare that to the "everyday advisor" and see the difference for yourself.

Inside a Successful Niche
Some advisors suffer from a misunderstanding about what constitutes a "niche" or "target market." Others understand how to exploit a niche opportunity and turn it into a thriving line of new business. Here's one success story to emulate.

5 Steps to Targeting a High-End Niche
Advisors who fail to establish themselves in one marketing sphere end up screening prospects for affluence but not much else. That never works.

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